Far above such common things...

"I thought how Joe and my sister were then sitting in the kitchen, and how I had come p to bed from the kitchen, and how Miss Havisham and Estella never sat in a kitchen, but were far above the level of such common things." (Dickens 95).

This quote is a prime example of a character flaw of Pip's that leads to his downfall. As soon as he sees or experiences a situation that is "better" than his own, or perhaps more advanced, or of higher societal standing, he immediately becomes self-conscious of himself and his own lowly position, and immediately wants it changed. Here, after his first day at Miss Havisham's, he is comparing her and Estella's way of life, with their fancy mansion and evident fortune, to his own humble existence. He wants to change the way he lives, to rise to their level.