On every rail and gate, wet lay clammy, and the marsh mist was so thick, that the wooden finger on the post directing people to our village – a direction which they never accepted, for they never came there – was invisible to me until I was quite close under it. Then, as I looked up at it, while it dripped, it seemed to my oppressed conscience like a phantom devoting me to the Hulks.
– Charles Dickens
Great Expectations, Chapter 3. Pip goes into the marshes in the mist of Christmas morning to bring stolen food to the convict Magwitch. The ominous description of the weather foreshadows Pip’s troubles and the fears that lie ahead for him. This includes his encounter shortly after with the other convict Compeyson who swears at him and attempts to hit him. A simile compares the direction fingerpost to a specter directing Pip to the prison ships, known as Hulks. This highlights the depth of his guilt and worry over stealing food from his family for a convict.