Charles Dickens: David Copperfield (1849-1850)

  1. I Am Born: David Copperfield tells the reader he was born at Blunderstone Rookery, in Suffolk, England, six months after the death of his father. Just before David’s birth, his great-aunt, Miss Betsey Trotwood, arrives at Blunderstone. She had become estranged from David’s father because she disapproved of his marriage to Clara, a woman half his age. Convinced Clara’s baby will be a girl, Miss Betsey intends to be the baby’s godmother and asks Clara to name the baby Betsey Trotwood Copperfield. She has no children of her own, having separated from her husband. She comments on her nephew’s gullibility, pointing out he had foolishly called the house at Blunderstone “the Rookery” when the nests had been long abandoned. After quizzing Clara about how she manages the household, Miss Betsey decides Clara is inexperienced and impractical. Miss Betsey departs abruptly, never to return, when the doctor, Mr. Chillip, informs her Clara’s baby is a boy. After David’s birth, he and his beautiful, young, inexperienced mother are tended to by Peggotty, Clara’s loyal family servant.
  2. I Observe: David Copperfield calls up his earliest childhood memories, which revolve around happy times at Blunderstone spent with his mother and Peggotty. He describes his impressions of the house, its grounds, the churchyard and the church. Things change when handsome Mr. Murdstone begins to visit Clara Copperfield. Peggotty disapproves of him and David takes an instant dislike to him. One day, Peggotty invites David to come to Yarmouth with her to visit her relatives for two weeks. As Peggotty and David ride away from Blunderstone in a horse cart, David turns to wave goodbye to his mother and sees Mr. Murdstone standing near her, reprimanding her for being so emotional.
  3. I Have a Change: In the seaside town of Yarmouth, David and Peggotty stay with Peggotty’s kind-hearted brother, Mr. Peggotty, a fisherman. He lives in a charming old boat converted into a house on the beach. Also living in the house are Mr. Peggotty’s orphaned nephew, Ham Peggotty, his orphaned niece, Emily, and Mrs. Gummidge, his former partner’s widow. David adores “little Em’ly,” as she is often called, and the two become fast friends. When Peggotty and David return to Blunderstone, David is told his mother has married Mr. Murdstone. The marriage brings sudden and unwelcome changes to David’s life. Mr. Murdstone cautions Clara to treat her son with restrained formality instead of the usual warm hugs, and David finds his “old dear bedroom” has been moved far away from hers. Even outside, there are changes: the old empty dog kennel is now occupied by a large, angry black dog.
  4. I Fall Into Disgrace: David Copperfield feels alone and dejected when his mother, under Mr. Murdstone’s influence, curbs her natural impulse to coddle and comfort her son. Clara Copperfield falls completely under the influence of Mr. Murdstone and his sister, Jane Murdstone, who moves in and takes over the running of the household from Clara. David escapes from his unhappy daily life by delving into his father’s old books; through these books, he lives a life of fantasy and adventure. One day, Mr. Murdstone thrashes David for stumbling over his lessons. Shocked, David instinctively bites Mr. Murdstone’s hand. For this, David is confined to his room for five long days. On the last night, Peggotty steals up to his room and whispers to him that in the morning he’ll be sent away to a school near London. She assures him she’ll take care of his mother and she loves him and will never forget him. David feels a rush of affection for Peggotty. The next day, his mother bids him goodbye, telling him she hopes he’ll return “a better boy.”
  5. I Am Sent Away from Home: When the horse cart is a safe distance from Blunderstone, Peggotty bursts from a hedge and stops the cart to give David money and a note from his mother: “For Davy. With my love.” Later, Mr. Barkis, the horse cart driver, asks David some questions about Peggotty and then asks him to tell her “Barkis is willin’.” At the inn at Yarmouth, William, the friendly waiter, tricks the unsuspecting David out of the meal that’s been ordered for him and eats it himself. David takes the London coach and arrives the next morning tired and hungry. When no one is there to meet him, David wonders if he’s been purposely abandoned in London, and he begins to plan what to do to survive on his own. Finally, Mr. Mell, one of the masters at his school, arrives to take him the rest of the way. Before leaving London, they stop at an almshouse (poorhouse) where Mr. Mell visits his mother. David arrives at Salem House during the holiday break, so all the boys are away. He’s made to wear a placard on his back with the warning “Take care of him. He bites.” David awaits the arrival of the other boys with dread.
  6. I Enlarge My Circle of Acquaintance: Mr. Creakle, the headmaster, returns to Salem House just ahead of the students, and interviews David Copperfield, who is frightened by Creakle’s violent manner. When the other students arrive, they tease David less than he’d feared, thanks to the friendliness of Tommy Traddles and an older boy, James Steerforth. Handsome and engaging, Steerforth is widely respected by the other boys and quickly gains David’s admiration. Steerforth convinces David to give him all his money, and Steerforth purchases a feast for the boys who share their dormitory bedroom. At this secret banquet, David learns that Mr. Creakle and his assistant, Tungay, are shady, brutal men who make a habit of beating the students. Steerforth, the only student who escapes being beaten, assures David he’ll take care of him. Steerforth idly says it would be nice if David Copperfield had a sister because she’d probably be “a pretty, timid, little, bright-eyed sort of girl”—just the sort of girl he’d like to know.
  7. My ‘First Half’ at Salem House: Mr. Creakle flogs the students at Salem House every day. Tommy Traddles, described by David Copperfield as “very honorable,” is a particular target. Traddles is mistakenly blamed and beaten for laughing in church, but James Steerforth is the real culprit. Steerforth doesn’t protect David from Mr. Creakle’s beatings. Instead, Steerforth tells David he “wouldn’t have stood it himself” and advises him to have more pluck. David assumes Steerforth is offering encouragement. David is flattered when Steerforth asks him to tell stories every night based on the adventure novels David has read. As the youngest student in the school, David’s storytelling gives him a kind of status. Steerforth has a habit of badgering and insulting Mr. Mell about his poverty, encouraging others to do so as well, and one day things get out of control. Mr. Creakle intervenes, and Steerforth says he called Mr. Mell a beggar because Mr. Mell’s mother lives in an almshouse, a piece of information he got from David. On hearing this, Mr. Creakle fires Mr. Mell. Tommy Traddles is punished for defending Mr. Mell, and David feels conflicted, even after Steerforth says he’ll have his mother send money to Mr. Mell. One afternoon, Mr. Peggotty and Ham Peggotty surprise David with a visit, bringing him a gift of shellfish. David introduces them to Steerforth and says he’d like to take him to Yarmouth for a visit. At the end of the term, David travels home for the holidays.
  8. My Holidays. Especially One Happy Afternoon: Barkis picks up David at Yarmouth in his horse cart to take him back to Blunderstone and he asks David to remind Peggotty he’s still waiting for an answer to the message “Barkis is willin’.” David arrives at Blunderstone to find, to his delight, he has a baby brother. The Murdstones are out for the evening, so David, his mother, and Peggotty enjoy a pleasant reunion. David delivers Barkis’s message and realizes for the first time it means he wishes to marry Peggotty, who declares she won’t have him, or anyone, because she won’t leave Clara and David. The remainder of David’s visit, though, is uncomfortable. Mr. Murdstone forbids David from escaping to his room to read. Noting David’s “attachment to low and common company,” Mr. Murdstone also forbids him from spending time with Peggotty. Dismayed by his mother’s complete submission to the Murdstones, David is glad to return to school in spite of Creakle’s beatings.
