Flashcards for David Copperfield

Agnes Wickfield

Agnes Wickfield serves as a moral and emotional anchor in David Copperfield.

character

Betsey Trotwood

Betsey Trotwood is David Copperfield's great-aunt and one of the novel's most significant moral guides.

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Clara Copperfield

Clara Copperfield is David's young, widowed mother, and her brief but crucial role profoundly influences the emotional tone of the novel.

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Clara Peggotty

Clara Peggotty—affectionately referred to as "Peggotty" throughout the novel—is David Copperfield's loyal nursemaid and one of the most steadfast figures in his life.

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Daniel Peggotty

Daniel Peggotty is a kind-hearted fisherman from Yarmouth.

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David Copperfield

David Copperfield narrates and stars in Dickens's semi-autobiographical novel, following his transformation from a vulnerable orphan to a successful, principled author.

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Dora Spenlow

Dora Spenlow is David Copperfield's first wife, a radiant yet fragile character whose journey in the novel illustrates a young man's romantic dreams colliding with the realities of life.

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Edward Murdstone

Edward Murdstone is the main antagonist in David Copperfield, acting as the cruel stepfather whose tyranny profoundly impacts David's early and traumatic experiences.

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Ham Peggotty

Ham Peggotty is a supporting character in Charles Dickens's David Copperfield.

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James Steerforth

James Steerforth is David Copperfield's most glamorous and destructive friend—a charismatic, privileged young man whose brilliance hides a deep moral emptiness.

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Jane Murdstone

Jane Murdstone is a secondary antagonist in Charles Dickens's David Copperfield, known for being the grim and iron-willed sister of Edward Murdstone.

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Little Em'ly

Little Em'ly is the orphaned niece of Daniel Peggotty, raised with love and simplicity in the upturned boat-house at Yarmouth.

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Mr. Dick

Mr. Dick (Richard Babley) is a gentle, childlike man living under the care of Betsey Trotwood in Dover, having been rescued by her from a family that deemed him mad.

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Mr. Wickfield

Mr. Wickfield is a solicitor in Canterbury and the father of Agnes.

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Tommy Traddles

Tommy Traddles is one of the most endearing supporting characters in David Copperfield.

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Uriah Heep

Uriah Heep is the main antagonist of the novel, first introduced as a clerk at the law firm of Wickfield & Heep in Canterbury.

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Wilkins Micawber

Wilkins Micawber is one of Dickens's most cherished comic characters and plays a key role in David Copperfield.

character

“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 must show.”

This famous opening line is spoken by David Copperfield, the novel's first-person narrator, in Chapter 1 ("I Am Born").

David Copperfield (narrator) · Chapter 1: I Am Born

“I am the most miserable of men. I am the wretchedest creature that ever lived. I am the most unfortunate of human beings.”

This melodramatic lament is voiced by Wilkins Micawber, one of Dickens's most cherished comic characters, in David Copperfield (1850).

Wilkins Micawber

“I only ask for information. That is all. I am very umble.”

This line is delivered by Uriah Heep, one of literature's most notorious villains, in Charles Dickens's David Copperfield (1850).

Uriah Heep

“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.”

This famous saying comes from Wilkins Micawber, one of Dickens's most cherished comic characters, during one of his heartfelt talks with young David Copperfield.

Wilkins Micawber · Chapter 12

“Agnes, ever my guide, and best support — if you had been more mindful of yourself, and less of me, when we grew up here together, I think my heedless fancy never would have wandered from you.”

This heartfelt declaration comes from David Copperfield to Agnes Wickfield toward the end of the novel, as David finally acknowledges — and admits — the love he has been ignoring for so long.

David Copperfield · Chapter 62 — A Light Shines on My Way

“It's in vain, Trot, to recall the past, unless it works some influence upon the present.”

This quote comes from Aunt Betsey Trotwood, who affectionately calls David Copperfield "Trot," in Charles Dickens's David Copperfield.

Aunt Betsey Trotwood · Chapter 23

“Ride on! Rough-shod if need be, smooth-shod if that will do, but ride on! Ride on over all obstacles, and win the race!”

This motivating call to action comes from Aunt Betsey Trotwood as she speaks to young David Copperfield in Charles Dickens's David Copperfield (1850).

Aunt Betsey Trotwood

“I have always been thoroughly persuaded that I am not a bad man, though I have been a bad husband.”

This confession is made by Mr. Wickfield, the lawyer from Canterbury and Agnes's father, during a painful moment of self-reflection with David Copperfield.

Mr. Wickfield

“There is nothing half so green that I know anywhere, as the grass of that churchyard; nothing half so shady as its trees; nothing half so quiet as its tombstones.”

This lyrical passage is from the opening chapters of Charles Dickens's David Copperfield (1850), narrated by the adult David as he reflects on the churchyard at Blunderstone, Suffolk — where his father is buried, having died before David was born.

David Copperfield (adult narrator) · Chapter 1 – 'I Am Born'

“I loved her deeply, and I was very miserable; but everything in connection with her was so ethereal and unreal that I doubt whether I was really unhappy.”

This reflective line is voiced by David Copperfield, the narrator and main character of the novel, as he looks back on his romantic feelings for Dora Spenlow, the charming yet childlike woman he dates and eventually marries.

David Copperfield (narrator)

Agnes Pointing Upward

In David Copperfield by Charles Dickens, Agnes Wickfield's repeated gesture of pointing upward symbolizes moral and spiritual aspiration.

