So Sharp Was The Smart
"So bitter were my feelings and so sharp was the smart" is an iconic quote from chapter 8 of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. The protagonist Pip has just been humiliated by the pretty cold-hearted Estella at Satis House. She treats him like a lower class outsider, feeding him insolently in the yard, as if he were a dog in disgrace. When she leaves, Pip hides in an alley to weep, kicking the wall and twisting his hair out of distress. Pip feels intense resentment, shame and sadness about his social standing and how easily he was demeaned. The smart: In 19th century English a smart refers to a sharp stinging pain or a deep emotional wound. Right before this line, Pip explains that he felt so humiliated, spurned and angry that he couldn't find a single adequate name to describe unique agony. Pip's "smart" is the painful realisation of how unfair and cruel the class divided adult world can be to an innocent child.