  9. I Have a Memorable Birthday: On David’s birthday in March, he’s called to Mr. Creakle’s parlor and is told his mother has died. On the way home, in Yarmouth, David is met by Mr. Omer, tailor and funeral director, who tells him his baby brother has died as well. David is measured for a suit of mourning clothes while his mother’s casket is being built outside. Mr. Omer takes David to Blunderstone, where Peggotty tells him about his mother’s last hours. Clara Copperfield is buried, with the baby in her arms, in the churchyard next to David’s father.
  10. I Become Neglected, and Am Provided For: After Clara’s funeral, Miss Murdstone fires Peggotty, who decides to go to Yarmouth where her brother lives. She promises to visit David Copperfield once a week. David learns he will not return to school, and he goes to Yarmouth with Peggotty for a visit. All is the same at Mr. Peggotty’s house, except little Emily is growing up; she’s now going to school and isn’t as carefree as before. After dinner, Mr. Peggotty asks about James Steerforth, and David enthusiastically praises his friend’s accomplishments, good looks, charm, and nobility, as Emily listens with rapt attention. Shortly before David is to return to Blunderstone, Peggotty and Barkis have a quiet marriage ceremony. Peggotty tells David there’s a bedroom in their house set aside for him to use whenever he is able to visit. David Copperfield returns to Blunderstone and is ignored by the Murdstones. He fills his time with reading, and Peggotty visits weekly, as promised. One day, Mr. Murdstone is visited by Mr. Quinion, manager of the counting-house of Murdstone and Grinby’s, which is involved in the wine trade. Mr. Murdstone tells David he sees no advantage to continuing David’s education. Instead, David will work in the counting-house in London. Mr. Murdstone will provide for his lodging and clothing, and David will have to earn enough to pay for his food and other expenses. The next morning, David leaves with Mr. Quinion, bound for London by way of Yarmouth.
  11. I Begin Life on My Own Account, and Don’t Like It: David Copperfield, at age 10, begins to work in Murdstone and Grinby’s dilapidated rat-infested warehouse, washing, labeling, and packing bottles. He’s devastated by his new situation in life, feeling that the little education he has received and his hopes for the future are all draining away, but he does his work without complaint. Nicknamed “the little gent” at the warehouse, David has little in common with the other boys. He has a room in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Micawber and their four young children. Mr. Micawber is ever hopeful something will turn up in the way of employment. In the meantime, the Micawbers are constantly hounded by creditors. They’re prone to rapid mood shifts, ranging from deep despair over their debts, to joy and celebration the moment they can afford to pay for a dinner. At one point, David helps Mrs. Micawber pawn their household goods so they can feed the family. Finally, Mr. Micawber is arrested and sent to the King’s Bench Prison—a debtor’s prison—and Mrs. Micawber and the children move into the prison with him. Having become attached to the family, David rents a room near the prison with a view of a timber yard, and visits them often. David spends his free time walking and lounging in the streets of London, making up stories about the people he observes there.
  12. Liking Life on My Own Account No Better, I Form a Great Resolution: Mr. Micawber is released from prison and the family decides to move to Plymouth, where there’s a chance of Mr. Micawber finding employment. David can’t bear the thought of staying in London after the Micawbers leave. He decides to run away and try to find his great-aunt, Miss Betsey, who lives near Dover. He borrows some money from Peggotty for the trip, and he hires a young man with a donkey cart to help him move his box of belongings to the stage coach office. But the young man with the donkey cart runs away with David’s box and his money, and after a futile chase, David sets out on foot towards Dover.
  13. The Sequel of My Resolution: David Copperfield walks to Dover. Along the way, he sells his waistcoat and his jacket to buy food, and he sleeps outdoors under haystacks and in parks. At one point, he’s accosted by a belligerent tinker who demands his money. Not getting any money, the tinker steals David’s silk handkerchief. After six days of hard travel, David arrives at Miss Betsey’s cottage in Dover. Bedraggled and exhausted, he introduces himself to his astonished aunt, who is working in her garden. After telling her about his journey from London and the neglect that led him to make the journey, he bursts into tears. Later, Miss Betsey questions him about his history, and shares her observations with Mr. Dick, who lives upstairs. Referring to David’s mother as “the poor baby,” she rails against Clara Copperfield’s decision to marry Mr. Murdstone and complains because Clara hadn’t provided David with a sister named Betsey Trotwood. David senses Miss Betsey is beginning to feel sympathy for him, but their talk is interrupted when Miss Betsey jumps up to chase donkeys away from her front lawn. That night, before David falls asleep on clean white sheets, he hopes he’ll never again be “houseless,” and resolves to never forget the homeless.
  14. My Aunt Makes Up Her Mind about Me: The following morning, when Miss Betsey tells David she has contacted Mr. Murdstone, he fears she’ll send him back to Murdstone. Mr. Dick tells David he’s writing a memorial, or autobiography, but he has to keep rewriting it because references to the beheading of King Charles I keep creeping into it. Mr. Dick has constructed a huge kite from his discarded manuscript pages, which he says will take “the facts a long way.” Miss Betsey explains that Mr. Dick is eccentric but harmless, and she took him in 10 years ago when his family wanted to put him in an asylum. She’s learned to value his advice. The next day, Mr. Murdstone arrives at the cottage with his sister to discuss David’s future. Miss Betsey questions them in detail and minces no words in telling them she thinks they bullied David’s mother, took advantage of her youth and innocence, and have shamefully mistreated David. After some discussion, Miss Betsey says she’ll take her chances with David, and she angrily chases the Murdstones out the door. Miss Betsey declares she and Mr. Dick will be joint guardians of David, and she’ll change his name to Trotwood Copperfield. David gratefully draws a curtain on his time at Murdstone and Grinby’s warehouse.
  15. I Make Another Beginning: David Copperfield settles in at the cottage, enjoying the company of Mr. Dick, and gaining the approval of Miss Betsey, who calls him “Trot.” He’s delighted when she suggests he should go to school in nearby Canterbury. The next day, they set off to Canterbury, where Miss Betsey consults her lawyer and financial manager, Mr. Wickfield, about the best school for David. Mr. Wickfield recommends Doctor Strong’s school, and it’s decided David will board in his house while attending the school. A widower, Mr. Wickfield looks after his daughter, Agnes Wickfield, who is David’s age. David is pleased with his room and his new situation. The only discordant note in the house is Uriah Heep, a red-haired, shifty boy of about 15, who comes in every day to do clerical work in Wickfield’s office.
  16. I Am a New Boy in More Senses Than One: David Copperfield meets Doctor Strong, head of his new school, and his pretty, young wife, Annie Strong. In addition to running his school, Doctor Strong is immersed in writing a dictionary. David sees Doctor Strong’s generosity in helping Annie’s relatives, often at the behest of Annie’s manipulative mother, Mrs. Markleham. Dr. Strong and Mr. Wickfield discuss the problem of finding a position “at home or abroad” for Annie’s cousin and childhood companion, Jack Maldon. Mr. Wickfield seems to dislike and distrust Jack Maldon, but he promises to find a situation for him. The level of scholarship at Doctor Strong’s is very different from that of Salem House, and David realizes he must work hard to catch up to where he should be. Because of his rough lifestyle while working in the warehouse, David feels self-conscious around the other boys and finds it difficult, at first, to relate to them. Living at the Wickfield home soon bolsters his hope of achieving academic success. He enjoys spending time with Agnes, whose calm presence impresses him. On the night of Doctor Strong’s birthday party, Jack Maldon leaves for his post in India, and David notices that Jack is holding a red ribbon from Annie’s dress as Jack’s carriage drives away.
