David Copperfield (Modern Library Classics) (Paperback)

by Charles Dickens (Author), David Gates (Introduction) "Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages..." (more)
Key Phrases: Miss Murdstone, Master Copperfield, Mas'r Davy (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"The most perfect of all the Dickens novels."
--Virginia Woolf -- Review

Review
"The most perfect of all the Dickens novels."
--Virginia Woolf

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Product Details

• Paperback: 896 pages
• Publisher: Modern Library; 2000 Modern Library Pbk. Ed edition (November 28, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679783415
• ISBN-13: 978-0679783411
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #63,582 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Consummate Dickens, October 30, 2003

By	J. B. Barton "Beth Barton" (Saint Petersburg, FL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

David Copperfield uses the story of Copperfield's life from birth through middle life to introduce and explore some wonderful personalities. Look more for deep and penetrating character studies than a fast moving plot line. It is not character study alone, however. Again and again, through many characters and many instances, he seems to really explore "the first mistaken impulse of an undisciplined heart", and that "there can be no disparity in marriage like unsuitability of mind and purpose". Look for these themes to come in from the very beginning and continue until they are actually spelled out by one character and contemplated by another.

When David is born, his father is already buried in the churchyard nearby. He, his mother, and their servant Pegotty live happily enough as a family until his mother remarries. The new husband does not like frivolity or friendly association with servants but more than that, he does not like David. David is sent off to boarding school and then sent out to work. Barred from his mother's affections by his stepfather, Pegotty becomes a full mother figure and his ties to her and her family only deepen with time. Through her, he meets her brother, Mr. Pegotty; her nephew?, Ham, the widow Mrs. Gummidge and Mr. Pegotty's niece, Emily. At school, he makes fast friends with many boys but most especially with the privileged James Steerforth and the not so privileged Tommy Traddles, both of whom show up again in David's adulthood. In the bottling warehouse where he is sent to work as a child, he lodges with Mr. And Mrs. Micawber who are always in debt. They also show up again in his adulthood. When the station of life that he is being forced into at his tender age becomes too much for him, he escapes to seek out his eccentric great aunt Betsey Trotwood who takes him in and provides for him. Through her, he meets her lawyer, Mr. Wickfield, his daughter Agnes, Dr. Strong and his youthful bride, Annie and we mustn't forget Uriah Heep. He marries, works hard and becomes successful. These are the majority of the characters and it encompasses more than half of the novel to get to this point. (In my copy, that was just over four hundred and forty pages).

The only slow part is after David finishes school and before he meets his wife. That part did seem to move slowly but, apart from that, the story moves very, very well and -after all the characters are set up and well developed - it takes off like a rocket and is difficult to put down without worrying about the various characters predicaments and wondering how he is going to pull all of these strings together. This IS Dickens after all. I won't spoil the meat of the plot line for you. Again, look for those themes - "the first mistaken impulse of an undisciplined heart", and "there can be no disparity in marriage like unsuitability of mind and purpose".

David Copperfield is, if such things are possible, like a "Best Of" Dickens. It is one very substantial novel and stands alone as an exquisite masterpiece. Yet so many characters from his other novels seem to return here to be rounded out and more deeply developed. David Copperfield (himself) reminds me of Pip of Great Expectations, Betsey Trotwood of Miss Havisham, Mr. Micawber of Magwitch, and Agnes of Biddy. Mr. Murdstone seems to be of the Gradgrind line from Hard Times. One character reminded me not of another character in Dicken's work but of the vile character from Les Miserables (Victor Hugo) who repeatedly attempted to extort or do harm to Jean Valjean and Marius. It would be fun to have read all of Dicken's work before reading David Copperfield just to see Dicken's feelings of the various character types and what time has done to them in his mind. Of course, like any "Best Of", you could read only this one work and have a deep and abiding appreciation of Dickens without having read any of his others.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The theme of David Copperfield, September 25, 2005

By	Stephen Balbach (Ashton, MD United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is a first-person life-story of David Copperfield ("DC") that draws large on Dickens ("CD") own life. It was his "favourite child" and hailed as his best work by Tolstoy and Virginia Woolf. It includes a cast of over 50 characters. For its time it was one of the greatest works, and still is.

To enjoy Dickens you have to let go, sit back, and enjoy the ride and not worry about the destination. Because although you can see the destination early on, like a mountain far off in the distance, the road to get there is entirely unpredictable and the distances traveled are deceiving to the minds eye. The trick is to enjoy the here and now, wherever the story happens to be, because Dickens will never follow the predictable path, and can leave one exhasburated waiting for a plot closure. Consider a Dickens journey never-ending and you can just relax and enjoy the ride.

The primary theme of the novel is how Copperfield learns to have a disciplined heart and morals. In other words, he grows up and becomes a man. This is seen throughout all the relationships in the book: love, business, friendship -- the mistakes of an "undisciplined heart". He learns self control to do the right thing even if his initial impulse is something else (Dora versus Agnus). He learns confidence in his dealings with the world (his innocent days of being ripped off all the time such as by waiters and cab drivers "my first fall"). He learns respect through the mistakes of others such as Steerforth. Self control, Confidence and Respect are all hallmarks of a grown man and we see Copperfield develop a sense of these, and the misfortunes that happen otherwise, to himself and those around him.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The only Dickens book I love, September 4, 2005

By	kevin m antonio (rumford, ri United States) - See all my reviews

...well, besides 'A Christmas Carol'...

I've tried other Dickens books, 'Great Expectations' (hated it; Pip was so self-centered), 'A Tale of Two Cities' (who knew the French Revolution could be so... boring? 'The Scarlet Pimpernel' and 'Scaramouche' are much better), but 'David Copperfield' leaves them all in the dust. Dickens himself said it was his favorite.
The characters are unforgettable: Betsey Trotwood, David's resolute aunt (and her companion the great Mr. Dick); the evil Mr. Murdstone (and his equally bad sister Miss Murdstone); the devoted Pegotty and her extended family, good hearted Ham, poor Em'ly, lone and lorn Mrs. Gummidge; the sneaky slippery schoolmaster Mr. Creakle; the horrid Uraih Heep (Dickens has the BEST character names), the uncaring Steerforth; the eternally optimistic Mr. Micawber ("something will turn up!") and his steadfast wife Emma ("I will never abandon Mr. Micawber!")... and the two loves of his life, Dora Spenlow (of whom I think we get the phrase "Dumb Dora") and the devoted, angelic, too good to be true Agnes Wickfield. And there are even more characters...!
I was hooked right away in Chapter 1 with Betsey Trotwood's unforgettable reaction to David's birth... and it's all up and downhill from there in regards to David's life. Hardly anyone calls him by his real name throughout the massive novel. He's either "Trotwood", "Dasiy", "Doady", or "Copperfield". and he bears that, and all of life's mishaps extremely well (if I were him I'd be saying, "My name is DAVID!!!").
Dickens just piles on situation after situation, David's and his mother's lives being made a living hell by the Murdstones, hsi being sent to the worst school in the world, falling for Little Em'ly, pasting labels to bottles of cheap wine for a living, taken under the Wickfield's wings, growing older, falling in love, being betrayed... and I'd go on, but this isn't meant to be Cliff Notes...
Dickens wrote 'David Copperfield' in 20 monthly installments, and was being paid by the word. Sometimes that shows with some very expansive and detailed passages, but he writes so well they are a pleasure to read. I've read 'D.C.' twice, so far.
So, turn off that TV, grab a copy of 'David Copperfield' and settle in for many enjoyable days and nights of great reading.