David Copperfield
(Charles Dickens)

David Copperfield

David Copperfield is the star of the novel and a semi-autobiographical version of Dickens himself. Orphaned at an early age, he winds up working in a warehouse through the negligence of his coldhearted stepfather. That experience prompts David to run away to his great-aunt in Dover, who, despite her reputation for eccentricity and irascibility, adopts him, educates him, funds his legal apprenticeship, and teaches him the values that stand him in good stead for the rest of his life: generosity, kindness, strength, honesty, and earnestness. All this sits well with David, who by nature has the same values. His life goes through a series of ups and downs, but in the end he becomes a successful author, marries his best friend from childhood, and has a family of his own and wonderful friends.

Miss Betsey Trotwood, Also Known As Aunt Betsey

Aunt Betsey is David’s great-aunt, who, as the current head of the family, deserted him at birth when he came out a boy instead of a girl. Considered a rude, eccentric recluse by many, she proves to be one of the noblest, kindest, strongest characters in the book. She took in Mr. Dick when he was on the verge of being abandoned, and ten years later, she did the same for David, who appeared on her doorstep looking like a little vagabond. It is Aunt Betsey who raises and cares for David, whom she renames Trotwood Copperfield, and of all the novel’s characters, she plays one of the most decisive roles in shaping David’s life and character into one that is fruitful and good. There is a good deal of comedy invested in Aunt Betsey’s character. Her eccentricities include a horror of donkeys and the fear that London is always about to burn down. But she is extremely astute, and for all her bluntness, which can be fierce, she has a kind and tender heart, and it’s impossible not to love her.

Clara Peggotty, Aka “Peggotty”

Peggotty, so called because she had the same first name as David’s mother, is David’s faithful old nurse, who has known him since the time he was born. Loyal, kind, straightforward, and down-to-earth, she loves David with all her heart and is always there when he needs her. She is an excellent cook and housekeeper, is constantly seen with her sewing implements, and goes out of her way to save David’s special things and always provide for him, trusting that he would do the same for her. Peggotty is the sister of Mr. Peggotty, the patriarch of the Yarmouth boathouse family.

Mr. Daniel Peggotty

One of the noblest characters in the book, Mr. Peggotty, is a rugged seaman and fisherman. Out of the goodness of his large heart, he took in two orphans and a widow, who together constitute his family and live with him in a boathouse in Yarmouth. When his niece Emily—one of the orphans and his pride and joy—is seduced by Steerforth and disappears with him, Mr. Peggotty travels the world to find and rescue her. After he finally does find her in a poorhouse in London, they emigrate to Australia together, whether they start a new life.

Little Emily

Little Emily is Mr. Peggotty’s beautiful, talented niece, whom he adopted after her father drowned at sea, her mother having died before that. She is David’s first love as a child, and she dreams of someday being a lady, which becomes her nemesis. Already on first hearing of Steerforth, she is fascinated by him, just as he is taken by her beauty. As a guest at the boathouse, where he was introduced through David, he secretly convinces Emily to flee with him to Europe, even though she is already engaged to Ham Peggotty, the other orphan and her faithful, loving friend. But Emily, who has massive guilt feelings and misses her family, becomes depressed. Steerforth eventually tires of this and abandons her for a life at sea. She reacts violently, runs away from his servant, and ends up in London, where she narrowly escapes a life of prostitution (or so Dickens implies). Mr. Peggotty finally finds her in a poorhouse, and they emigrate to Australia, where she lives with her uncle and shies away from others except when helping those in need.