  17. Somebody Turns Up: David Copperfield writes to Peggotty about Miss Betsey and his new school. Peggotty writes back that the Murdstones have left Blunderstone and the house is now for sale or rent. Mr. Dick comes to Canterbury once a week to visit David and he becomes good friends with Doctor Strong and with Annie Strong. Mr. Dick mentions to David that every so often a strange man appears outside the cottage, and Miss Betsey seems frightened of him and gives him money. David suspects this might be a misunderstanding on Mr. Dick’s part. Uriah Heep invites David home to have tea with him and his mother, who feigns humility as much as her son does. The Heeps skillfully manage the conversation so that David ends up telling them much more about himself, his family, and the Wickfields than he should. As they dine, David notices Mr. Micawber walking past the open street door. Micawber recognizes David, who is forced to introduce Micawber to the Heeps. The Micawbers are about to leave town, and they invite David for a lavish dinner. Micawber says he has had drinks with Uriah Heep and is very impressed with the young man. The next morning, David receives a despairing letter from Mr. Micawber in which he says he’s about to be thrown into debtor’s prison again. David rushes to their lodging to offer comfort, and he sees the Micawbers leaving on the London coach, smiling, relaxed, and enjoying good food and drink. David decides he’s glad to have seen the Micawbers, but he’s also glad they’re gone.
  18. A Retrospect: David Copperfield looks back on memories of his school days. He sees himself giving little gifts and kisses to Miss Shepherd, his partner at dancing school. But she rejects his attention and he focuses on his school work. He challenges a young butcher who bullies Doctor Strong’s boys. He loses the fight but is nursed and consoled by Agnes Wickfield. Time passes and David becomes the head boy at school, barely recognizing the boy he was when he first arrived there. Agnes, too, has changed and is now a young woman. David thinks of her as his “sweet sister” and “better angel.” At age 17, David falls in love again, with Miss Larkins, a woman of 30. He dances with her twice and flirts with her at a ball. He thinks his fantasies about her are about to come true, but his hopes are dashed when he learns she’s going to marry an elderly hop-grower. After spending some time moping, David challenges the butcher to another fight, and this time he wins.
  19. I Look about Me, and Make a Discovery: David Copperfield finishes school and is having trouble deciding on a profession, so Miss Betsey suggests he might take some time before he makes a decision. He goes to Canterbury to move out of his room at Mr. Wickfield’s house and to see Agnes Wickfield and Doctor Strong. David and Agnes worry Mr. Wickfield’s habit of drinking too much wine is becoming detrimental to his health and to his work. They all go to Doctor Strong’s for tea, where talk turns to Jack Maldon, who wants to return from India. The subject of Jack Maldon makes both Annie and Mr. Wickfield uncomfortable, and David wonders if there may have been something improper in the relationship between Annie Strong and Jack. David takes the coach to London, determined to assert himself as a young man about town. However, his youth soon betrays him and he’s persuaded to give up his prized place in the coach to “a shabby man with a squint.” In London, David is given a musty little room at his hotel. After returning from a play at Covent Garden Theatre, he encounters his old friend James Steerforth in the hotel bar. Steerforth has just seen the same play, and calls David “a very Daisy” for praising the play. He orders the waiter to change David’s room to a better one, next to his. They plan to meet at breakfast in the morning.
  20. Steerforth’s Home: David Copperfield is acutely embarrassed by his youth, especially in contrast to Steerforth’s confident, commanding manner with the hotel staff. Steerforth plays up the contrast by continuing to call David “Daisy.” Steerforth is studying at Oxford but isn’t very serious about his studies, and David is surprised to learn he doesn’t plan to earn a degree. David goes to Steerforth’s home to meet his mother, a genteel, elderly woman. He also meets a younger woman, Miss Rosa Dartle, Mrs. Steerforth’s companion, who has a habit of making cutting remarks, and bears a scar on her lip as a result of Steerforth throwing a hammer at her when he was young. At dinner, David invites Steerforth to come with him to Dover, describing the Peggottys to Mrs. Steerforth and Miss Dartle. Miss Dartle wonders if the Peggottys are “that sort of people” who are “animals and clods, and beings of another order.” Steerforth says they’re different in that they don’t have sensitive natures, and “like their coarse rough skins, they are not easily wounded.” David assumes Steerforth is joking when he says this.
  21. Little Em’ly: Steerforth’s servant, Littimer, is so respectable and self-contained that he makes David feel more self-conscious than usual about his youth and inexperience. David hints Littimer will play an important role in later events. For a week, Steerforth gives David lessons in riding, boxing, and fencing, treating David “like a plaything,” and David revels in Steerforth’s attention. Leaving Littimer behind, they go to Yarmouth. After their arrival, David visits Mr. Omer on his way to visit Peggotty. He discovers that Mr. Omer employs Emily as a seamstress and is surprised to learn the local women dislike Emily, partly out of jealousy because she’s so beautiful, and partly because they think she aspires to be a lady. David dismisses this, recalling how she had always talked about the fine things she’d buy for her uncle if she were a lady. It’s been seven years since David has seen Peggotty, and they have a joyful reunion. Steerforth joins them for dinner, charms Peggotty, and then they visit Mr. Peggotty. They arrive to the news that Emily has just become engaged to Ham Peggotty. Steerforth enters into the festivities and impresses everyone with his charm and talent. Later, when Steerforth makes a derogatory comment to David about Ham, David tells Steerforth he knows he’s just joking. Steerforth says he wishes everyone were as earnest and good as David is.
  22. Some Old Scenes, and Some New People: David Copperfield and James Steerforth stay in Yarmouth for about two weeks. Steerforth stays at the inn and spends time with the sailors at sea. David stays at Peggotty’s and sometimes walks to Blunderstone, where he recalls his past and ponders his future. The house is now occupied “by a poor lunatic gentleman” and his caretakers, and the ragged old rook nests are gone. Near the end of their stay, Steerforth is in a dejected mood and tells David he wishes he’d had a “judicious father.” He says, “I wish with all my soul I could guide myself better!” But Steerforth is soon back to his usual self. He says he bought a boat, and Mr. Peggotty will be its master when Steerforth is away. Steerforth seems embarrassed when David assumes he bought the boat as an act of generosity toward Mr. Peggotty. Littimer will oversee work on the boat, which Steerforth will rename “The Little Emily.” At the inn, Miss Mowcher, a dwarf who is a traveling hairdresser, tends to Steerforth and gossips about Emily and her engagement, sprinkling her talk with the frequent exclamation, “Ain’t I volatile?” David returns to Peggotty’s house to find Emily there, comforting Martha Endell, a former coworker at Omer’s who has fallen into disgrace. Emily and Ham Peggotty give Martha money so she can go to London where no one will know of her disgrace. After Martha leaves, Emily is distraught, repeating she isn’t as good a girl as she ought to be, and lamenting she’s vain and changeable. When she calms down, she leaves with Ham, holding tightly to his arm.
  23. I Corroborate Mr. Dick, and Choose a Profession: David Copperfield and James Steerforth set out for London, where David is to meet Miss Betsey. He tells her he’s decided to follow her suggestion and study to become a proctor. He is concerned about her spending a thousand pounds to purchase the apprenticeship for him, but she reassures him he is her adopted child and she takes pleasure in him. The next day as they’re walking to the offices of Spenlow and Jorkins, Miss Betsey is upset when she’s approached by a scruffy-looking man. She flags down a passing hackney coach, tells David to wait for her, and drives off with the man. Miss Betsey returns alone and tells David never to mention the incident. He notices she’s given the man most of the money she’d had in her purse. They go on to Spenlow and Jorkins in Doctors’ Commons where Miss Betsey purchases the apprenticeship for David. Before she returns to Dover, his aunt rents a small apartment for him on Buckingham Street, with a view of the river, and tells him she expects his new life will make him “firm and self-reliant.”
