Yesterday we had the Mitchell Classics Book Group giving their views on David Copperfield, today we see what the Belper Dickens champions thought of David Copperfield after reading all 888 pages of it (or 38 hours if listening on audio).
Overall message and key themes
“There can be no disparity in marriage like unsuitability in mind and purpose” We wondered what the state of Dickens’ own marriage was when he wrote this?
Points discussed
# Family ties
# Relationships/marriage
# Child abuse/marital abuse
# Poverty.
# Micawbers recipe for happiness (stay in credit)
# Behaviour – principles of self-restraint + decency (e.g. Traddles) v self-interest/aggrandisement (Steerforth)
# Money/class
# Servants – a fantastic array and central to the plot at times: Littimer/Crupp/Heep
# Education
# Friendship
Comparisons with other Dickens books
* Less superfluous characters
* Characters introduced ‘slowly’ which makes them easier to remember!
* Plot flows well, less parts where you wonder why a scene is included
* Formulaic still (orphan / inheritance / law / greed and so on) – 3rd on the chart of ‘most Dickensian book’
* Some of the BEST characters ever
* Some women were strong in this book, nice change from Nell / Little Dorrit etc
Belper’s top characters
* Betsy Trotwood – what a woman! There’s even a beer named after her.
* Miss Mowcher, the dwarf who utters some memorable lines on attitudes to people with disabilities – but who’s presence in the plot only seems to be to catch the wicked Steerforth
* Traddles, nice chap, he deserved happiness with Sophy
* Uriah Heep
* Mr Dick
* The Micawber family
Things which were unsatisfactory
Mr Murdstone doesn’t get his come-uppance. And we couldn’t work out Rosa Dartle’s role really – was she a bit superfluous. Similarly Miss Mowcher, although we liked her.
Our reading experiences
Four of the group had partly or totally audio’d David Copperfield and were in accord that Martin Jarvis’ reading is absolutely first rate.
We agreed parts of the book were very moving without falling into over-sentimentalism. He must have known numerous adaptations for stage (+ now films) would be made!
Want to get involved?
Read what the Dickens Reading Group in Manchester, our Dickens Champions in Portsmouth and the Mitchell Classics Book Group all thought of David Copperfield.
Share your own thoughts on David Copperfield by adding a comment to this blog. Or get in touch with us to tell us if your reading group is discovering Dickens.
Remember to watch out for our Dickens Champions’ blog posts as they read and review their way through Dickens during 2012.