Ham Peggotty

Ham Peggotty was the other orphaned child taken in by Mr. Peggotty when Ham’s father drowned at sea. Ham, like his uncle, is a seaman, fisherman, and boat repairer. He has a kind, large heart, and he is a strong, hard worker. As they grow up, Ham falls in love with Emily, who is not directly related to him, so he proposes to her. But Emily has her sights set on being a lady and rejects him. Eventually, though, she realizes that he is a good person, and she changes her mind. Ironically, Steerforth enters her life on the night of their engagement and secretly convinces her to leave with him. After she disappears with Steerforth, Ham’s life changes, and he senses a grim foreboding as he looks out to sea. His qualities of kindness, hard work, and fearless dedication become even more pronounced, but he takes little thought for his own needs and desires, having put any idea of marriage behind him. When Yarmouth is hit by a raging storm with towering waves, Ham volunteers to rescue the lone seaman struggling on the remains of a battered ship offshore. He dies in the attempt, just a swim stroke away from saving the seaman, who is also killed and washed ashore, where his body is recognized as Steerforth’s.

James Steerforth

One of the “villains” in the story, though never in David’s eyes, James Steerforth has it all—looks, brains, money, social status, talent, ability, energy, and charm. The only thing he lacks is enough compassion to make him a humane person, rather than someone who sees life as a game. One of Steerforth’s outstanding characteristics is his personal power. Unfortunately, he uses it to seduce and manipulate, which is how he gets Emily to run away with him. But it’s said that pride is the precursor of ruin, and it certainly was in Steerforth’s case. His impatience, willfulness, and restlessness drove him to leave Emily and seek adventure at sea, but the sea had other plans, and Steerforth was no match for them. He ends up shipwrecked and dead, his body washed up onto the shore near the remnants of the boathouse that once sheltered the family who welcomed him, only to bear the pain caused by his carelessness.

Wilkins Micawber

One of the novel’s more comical characters, Mr. Micawber does his best to appear genteel, but his gentility is always mixed with a degree of shabbiness. This is largely due to his habit of spending more than he earns, which is not much. He is blessed with an extremely loyal wife, who is also the mother of their five children (four, at first). Both Mr. and Mrs. Micawber are prone to melodramatic mood swings that can go from hysterical and even suicidal to cheerful and content—or the reverse—in a matter of minutes. In spite of his emotional and financial instability, Mr. Micawber inadvertently becomes a hero when, as Uriah Heep’s clerk, he can no longer stand his employer’s underhanded, criminal ways. This leads Mr. Micawber to diligently collect evidence of ongoing forgery, fraud, and manipulation on Uriah’s part. Mr. Micawber’s diligence and integrity are rewarded, and the family moves to Australia, where they finally find success.

Mr. Dick

Mr. Richard Babley, known simply as Mr. Dick, became Aunt Betsey’s protégé around the time of David’s birth, when his brother moved to lock him up in an insane asylum because of his eccentricities and “weak” mind. Aunt Betsey, however, refused to allow this, took him in as a boarder, and insisted he receive his rightful monetary inheritance. She was convinced he was an extraordinary man that only she understood, and she believed he would prove that someday. He, in turn, believed her to be the best woman in the world.

Aside from his perpetual work on his Memorial and his love of flying seven-foot kites as a way of transmitting his thoughts, Mr. Dick’s great claim to fame is his large heart and his common sense, which crops up at just the right moments. He does eventually prove himself in numerous ways, one of the most outstanding being the gentle way he helped heal the sad rift that had grown between Dr. Strong and his wife Annie. Together with Aunt Betsey, he was David’s guardian while David was growing up.

Uriah Heep

The archvillain of the story, Uriah Heep is depicted as less than human, both inwardly and outwardly. His features remind David of a corpse, and he has a bad habit of writhing, twisting, and making strange faces in an effort to seem “humble,” which he learned early on was the best way for the poor to advance in the world. He is therefore always in fawning mode, but his real motives are greed and power, and he will use any means to achieve them. When David first meets him, he works for Mr. Wickfield, a Canterbury lawyer and Aunt Betsey’s financial adviser. He is also lucky to be Mr. Wickfield’s legal apprentice, an opportunity not normally available to the poor. But being what he is, Uriah uses and manipulates Mr. Wickfield, forces a partnership, and secretly plots to marry Mr. Wickfield’s beautiful, virtuous daughter Agnes. The extent of his villainy is finally uncovered by Mr. Micawber, whom he hires as his clerk and swears to secrecy. Uriah Heep ultimately lands in jail and is eventually transported.