  24. My First Dissipation: David Copperfield enjoys having his own apartment, but he’s still bothered by his “youthfulness” and is lonely without Agnes Wickfield as his confidant. When James Steerforth doesn’t appear on the day he’d promised, David goes to see Steerforth’s mother to make sure his friend isn’t sick. She says Steerforth is away with his Oxford friends, and invites him to stay for dinner with her and Miss Dartle, who is full of questions about Yarmouth. The next day, Steerforth turns up at David’s apartment, and David invites him and his Oxford friends to come to dinner. David orders in food and wine and hires some helpers, who turn out to be useless. At dinner, David drinks too much wine, and by the time they all go out to the theater after dinner, David is quite drunk. He makes a spectacle of himself at the theater and is mortified to discover Agnes is in the audience. She strongly suggests his friends should take him home, which they do. He spends the following day feeling sick, hung over, and remorseful.
  25. Good and Bad Angels: Agnes Wickfield sends David Copperfield a note, and he goes to see her at the home of her father’s London agent, Mr. Waterbrook, where she’s staying. He apologizes profusely and Agnes is understanding. When David tells her she’s his good angel, she warns him his bad angel, James Steerforth, is a “dangerous friend.” They talk about her father, whose drinking has gotten worse. Uriah Heep has taken advantage of Mr. Wickfield’s weakness to become his business partner. Agnes says her father is afraid of the power Heep has over him, but it was the only way to save the business. Knowing how much David dislikes Uriah, Agnes urges him to try to be friendly for her father’s sake. The next day, David attends a dinner at the Waterbrooks’ home. Most of the guests are in the legal profession, and he encounters his old school friend, Tommy Traddles, who is studying to be a lawyer. The dinner conversation revolves around arcane legal topics and the importance of having aristocratic associates. Throughout dinner, Uriah Heep is constantly lurking near David. David invites Uriah back to his room for coffee, where Uriah talks of his partnership with Mr. Wickfield and suggests he might one day marry Agnes. David controls himself with difficulty. It’s late and Uriah asks to sleep in David’s living room because the place where he’s staying locks the doors early. David spends a restless night, dreaming about running a red-hot poker through Uriah. After Uriah leaves in the morning, David asks Mrs. Crupp, his landlady, to air out the room.
  26. I Fall into Captivity: David Copperfield worries Agnes Wickfield might feel that her father’s neglect of his business is related to his devotion to her. He fears she might decide she owes it to her father to marry Uriah Heep in order to protect her father’s interests. He decides not to worry Agnes prematurely by telling her of Heep’s plans. James Steerforth is away at Oxford, and for once, David is glad for his absence, despite his loneliness. Agnes’s warning may be having an effect. Weeks go by, and after David’s apprenticeship at Spenlow and Jorkins is secured, Mr. Spenlow invites David to his house for a weekend. There, David meets Spenlow’s daughter Dora, who has just returned from finishing school in Paris. David is instantly and completely smitten by Dora Spenlow’s beauty and charm. Accompanying Dora, as her companion, is none other than Miss Murdstone. Taking David aside, Miss Murdstone suggests they avoid confrontation and treat one another as “distant acquaintances.” David says she and her brother treated him cruelly and his mother unkindly, but he agrees to a truce. The next day, David walks in the garden with Dora and her little dog, Jip. When he goes home, David can’t stop thinking about Dora. He buys new clothes and hopes for another invitation to Mr. Spenlow’s house, becoming so depressed when no such invitation is issued that Mrs. Crupp notices and chides him about being in love, advising him to “keep a good heart, and to know [his] own value.”
  27. Tommy Traddles: David Copperfield visits Tommy Traddles, who is renting a room in a formerly genteel, but now run-down, neighborhood. At the door of the house, David passes a milkman trying to collect his payment from an unseen tenant. He finds Traddles happy, working hard at his law studies, and engaged to a curate’s daughter. Not having received the inheritance from an uncle which he was brought up to expect, Traddles has had to pull himself into a profession and expects it will be a long time before he can marry, although he proudly shows David a table and flower stand he and his fiancée have bought in preparation for setting up house. Traddles mentions he’s renting his room from the Micawbers, and David has an unexpected and happy reunion with the couple. Mr. Micawber, who always seems to be confused about David’s age, refers to him as “the friend of my youth” and “companion of earlier days,” which puzzles Traddles. David invites them all to have dinner in his room.
  28. Mr. Micawber’s Gauntlet: When David Copperfield plans for his second dinner party, he resolves to avoid the mistakes he made the first time. Mrs. Crupp agrees to do some of the cooking if David agrees to eat out for two weeks. However, her preparation falls short, and Mr. Micawber comes to the rescue by cooking the nearly raw mutton on the gridiron and concocting a sauce for it. Everyone is engaged in preparing and enjoying this meal, when Littimer suddenly appears in their midst. He’s looking for James Steerforth. David asks if Steerforth will be coming from Oxford, but Littimer is evasive. After Littimer leaves, they enjoy the punch Mr. Micawber has prepared, and Mrs. Micawber describes a plan for Mr. Micawber “to throw down the gauntlet to society” by advertising his services. To pay for the advertising, they plan to find investors. Later, David pulls Tommy Traddles aside and warns him against investing in Micawber’s plan, but Traddles says he’s already invested in another of Micawber’s plans. Soon after David’s guests have left, Steerforth arrives. The sight of him dispels the doubts David had been nursing about him, although he is disappointed in Steerforth’s tepid reaction to the news that their old schoolfellow Traddles has been there. Steerforth has come from Yarmouth, where he’s been “seafaring” for a week or so. He gives David a letter from Peggotty, informing him Barkis is dying. David agrees to spend a day visiting at Steerforth’s house before setting out to be with Peggotty. After Steerforth leaves, David reads a letter Mr. Micawber had given him before dinner. Micawber says because he hasn’t paid his rent, his landlord is taking all his possessions as well as those of Traddles. In addition, he can’t pay back the money Traddles has invested with him. David is sure Micawber, as usual, will recover from this setback, but he feels badly for Traddles, whose marriage plans will now be further delayed.
  29. I Visit Steerforth at His Home, Again: David Copperfield goes to James Steerforth’s house and is pleased Littimer isn’t there. Miss Dartle questions David about why Steerforth has been away for such a long time. David assures her he hasn’t seen Steerforth in a while and has no idea where he’s been. Steerforth tries, with some success, to charm Miss Dartle. After dinner, she sings and plays the harp, but when Steerforth puts his arm around her and says “Come, Rosa, for the future we will love each other very much!” she slaps him and dashes out of the room. When David is leaving, Steerforth entreats him to try to always think of him at his best if circumstances should cause them to part. David leaves the next morning, not realizing they will never again meet as friends.
  30. A Loss: When David Copperfield arrives in Yarmouth, he stops at Mr. Omer’s shop to say hello and learns Emily is still working there, but is “unsettled” about her upcoming marriage. The wedding has been postponed because of Barkis’s condition, and Mr. Omer thinks Emily is just nervous about leaving her uncle’s house to marry Ham Peggotty. David is reminded of Martha Endell and asks Mr. Omer whether there has been any news of her, but Mr. Omer is prevented from replying by the entrance of his daughter, just having time to say he never thought there was any harm in the girl. At Peggotty’s house, Mr. Peggotty, Ham, and Emily are in the kitchen. Peggotty is upstairs with Barkis. Emily is trembling and nervous, clinging to her uncle and refusing to let Ham take her home. Ham is persuaded to go home on his own because he needs to work in the morning. David goes upstairs to sit with Peggotty at Barkis’s bedside. After several hours, Barkis opens his eyes, says “Barkis is willin’!” and, as Mr. Peggotty had predicted, he goes “out with the tide.”
