Paul Spencer

English 12
Literary Analysis
May 3, 2010

In his novel David Copperfield, Victorian author Charles Dickens captures the

harsh reality and the challenges of life from a brutal boyhood to the anguish of lost love

in youth. Dickens paints a picture of a world that, on the outside, seems gentle and

welcoming, but is in reality harsh and unforgiving. Dickens’s success in creating such a

realistic account of Copperfield’s life to the fact that this novel actually portrays

biographical elements from Dickens’s own life: his birth and early childhood, his family

and friends, and his education and career.

David Copperfield’s life begins in a modest house with mother and her maid.

Copperfield’s father has died roughly three months before David is born. He lives a

happy life and as a family has little trouble. David’s life radically changes when he is

twelve (according to blank Charles Dickens life changed around this time as well) when

his mother remarried a man who cared nothing of David and his interests. Charles

Dickens life began very similarly; Charles was born and raised among a modest family

that suffered few problems, and Charles life also radically changed at twelve. A few

notable differences between Copperfield and Dickens, is that unlike Copperfield

Dickens actually had a father. His father sent him away to do some schooling when he

was not yet twelve, unfortunately Mr. Dickens overspent his income and was sent to

prison along with the rest of his family, except Charles. When Charles was twelve he

began to work in a factory ten hours a day. David suffered a similar fate, David’s step

father sent him away at twelve to do schooling in London. After spending a time away

from his family David learns of that his mother has died. He returns home to be abused

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by his step father and his step father’s evil sister. In both Charles and David’s time child

labor was a very commonly employed. Charles worked at a factory where he pasted

labels on jars of shoe polish for ten hours a day. David worked at his step fathers wine

factory pasting labels on wine bottles for ten hours a day. Both David and Charles

suffered under these conditions for several years before finally expanding their

boundaries to new adventures. During these times of hardship both Charles and David

have the same hobby, reading, which they spend any free time doing just that.

After several years of enduring the hardships of child labor and the cruel whip of

his step father, David set out on his own way to find his mothers sister, who was his

only surviving relative. During that time David will be convinced of becoming a lawyer

and he begins to go to school to be one. Charles life is almost exactly the same.

Charles expands his boundaries and begins to work as a junior clerk at a law office. So

far one can easily see the similarities between Charles and David’s life. It is almost as if

Charles is recounting his stories and how he felt during those times of his life. Probably

the most profound similarity between their lives is the fact that while they were both

working a branch of law they meet the loves of their lives, amazingly both Charles and

David’s love end about the same. Charles falls in love with a woman by the name of

Maria. They both deeply love each other; however Maria’s parents disapprove of the

relationship and seek to end it. In a desperate attempt to break them up, Maria’s

parents send her away to Paris for schooling. Charles meets her again later on in his

life, but to his disappointment she is no longer what he imagined her to be. David meet

Dora and fell in love with her during his time in law school. Dora’s parents likewise

disapproved of their growing relationship. Unlike Charles life, however, Dora’s father

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actually died and in grief she left to live with her nieces. As can be expected David

meets Dora again later in life. But, unlike Charles and Maria, David and Dora marry.

Dora actually proves to be a terrible wife and turns out to be nothing o what David had

expected. However David loves her and stays with her. Dora eventually dies and David

moves on to remarry. Charles life in his older years is a tragic time. Charles marries

Catherine but eventually loses her due to his own faults. Near the end of his life Charles

is all alone because of his inability to care about anything except himself and his writing.

Charles was unable to change who he was and pushed people away that didn’t meet

his expectations, such as his wife and even some of his children. David shared the

same outlook on life. His later years were tragic, constant with loss of friends and family.

It may be suggested that Charles had “killed” his associations and that in his story

David Copperfield; he killed of the people closest to David as if he was sharing what he

had done in his mind.

As has been mentioned above both David and Charles worked or long hours in

their childhoods and were more that prepared for a real job. This part of their lives is so

similar that it seems that Charles was writing an autobiography. David and Charles had

many opportunities or jobs and a huge selection of career paths from which they could

choose from. How ironic is it then that David would chose the same line of work and

career path that his writer had chosen? David underwent law training but he chose a

completely different path to be his career. David, like Charles, took up writing and was

very successful in it. So David spent his life trying to write and over a very short time

became well known in London. He pursued his career with a vengeance with the

exclusion of almost everything else. Charles was also gripped with a similar fervor of

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writing. In the end of both their tales, both Charles and David ended their lives on

almost the same note. Amazing authors that everyone loved except by those that

actually knew them.

One can easily see the similarities between Charles Dickens and David

Copperfield. Even the resemblance in their names, if you reverse Charles initials you

will end up with David’s initials. These two men shared the same fate as children under

cruel parents and harsh child labor. They both found love while working in a law office,

but their love turned out to be as bitter sweet as one could expect. Charles defiantly

paints a vivid picture of his life in a fictional autobiography that the world has come to

love. Charles Dickens can capture the harsh reality and the challenges of life from a

brutal boyhood to the anguish of lost love in youth that no other author can. Dickens

also paints a picture of a world that, on the outside, seems gentle and welcoming, but is

in reality harsh and unforgiving in a way that very few could expect. David Purdue

credits Dickens success in creating such a realistic account of Copperfield’s life to the

fact that this novel actually portrays biographical elements from Dickens’s own life: his

birth and early childhood, his family and friends, and his education and career. This idea

is backed up by many critics as well as many teachers and lovers of books. The

similarities between David Copperfield and Charles Dickens life are a fact that cannot

be disputed.

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Works Citied

“Basic Charles Dickens Facts.” Web. 02 May 2010.

<http://charlesdickensfacts.com/>.

Dickens, Charles. David Copperield. Vol. 1. New York: Signet Classic, 1962.

Print.

"Family and Friends." David Perdue's Charles Dickens Page. Web. 03 May 2010.

<http://charlesdickenspage.com/family_friends.html>.

"SparkNotes: David Copperfield: Plot Overview." SparkNotes: Today's Most

Popular Study Guides. Web. 02 May 2010.

<http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/copperfield/summary.html>.

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