Agnes Wickfield

Agnes Wickfield is David’s longtime friend since childhood, when David moved into the Wickfield home in Canterbury, where his aunt sent him to school. Agnes’s mother, whom she strongly resembles, died when she was a baby, leaving Agnes to be the main love and focus of her father’s life. She has also been his “little housekeeper” since the time she was a child, making her doubly indispensable to him, not least because she filled the role so perfectly. Her devotion to her father is lifelong, and when things are finally resolved after the Uriah Heep fiasco, she uses her ingenuity to provide for them by starting a school and renting a part of their large, old, beautiful home. She has a serenity, goodness, and wisdom about her that make her feel like home to David, and ultimately she becomes his second wife (his first wife dies) and the embodiment of the relationship he always dreamed of. He considers her the guiding light of his life.

Dr. Strong And His Wife Annie

Dr. Strong, also simply known as “the Doctor,” is the kind, gentle principal of David’s school in Canterbury. He is known for his generosity, gentleness, and thoughtfulness, and he is consequently loved and respected by all his students. He knew his young wife Annie since the time she was a baby, and he married her in large part to guide and protect her, so that when he died and left her a sizable inheritance, she would have the maturity to make good decisions. However, he never told her this outright until a rift caused by Jack Maldon, her childhood friend but also an irresponsible, careless young man, created much suffering for the Doctor and Annie. It was Mr. Dick who helped bring them together again by gently broaching the topic and getting them to speak. And it was through this speech by Annie that David learned of the nature of a true and mature love. Dr. Strong’s other great passion was the Greek dictionary he was working on, which was always stuffed here and there in his clothing and, at his current rate, was estimated to be completed in over 1600 years.

Dora Spenlow

Dora Spenlow was David’s young, charming, and beautiful first wife, though she preferred to be called his child-wife. And with good reason, since she had no head for practicalities, preferring instead to teach her little dog Jip new tricks or to play the guitar and paint. It wasn’t that she didn’t try. It was simply that the effort exhausted and frustrated her, being intellectually and temperamentally unsuited to anything other than play and other pleasant pastimes. She was the daughter of Mr. Spenlow, the advocate at the Doctors’ Commons who set David up with his apprenticeship. When Mr. Spenlow heard of David’s relationship with his daughter, he was opposed to it, but that issue was resolved when he died suddenly and unexpectedly. That naturally threw Dora into a mourning period, though it ultimately helped to open the way for her marriage to David, since David now only had to deal with her two aunts.

Dora’s health began to fail after she gave birth to a child that died shortly afterwards. At first, there was hope that Dora would recover, but though she remained cheerful and charming, she continued to weaken until it became obvious that she was dying. The day she died, Dora’s little dog Jip went, too. Dora died in the arms of Agnes, whom she loved. She had often wondered why David hadn’t married Agnes, with all her beauty, kindness, and intelligence. Much later, after David and Agnes were married, Agnes revealed to him that Dora had made her promise that only she could take Dora’s place.

Thomas Traddles

David first met Thomas (“Tommy”) Traddles at Salem House, his first school, where Traddles stood out because of his honorable and good nature. When no one else spoke up, Traddles would tell the truth, defending what was right even if it earned him a beating, which it always did. Traddles and David met again much later when David heard Traddles’s name announced at a party. After that, David and Traddles became good friends and helped each other a great deal. Another coincidence that linked them was that Traddles was rooming with the Micawbers, which David had done earlier in his life. Being generous, Traddles helped the Micawbers more than he should have. Luckily, David was able to advise him, but the situation also highlighted Traddles’s patience and kindness. His friendship with the Micawbers paid off when Mr. Micawber enlisted Traddles to help him with the Uriah Heep case, and Traddles became Mr. Wickfield’s legal advisor. It was not an easy road for Traddles, but he eventually succeeded in his legal career and, after a ten-year engagement, married a wonderful woman named Sophy, who was just as giving and cheerful as he was. Their life together, which was full of joy and love from the beginning, grew from its frugal beginnings to a life of wealth and an open door to her large family and their friends.