  31. A Greater Loss: In his professional capacity, David Copperfield carries out the provisions of Barkis’s will. Barkis leaves Peggotty well provided for, and he also leaves a thousand pounds to Mr. Peggotty. David doesn’t see Emily in the week before the funeral, but he hears she’ll be married in two weeks. The night after the funeral, they gather at Mr. Peggotty’s house. When David arrives, Mr. Peggotty, Peggotty, and Mrs. Gummidge are there. Mr. Peggotty puts a candle in the window for Emily and Ham Peggotty to see as they arrive. But Ham arrives alone, calls David outside, and tells him Emily has run away. They go inside and read a letter from Emily, confirming she has run away, never to return unless she comes back as “a lady.” Ham confirms she has left with James Steerforth, with the help of Littimer. Mr. Peggotty vows to go in search of Emily.
  32. The Beginning of a Long Journey: David Copperfield admits he had never loved James Steerforth more than when the ties between them were broken. He thinks of Steerforth as “a cherished friend” who has died. The news about Emily spreads around the town, and while many condemn her, all are sympathetic toward the Peggottys. The next morning, David finds Mr. Peggotty and Ham walking on the beach. David thinks the expression on Ham Peggotty’s face suggests, “if ever he encountered Steerforth, he would kill him.” Mr. Peggotty says he’ll go to London with David to begin his search for Emily. Mrs. Gummidge will stay in his home, in case Emily decides to come back. Every night, she’ll light a candle in the window for Emily, just as he’s always done. Ham, distracted and staring out to sea, says he seems to see “the end of it” there. Back at Mr. Peggotty’s home, Mrs. Gummidge is a changed person. No longer whiny and despondent, she’s helpful and supportive, assuring Mr. Peggotty that she won’t be lonely and is happy to keep up the home for him. In the evening, David stops at Mr. Omer’s shop. His daughter, Minnie Omer, at first condemns Emily, but she soon reveals her sadness and disappointment. Back at Peggotty’s house where he’s staying, David has an unexpected late-night visitor—Miss Mowcher. She’s very upset because she unwittingly played a part in Steerforth’s plan. On the night when David first met Miss Mowcher, Littimer had told her David had designs on Emily, and Steerforth and Littimer were trying to protect her from ruin. They asked her to give a letter to Emily, which she now thinks may have been the beginning of Emily’s involvement with Steerforth. David feels ashamed of himself for having thought Miss Mowcher was a shallow, untrustworthy person, and she advises him to “Try not to associate bodily defects with mental [defects].” Miss Mowcher assures David she’ll let him know if, in her travels, she learns anything about Emily. The next morning, Mr. Peggotty, Peggotty, and David board the coach to London. Ham sees them off, telling David there will never be anyone else for him, and he’ll focus on his work and on supporting Mr. Peggotty’s search. In London, Mr. Peggotty and David go to see Mrs. Steerforth, who already knows what her son has done. Mr. Peggotty wants to know if Steerforth will marry Emily as he’d promised, but Mrs. Steerforth says it would be impossible because “she is far below him.” Mrs. Steerforth is angry and blames Emily for causing her son to act against his duty to his mother. She’ll never take him back, she says, unless he puts Emily aside. As they’re leaving, Rosa Dartle pulls David aside and vents her rage against them and against Emily for disrupting the bond between mother and son. She says she’d like to hunt Emily “to her grave” to punish her. That evening, Mr. Peggotty sets off on his search for his niece, asking Peggotty and David to tell Emily, if they see her first, that he forgives her and his love for her is unchanged.
  33. Blissful: In the course of finishing up the work on Barkis’s will, David Copperfield takes Peggotty to the offices of Spenlow and Jorkins. They’re surprised when Mr. Spenlow returns from an appointment accompanied by Mr. Murdstone, who is picking up a marriage license. Murdstone privately tells David he hopes David might yet correct himself, and Peggotty barely contains her anger against him. After he leaves, Mr. Spenlow says Murdstone’s new wife is very young, pretty, and wealthy. Later that day, Mr. Spenlow invites David to Dora Spenlow’s upcoming birthday party, and David’s hopes rise. At the party he meets Dora’s friend, Julia Mills. Julia encourages Dora and David to spend time together, and invites David to visit Dora at the Mills home, where Dora will be staying for a while. At his first visit, David declares his love for Dora and they become engaged, deciding to keep the engagement secret until the time is right to ask Mr. Spenlow’s permission. With the help of Miss Mills, they spend time together, quarrel, make up, and write to each other every day. David describes it as a “happy, foolish time” that he remembers tenderly.
  34. My Aunt Astonishes Me: David Copperfield writes to Agnes Wickfield about his engagement, assuring her it isn’t one of his “boyish fancies.” He tells her sad events have taken place at Yarmouth, and he feels some responsibility for them, but he doesn’t mention James Steerforth. Tommy Traddles tells David that Micawber has changed his name to Mortimer and wears a disguise to avoid his creditors. He says he helped the Micawbers settle their debt to the landlord, but the following week they were confronted by more creditors and Traddles had to move out. David and Peggotty go on a little expedition to a pawnbroker with Traddles to recover some property that had been confiscated by Mr. Micawber’s creditors. They return from their successful mission to find Miss Betsey and Mr. Dick in David’s apartment with a great deal of luggage, Miss Betsey’s two birds, her cat, her fan, and Mr. Dick’s kite. Mrs. Crupp is fawning over Miss Betsey, who later comments Mrs. Crupp is one of those “timeservers and wealth-worshippers” she’d warned Mr. Dick about. Miss Betsey insists on calling Peggotty “Barkis,” because she thinks the name Peggotty sounds like a South Sea Island pagan name. After having tea, Miss Betsey announces she is ruined—all she has left is her cottage, which she has rented out. After shedding some tears in concern for David, Miss Betsey controls her emotions and tells David, “We must meet reverses boldly, and not suffer them to frighten us, dear … We must live misfortune down, Trot!”
  35. Depression: Mr. Dick takes a room in the same place where Peggotty is staying. David Copperfield gives his room to Miss Betsey and arranges to sleep in his sitting room. Before bed, David and his aunt talk about Peggotty’s devotion to him, Emily’s sad situation, and Dora Spenlow. Miss Betsey asks if Dora is silly or light-headed. It’s a question he’d never considered, and David really can’t answer it, but he assures her they love each other deeply. “Ah, Trot,” she replies, as she shakes her head, “blind, blind, blind!” She tells him he’s a lot like his mother, and advises him to look for earnestness in a partner. Still, she says they’re very young and should let the relationship play out. David worries about how his new situation will affect his engagement, because he’s still an apprentice and has no income. He attempts, unsuccessfully, to have Mr. Spenlow and Mr. Jorkins release him from his apprenticeship and return a portion of the fee his aunt had paid for it. Walking home, he encounters Agnes Wickfield, who has come to London to see her aunt. Her father and Uriah Heep are also in town on business. Uriah and his mother have now moved into the Wickfields’ house, and Uriah has taken David’s old room. Miss Betsey tells Agnes and David how she lost her fortune, stating she had lost it due to her own bad investments and not due to Mr. Wickfield’s negligence, as Agnes plainly fears. Agnes suggests David might take part-time work as secretary to Doctor Strong, who has moved to London upon his retirement and is determined to complete his dictionary. Mr. Wickfield stops by, accompanied by Uriah Heep, having arranged to meet Agnes at David’s rooms. Mr. Wickfield looks unwell, and it’s clear he’s under Uriah’s thumb. Later, David has dinner with Agnes and her father, and they talk of old times. David is overcome with admiration and respect for Agnes and for the devotion with which she cares for her father. On his way home, he hears a street beggar muttering, “Blind! Blind! Blind!” echoing the words Miss Betsey had uttered that morning.
