Why do you think Charles Dickens chose to depict Pip as an orphan? How does this affect the reader's reaction to the events in these chapters?

I think Dickens wants to portray the economic struggle that is reflective of the nineteenth century England. The class system is rigid and Pip, being an orphan, is at the bottom of it. This makes Pip an underdog who strives to better himself. Pip, however, is still a child and sees the prospect of being a "gentleman" with rose colored glasses. Really one can ask if Pip has anything to lose by taking a chance at becoming a gentleman. The truth is that Pip has a lot to lose. The people that are most close to him clash with Pip's dream of the upper class. The orphan on pip grounds the reader to who Pip really is (a decent guy) even though Pip forgets when he is in London.