 Matilda survives the war through the guidance of her devoted but strict Christian mother and her white teacher Mr Watts, and also, more importantly, through her connection with the fictional Pip, the protagonist of Charles Dickens' "Great Expectations".Pip helps Matilda maintain a desire to live, especially after her mother, Mr Watts, and her island home all cease to exist.The novel opens with a colourful description of Watts, whom the children call Pop-Eye (The first line of the book being