  36. Enthusiasm: David Copperfield is feeling more determined and optimistic when he goes to see Doctor Strong the next morning. He arranges to work for Doctor Strong mornings and evenings. David is having breakfast with Doctor Strong and Annie Strong when Jack Maldon arrives on horseback and invites Annie to the opera. Annie refuses, but the Doctor insists she should go. David later learns that Annie cancelled her plan with Jack and visited Agnes instead. David thinks he might supplement his income from Doctor Strong by becoming a court reporter, and he goes to see Tommy Traddles to ask about the idea, taking Mr. Dick with him. Traddles says he’ll need a thorough command of shorthand for the job, and it’s difficult to learn, so it could take years. David resolves to begin teaching himself shorthand right away. Mr. Dick wants to help out, too, so they arrange for Mr. Dick to earn money by copying legal documents. Traddles gives David a letter from Mr. Micawber, inviting them to a farewell party at his current lodgings; he’ll be taking a job in Canterbury as a clerk for Uriah Heep. Micawber gives Traddles an I.O.U. for the money he owes him, and David realizes Micawber has never asked him for money. David considers this quite considerate of Micawber, because he knows he wouldn’t have been able to refuse.
  37. A Little Cold Water: David Copperfield feels pleased and invigorated by his regime of hard work. Peggotty returns to Yarmouth to be with Ham Peggotty, and David decides it’s time to tell Dora about his new circumstances. Dora cries and is frightened, but David calms her and explains his plans for the future. She says she still loves him and childishly asks him to speak no more about being poor. He’s unable to make Dora understand the challenges he wants them to face together “earnestly.” Each time he tries to explain, she goes into hysterics. It takes intervention by Miss Mills to calm Dora down. Miss Mills agrees, unenthusiastically, to try to persuade Dora to take some interest in the cookery book David has brought for her and learn how to manage housekeeping accounts. David overlooks Dora’s childishness and continues to be charmed by her.
  38. A Dissolution of Partnership: David Copperfield applies himself to learning shorthand, and finds it very difficult. Tommy Traddles helps by slowly dictating Parliamentary speeches so David can practice. One day at the office, Mr. Spenlow takes David to a coffeehouse where Miss Murdstone is waiting in a private room. She reports she has found out about David’s letters to Dora Spenlow. Mr. Spenlow angrily dismisses David’s protestations of love as “nonsense.” He makes it clear he won’t allow an engagement or marriage. He says he only wants to forget the subject, and advises David to forget it as well. David turns to Miss Mills for advice and help, and she agrees to assure Dora of David’s “devotion and misery.” The following morning when David goes to the office, he learns that Mr. Spenlow was found dead on the road home the previous evening, having fallen from his horse carriage. It turns out he had no will and was so much in debt, all his property must be sold. Dora, accompanied by her dog Jip and Miss Mills, goes to stay with two aunts in Putney. Miss Mills reports that Dora is in no state to speak of anything except her grief. Miss Mills keeps in touch with David, sharing with him a journal she keeps about her observations of Dora’s activities and emotions, which shows her to be as childish as ever, even after her own reversal of fortune.
  39. Wickfield and Heep: David Copperfield goes to Dover to check on Miss Betsey’s cottage, and then he walks to Canterbury to visit Agnes Wickfield. Mr. Micawber is now at Uriah Heep’s old desk. He tells David he’s enjoying his work, and his family is renting Heep’s house. David notes an “uneasy change” in Micawber, related to his new position. He finds Agnes Wickfield in her drawing room and tells her about Dora Spenlow’s fear and grief. Agnes advises him to write a letter to Dora’s aunts, explaining the situation and asking their permission to see Dora. After his initial conversation with Agnes, the remainder of David’s visit is constantly monitored by the presence of either Mrs. Heep or Uriah. David escapes for a solitary walk, only to be followed by Uriah, who insists on joining him. Confronted about the constant watch on Agnes, Uriah admits it’s because he considers David a rival. When David says he is engaged to someone else, Uriah agrees to call off the watch. Uriah tells David that both his parents were brought up in charity schools, where they learned that behaving humbly was a path to success; he gloats about how well it’s worked for him. After dinner, Heep encourages Mr. Wickfield to overindulge in wine. Emboldened, Heep refers to his intention to marry Agnes, which sends Mr. Wickfield into a fit of anguish and fury. He calls Uriah his “torturer,” who has led him to abandon “name and reputation, peace and quiet, house and home.” He laments having allowed his grief over his wife’s death and his love for Agnes to become obsessive to the point where he used drink as an escape, leading to his ruin. Agnes comes into the room and leads her father away. Later, David urges her to never think of sacrificing herself “to a mistaken sense of duty.” The next morning, Heep tells David he has smoothed things over with Wickfield and plans to bide his time regarding Agnes, until the time is right.
  40. The Wanderer: David Copperfield writes to Dora Spenlow’s aunts as soon as he returns to London. A week later while walking home, David catches a glimpse of Martha Endell, the young woman who had fled Yarmouth in disgrace. Soon after, he encounters Mr. Peggotty, and they go to an inn to talk. Mr. Peggotty says he has searched for Emily through France, Italy, and to the Swiss mountains where it was reported the couple had been seen. But he got there too late and couldn’t pick up their trail, so he’d come back to England. He’d stopped at Yarmouth, and Mrs. Gummidge gave him three letters that had come for him, with money enclosed. In one letter, Emily begs for forgiveness and asks for news of her uncle. The last letter was sent from a town in Germany, and Mr. Peggotty plans to go there at once. David spots Martha listening at the door of the inn, unseen by Mr. Peggotty, but she is gone by the end of the tale. After Mr. Peggotty goes back to his lodging, David tries to find Martha, but the snow has covered her footprints.
  41. Dora’s Aunts: David Copperfield is invited to meet with Dora Spenlow’s maiden aunts at their home in Putney, and he takes Tommy Traddles with him. On the way, Traddles tells him about the family of his own fiancée, who depend on her a great deal and are unwilling to part with her. Though Traddles tries to soften the picture of Sophy Crewler’s family, it is clear they are selfish and self-involved. Miss Mills has gone to India with her father, and David misses her moral support. The aunts agree to allow David to see Dora on a regular basis, but with no commitment to an engagement. He visits on weekends, and his aunt and Dora’s aunts exchange visits every few weeks. David once again attempts, unsuccessfully, to engage Dora’s interest in the cookery book and to have her practice keeping accounts. He’s somewhat bothered by her childish approach to everything, and blames her aunts for treating her as a plaything. Grudgingly, he admits to himself he does this, too, “but not often.” Dora has taken to calling him “Doady” on occasion, yet another of David’s many re-namings.
