Literature Grade 8

Lessons
David
Copperfield
Synopsis

A gentle orphan discovers life and love in an

indifferent world. Told by the adult
Copperfield- it recounts the story of his
happy childhood with his mother, his poor
experiences after her death and how he
learns from his experiences as he grows up
with the help of other characters, some
friendly and some who cannot be trusted.
The story
who?
David Copperfield was written by the famous
Victorian author, Charles Dickens.

He grew up in a large family and, when they

faced money troubles, Charles went to work in a
boot blacking factory.

The conditions he witnessed as a worker

growing up in busy, dirty London affected the
topics of his novels.

He wrote about common people and the difficult

things they had to overcome to lead a happy
life.
what
It was published in the 19th century between 1848-1849 and is a
‘coming-of-age’ story about a boy growing up and learning how to become a
good man.

The novel includes examples of suffering, poverty, youth, society and class,
family, guilt and blame.

David's life develops just as Charles Dickens did as a child. Much of the
experiences that are portrayed in this story were experienced by him.

He drew upon his own experiences and made an autobiographical story of his
own life.
setting
when?
The story is set in England during the Victorian Era.

When was the Victorian era?

Queen Victoria reigned between June 1837 and January

1901. This covered the mid to late 19th century (1800’s).

The era was known as a time of great change and progress

for things such as industry and society.

These effects of these changes can be seen throughout

Dickens various novels
indust
ry
➢ Industry is the making
products by using machinery
and factories.

➢ As industry got bigger and

bigger, lots of people moved to
cities to find work in a factory.
indust
ry
➢ Many women and young children
worked in factories. They worked
very long hours with no holidays.

➢ Working in a factory could be

very dangerous because the
owners did not care about their
workers health or safety.
Soci
ety
➢ Rich people could afford lots of
treats like holidays, fancy clothes,
and even telephones when they were
invented.

➢ Poor people – even children – had to

work hard in factories, mines or
workhouses. They didn't get paid
very much money and it was often
dangerous.
Socie
ty
➢ The Victorians had three
social ‘classes’.
Upper Class

➢ These ‘classes’ but people into

groups depending on how rich
or poor they were.
Middle Class

➢ This could affect how you

were treated, what you could
learn and what you could do.
Working Class
themes
dickensian
Certain themes were so common
throughout Charles Dickens writing
that and adjective developed from it-
‘Dickensian’.

It’s common to use the adjective when

you talk about poverty or extreme
social inequality, subjects that Dickens
famously looked at in his novels

These themes are also in David

Copperfield.
Wealth and
classDickens tries to show in this novel that
Charles
people should not be judged by how rich they are or
by their social class.

Some upper class characters who are wealthy,

powerful, and noble are shown to have bad
personalities whereas some poor characters are
shown to be generous and sympathetic.

Dickens invites us to judge his characters based on

their individual actions and shows that wealth and
high class do not guarantee you are a good person.
Growing up
The plot mainly focuses on David growing up and his search for happiness.

All of the characters find or try to find their own path to happiness, some
through family and others through money.

The reader is left to decide which is the most important.

It shows you must never give up as David Copperfield and other characters go
through bad times but ultimately triumph through perseverance.

It also looks at making mistakes. Not all David’s choices are good ones and he
must learn from his errors to become a better person.
Great job class!