If faced with the question of choosing my favorite character in the Charles Dickens novel, Great Expectations, I would have to say the character that left the greatest impression on me is Joe. I feel that he is one of the only true, sympathetic characters in the book. Though uneducated and "common", Joe the blacksmith has many likable and pleasant traits that make him beyond doubt, the most beloved character in the novel. Joe is my favorite character in this story because he is consistently kind, forgiving, and caring to his friends and family throughout the entire narrative.

Firstly, Joe is a very compassionate person to many of the main characters in the book. Putting up with his abusive and overbearing wife, Joe constantly sticks up for and defends Pip while Mrs. Joe mistreats Pip by pulling on his hair or grabbing him by the ear. Joe would...