  42. Mischief: Agnes Wickfield comes to London on a two-week visit to Doctor Strong and his wife. Mrs. Heep, using the excuse of her health, accompanies them, though she stays in separate lodgings, and Uriah Heep, of course, comes along, too. Uriah tells David he has come to keep an eye on Agnes; he says he doesn’t approve of her friendship with Annie Strong, whom he suggests has been having an affair with Jack Maldon. The following evening, David takes Agnes to meet Dora, and he’s pleased to find they seem to like each other very much. Dora tells David if she’d had a friend like Agnes, perhaps she would have been “more clever,” and she wonders why he ever fell in love with her. He replies he couldn’t see her and not love her. When David takes Agnes back to her lodgings, he stops to greet Doctor Strong, seeing a light in his office. There he finds Uriah Heep and Mr. Wickfield with the doctor, who is upset. Uriah has told the doctor his wife has had an improper relationship with her cousin Jack Maldon. He says Mr. Wickfield suspected the relationship when he arranged for Maldon’s posting in India. Mr. Wickfield admits he thought the doctor wanted Maldon out of the country. But Doctor Strong says he never suspected Annie and only wanted to help her cousin. He defends Annie and says any blame should be his; perhaps in marrying one so young, he’d taken advantage of her gratitude and affection. He’d wanted only to protect her and give her a comfortable life. He intends to stand by her and asks they never mention the subject again. After Doctor Strong and Wickfield leave, David has heated words with Heep. He loses control and slaps Heep across the cheek. In the next few weeks, David notices that Annie seems timid and unhappy, and Doctor Strong treats her even more kindly than usual, often urging her to go out with her mother to a variety of amusements. Mr. Dick, who loves spending time with the doctor, begins to spend time with Annie Strong as well, helping her in the garden. His quiet, kind presence alleviates some of the tension and sadness. David receives a letter from Mrs. Micawber, raising some concerns about her husband. She says Mr. Micawber no longer talks to her about his work. He’s become secretive, mysterious, distracted, and distant.
  43. Another Retrospect: In this chapter, David Copperfield skips ahead “weeks, months, seasons” to when he has turned 21. He has mastered stenography and now earns a good income by “reporting the debates in Parliament for a Morning Newspaper.” He has also secretly started writing for magazines and is paid regularly and well for his articles. He has moved to a little cottage, and his aunt is soon to move to one nearby. Most importantly, Dora Spenlow’s aunts have given their permission for the marriage to go ahead. There is a flurry of activity to prepare for the wedding, and all of their friends attend. David recalls the images of his wedding, which seems like a happy dream from his current vantage point.
  44. Our Housekeeping: As happy as David Copperfield is to finally be with Dora, their domestic bliss is marred by the problems they encounter in trying to run their household. They have terrible luck in hiring servants. The first one, Mary Anne, drinks, can’t cook, and steals the spoons. Dora is afraid to supervise her and David doesn’t have the gumption to fire her until Mary Anne’s cousin—a military deserter—hides in their coal-hole, is arrested, and is taken away in handcuffs. A succession of equally bad servants follows. The local shopkeepers and tradespeople also seem to consider the couple easy marks; they can never get quality goods or services. When David asks Miss Betsey how he might persuade Dora to be serious about learning housekeeping, she advises him to value his wife “by the qualities she has and not by the qualities she may not have.” She says if he can’t help Dora develop those qualities, then he’ll have to adjust to doing without them. David tutors Dora in housekeeping. She tries, but she’s unable to apply herself. Feeling her shortcomings, Dora asks David to think of her as his “child-wife” and to remember how much she loves him. David resigns himself to taking on all the responsibilities of the marriage, sometimes wishing his wife could be more of a partner in these things. Surprisingly, Miss Betsey takes quite a liking to Dora, calling her Little Blossom, and Dora returns the affection.
  45. Mr. Dick Fulfils My Aunt’s Predictions: David Copperfield no longer works for Doctor Strong, but he sees him often, because he lives nearby. Annie’s mother, Mrs. Markleham, is only too happy to oblige the Doctor’s desire that Annie should be entertained, even though Annie prefers to stay home. Mr. Dick, a devoted friend of both the doctor and Annie Strong, asks David why there are “clouds” between them. David says there’s a secret, possibly related to the difference in their ages. Mr. Dick says he can bring them together because, being simple, they won’t blame him for meddling. Miss Betsey says if Mr. Dick could only carry out an idea he has in his head, “he would distinguish himself in some extraordinary manner.” Several weeks later, David and Miss Betsey are visiting Annie when Mrs. Markleham bursts in, excited because she has overheard the doctor instructing his lawyers about his will: Doctor Strong is leaving everything to Annie “unconditionally.” The lawyers leave, and everyone goes into the study to find Mr. Dick there with the doctor. Annie implores her husband to tell her and everyone there what has come between them. The doctor says he doesn’t blame her for anything that has changed between them, and he assures her he loves and honors her. Annie asks if anyone knows anything that can help, and David discloses the allegations Uriah Heep had made earlier. Annie eloquently dispels both the idea she married the doctor for his money and the idea she had a relationship with Jack Maldon. She says although they were childhood sweethearts, she would have been “wretched” if she’d married Jack, and she’s grateful to the doctor for saving her from “the first mistaken impulse of [her] undisciplined heart.” In fact, it was Annie’s mother who brought Jack Maldon into the picture by pressing the issue of finding a position for him, as she did for several other relatives. Annie’s explanation puts an end to any questions about her character. Miss Betsey gives Mr. Dick a hug of congratulations for having planned the reconciliation. David, happy for the couple, finds himself musing on what Annie said about there being “no disparity in marriage like unsuitability of mind and purpose” and “the first mistaken impulse of my undisciplined heart.”
  46. Intelligence: About a year after David Copperfield’s marriage, he’s walking past Mrs. Steerforth’s house when her servant approaches and asks him to come into the garden and speak to Miss Dartle. Miss Dartle tells him Emily has run away from James Steerforth. She has Littimer tell David what happened after Emily left with him and Steerforth. They traveled to France, Switzerland, and Italy, and Emily “was much admired” everywhere, learning the languages easily and making friends with the locals. She was sometimes sad, and Steerforth tired of her, annoyed because she often talked with “low company” such as the boatmen’s families. He left her with Littimer, having arranged for her to marry “a very respectable person” (whom David suspects was Littimer himself). She became so angry and distraught that Littimer locked her in a room, both for his own protection and hers, but she escaped, and has not been seen since. When he told Steerforth, they argued and Littimer returned to England. He has told the story to Miss Dartle for money, and he’s looking for new employment. Steerforth is seafaring along the Spanish coast. Miss Dartle says she wants Emily to be found so she won’t try to make Steerforth her “prey” again. Mrs. Steerforth comes out to the garden and echoes the sentiment that Emily is a “designing enemy” of her son. David asserts Emily is the wronged party and would want nothing to do with Steerforth now. When he leaves the Steerforth house, David goes immediately to Mr. Peggotty’s lodgings to tell him what he’s learned about Emily. They agree she is alive and is likely to come to London. David says Martha Endell might know where she is, and he tells Peggotty about the night Martha listened at the inn door while they talked about Emily. Mr. Peggotty knows where to find Martha, and they go out to look for her. When they see her on a busy street, they decide to follow her to a quieter place where they can talk.
  47. Martha: Mr. Peggotty and David Copperfield follow Martha Endell to a kind of wasteland and dumping area near the Thames River. She stops on the riverbank and looks at the water, talking to herself in a wild mood. Fearing for her safety, David grasps her arm and calls her name. Martha goes into a frenzy of fear and despair, exclaiming “Oh, the river!” again and again. When she calms down, she expresses her concern and love for Emily, who was so kind to her. Mr. Peggotty explains that they need her help to find Emily, whom he loves even more than before her fall, so they can bring her home. She readily agrees, promising that when she finds Emily, she’ll keep her safe and contact them immediately. When David arrives home near midnight, his aunt’s cottage door is open, and the shabby man he’d seen with her once before is in the garden. Miss Betsey comes outside, gives the man some money, and tells him to go, reminding him he’d been false and cruel to her. As the man slouches away, David rushes to Miss Betsey and offers to go and speak to the man. She tells David the man is her husband. She had left him long ago and told everyone he was dead. He’d been a youthful passion—good looking and (she thought) honorable. After she married him, he’d treated her badly, so she left him. Since then, he has sunk lower and lower, and every so often she gives him money to go away.