The Blacking Warehouse

In David Copperfield, the blacking warehouse—reflecting Dickens's own difficult childhood—serves as a powerful symbol of lost innocence and class humiliation.

The Old Boat House

In David Copperfield, the old boat house at Yarmouth — the upturned black barge that the Peggotty family calls home — captures the struggle between a simple, secure life and the vulnerability of those living outside traditional societal norms.

The Sea

In Charles Dickens's David Copperfield, the sea symbolizes fate's indifferent power and the line between life and death.

Uriah Heep's Hands

In David Copperfield, Uriah Heep's hands are a constant reminder of his hypocrisy, predatory ambition, and moral corruption.

Narrative Poem

David Copperfield is told through a first-person retrospective narrative, where the adult David reflects on his life from birth onward.

Irony

Dickens uses irony to highlight the difference between David's perceptions and what the reader sees.

Extended Metaphor

The novel weaves a sustained metaphor that connects the sea to fate, passion, and death.

Symbolism

Dickens imbues several recurring objects and spaces with deep symbolism.

Dramatic Monologue

Though the novel isn't a poem, several characters deliver lengthy speeches that act like dramatic monologues—self-revealing performances where the speaker unintentionally reveals their true nature.

Motif

The motif of hands is woven throughout the novel, reflecting each character's moral state.

Pathetic Fallacy

Dickens uses weather and landscapes to reflect the characters' emotions throughout the novel.

Allusion

Dickens skillfully incorporates literary and cultural references throughout the novel, in part because David becomes a writer and his reading shapes his development.

Repetition

Repetition is one of Dickens's key tools for comedy and character development.

Simile

Dickens uses simile to make social and psychological themes more tangible and often humorous.

Hyperbole

Hyperbole is a key feature of Dickens's comedic style, especially evident in the character of Micawber.

Juxtaposition

Dickens organizes the novel by contrasting characters with their social environments.

caul

A piece of the membrane (amniotic sac) that sometimes covers a baby's head at birth. In Victorian superstition it was considered a lucky charm and was sold as protection against drowning.

noun · Chapter 1

guineas

Old British gold coins, each worth one pound and one shilling. The word was also used as a unit of price for genteel transactions long after the coins stopped being minted.

noun · Chapter 1

set her face against

Firmly decided to oppose or disapprove of someone, refusing to be persuaded otherwise.

phrase · Chapter 1

infancy

The earliest period of a person's life, when they are a baby or very young child, before they can form clear memories.

noun · Chapter 2

willin'

A dialect spelling of 'willing,' used by the carrier Barkis as a coded marriage proposal, meaning he is ready and agreeable to the idea.

adjective · Chapter 3

solitude

The state of being completely alone, here carrying a feeling of loneliness and emotional emptiness rather than simply physical isolation.

noun · Chapter 3

desolation

A deep feeling of misery, abandonment, and hopelessness, as though everything comforting has been stripped away.

noun · Chapter 3

keyhole

The small opening in a door lock through which a key is inserted; here used literally as the only point of contact between two people separated by a locked door.

noun · Chapter 4

lone lorn creetur

A dialect phrase meaning 'lonely, forsaken creature.' Mrs. Gummidge uses it as a habitual self-pitying complaint that everything goes wrong for her alone.

phrase · Chapter 5

wilderness

Here used figuratively to mean a vast, empty, and unwelcoming place that makes a small child feel utterly lost and insignificant.

noun · Chapter 5

senior boy

An older, higher-ranking student at a school, who holds informal authority and social status over younger pupils.

noun · Chapter 6

caned

Beaten with a thin rod or cane as a physical punishment, a common disciplinary practice in Victorian schools.

verb · Chapter 6

craving appetite

An intense, compulsive desire that demands to be satisfied, used here to describe Creakle's almost physical pleasure in inflicting pain on boys.

phrase · Chapter 7

application

Diligent, sustained effort and hard work applied to one's studies or duties; the discipline to keep working even when it is difficult.

noun · Chapter 8

agony of my soul

Intense inner suffering and anguish, felt deep in one's sense of self rather than in the body, here describing David's shame at his social and intellectual degradation.

phrase · Chapter 8

superseded

Replaced or pushed aside something that came before; took over completely so that the earlier feeling no longer mattered.

verb · Chapter 9

annual income

The total amount of money a person earns in one year, used by Micawber in his famous formula to illustrate the difference between living within and beyond one's means.

phrase · Chapter 10

expenditure

The total amount of money spent over a period of time, as opposed to what is earned; outgoings.

noun · Chapter 10

companionship

The company of others one associates with regularly; here used with bitter irony to mean the degrading company of rough warehouse workers that David is forced to keep.

noun · Chapter 12

henceforth

From this point in time onward; used to signal that a new, unwanted situation will now be permanent.

adverb · Chapter 12

qualified

Having the necessary skills, experience, or maturity to do something; here David means he was far too young and inexperienced to manage on his own.

adjective · Chapter 12

earn my own bread

To support oneself financially by working; to make enough money to pay for one's own food and survival.

phrase · Chapter 12

slighted

Treated with disrespect and contempt, made to feel unimportant and worthless by those who should have cared for you.

verb · Chapter 13

clapped her hands

Brought her hands together sharply in a sudden gesture of surprise or astonishment, not as applause but as an involuntary reaction to shock.

phrase · Chapter 13