  48. Domestic: About a year and a half after his marriage, David Copperfield is a successful author and has left his parliamentary reporting job. He and Dora are still struggling with managing their household, and he describes in detail the frustrating and comic trials they go through with the hired help. David finally decides that they need to become more responsible employers. When Dora persists in her childish attitude, David embarks on a mission to “form Dora’s mind” by speaking to her on serious subjects. However, after months of trying, he realizes Dora’s mind is already formed, and he resolves to be satisfied with his child-wife just as she is. Dora is pleased when David apologizes and tells her they’ll go back to their “old way, and be happy.” David recognizes that, although he’s happy, his marriage somehow lacks depth because he can’t share many of his thoughts and ideas with his partner. Recalling Annie Strong’s words about “the first mistaken impulse of an undisciplined heart,” David decides to discipline his heart to adapt it to Dora’s needs, and he finds they both feel happier. He hopes the birth of their baby will change his “child-wife to a woman,” but the baby dies soon after birth, and Dora’s health begins to decline. As Dora worries about how much her aging dog Jip has slowed down, David worries about Dora, who now needs to be carried up and down the stairs.
  49. I Am Involved in Mystery: Mr. Micawber sends one of his long, puzzling letters to David, indicating he’s very disturbed about something and would like to meet with David and Traddles in two days. Traddles arrives with a letter from Mrs. Micawber in which she expresses alarm at her husband’s recent mood swings and personality. He’s become moody, depressed, and secretive. She begs David and Traddles to speak to her husband and find out what is bothering him. David writes to Mrs. Micawber, and he and Traddles tell Miss Betsey about the situation. They meet with Mr. Micawber at the appointed time. When David asks how Mr. Heep is, Micawber rants against Heep, calling him “diabolical.” David and Traddles take Micawber to meet Miss Betsey. Micawber continues to behave erratically after meeting Miss Betsey and Mr. Dick. He’s torn between revealing what he knows and concealing it. Pressed by Miss Betsey to tell what is the matter, he bursts out, “deception, fraud, conspiracy are the matter; and the name of the whole atrocious mass is—HEEP!” He rants incoherently about Heep and rushes out of the house. Soon, a letter arrives from him, sent from a nearby tavern, apologizing for his behavior, and asking them to meet him in a week at a hotel in Canterbury.
  50. Mr. Peggotty’s Dream Comes True: Martha finally contacts Mr. Peggotty, who has never lost his belief Emily is alive and he will find her, and asks him to stay in London until he sees her again. A few days after the incident with Mr. Micawber, Martha approaches David (who had begun to lose hope Emily would be found) as he’s walking in his garden. She says she’s left a note for Mr. Peggotty, who isn’t at home, telling him where to meet them, but she needs David to come with her at once. They take a cab to Golden Square, a run-down neighborhood, and Martha leads David to an old house filled with lodgers who rent single rooms. As they ascend the stairs to the top floor, David notices a woman ahead of them. It’s Miss Dartle, and she goes into Martha’s room. Martha leads David to a place where they can observe Martha’s room through a partially open door. Emily is in the room, and Miss Dartle is insulting and threatening her while Emily tearfully asks for mercy and compassion. Miss Dartle finally leaves, passing Mr. Peggotty on the stairs. Finally reunited with his niece, Mr. Peggotty carries Emily down the stairs.
  51. The Beginning of a Longer Journey: Mr. Peggotty tells David Copperfield and Miss Betsey that Emily is staying at his lodging and he shares what Emily told him about her escape from Littimer. She ran as far as she could and then collapsed in exhaustion. She was found and nursed back to health by a woman she knew—a seaman’s wife. She got to France, where she found work at an inn. She fled again to England when she saw Littimer. Fearing her family wouldn’t forgive her, she went to London where a she met a woman who promised her a needlework job and a place to stay. Martha Endell learned of this and knew the woman really ran a brothel. Martha went to the place in the middle of the night and brought Emily back to her room, telling her Mr. Peggotty still loved her and had been looking for her. Mr. Peggotty tells David and Miss Betsey he plans to leave in about six weeks for Australia, where he and Emily can make a new start. His sister Peggotty will stay in Yarmouth to care for Ham Peggotty’s house and keep him company. Mr. Peggotty will find a home for Mrs. Gummidge in Yarmouth and will provide her with an income. David goes to Yarmouth with Mr. Peggotty to help him prepare for his move to Australia and to see Ham. David visits Mr. Omer in his shop and finds him wheelchair-bound but in good spirits. Then he goes to see Ham. Ham asks David to write a letter to Emily for him, begging her forgiveness for pressing her to marry him. If they had just stayed friends, he thinks, she might have confided in him about James Steerforth before doing anything drastic. He asks David to tell Emily he loves the memory of her and will never marry; he wishes only the best for her. The old boat home is now bare and empty. As Mr. Peggotty, Peggotty, David, and Mrs. Gummidge leave it for the last time, Mrs. Gummidge begs Mr. Peggotty to let her come to Australia with them, and Mr. Peggotty agrees.
  52. I Assist at an Explosion: When Mr. Micawber’s mysterious meeting approaches, Dora feels well enough to stay home alone, so David, Miss Betsey, Mr. Dick, and Tommy Traddles go to Canterbury. At Mr. Micawber’s instruction, they go to Mr. Wickfield’s house and ask to see Agnes Wickfield. They all go into Uriah Heep’s office, and Mr. Micawber calls Heep a scoundrel. Uriah drops his humble act and lashes out, particularly toward David, revealing the depths of his malice. Mr. Micawber reads aloud a letter he had prepared, enumerating the many ways Heep has used forgery, deception, and fraud to ruin Mr. Wickfield and gain control of the business. Heep even had plans to take over Wickfield’s property. Micawber says he has proof of his allegations, gathered over the course of a year. At the end of Micawber’s presentation, Miss Betsey flies at Heep, demanding her property back, having just learned it was Heep who lost her fortune in investments. She had previously taken responsibility for the loss herself because she assumed Mr. Wickfield had mismanaged her funds and she’d wanted to protect her old friend. Traddles assures her he’ll take possession of the company’s books and Heep will make restitution. In the meantime, Heep will be confined and held under watch. Mr. Micawber invites everyone to his house, where he reconciles with Mrs. Micawber, and they begin to consider their next move now that Mr. Micawber is again seeking employment. Miss Betsey suggests Australia would be a good place to start over; they could even go in the same ship as “some people David knows.” She says, given how much Mr. Micawber has helped everyone, a loan for their passage could easily be arranged. The Micawbers like the idea and begin to plan for their move.
  53. Another Retrospect: David Copperfield fears Dora’s illness is worse and she’ll never recover. Even Jip suddenly seems old and weak. When Dora grows weaker, she asks for Agnes Wickfield to visit her. One evening as David sits with Dora, she says she she’s afraid she was too young and too silly to be a wife. He reminds her they’ve been very happy. She tells him, “It is much better as it is!” Dora asks for Agnes to come up to her, alone, and David goes downstairs, where Jip is sleeping. After a while, Jip wakes up and wants to go upstairs. When David says “Not tonight,” Jip lies down at his feet and dies, with a small cry. Just then, Agnes comes downstairs in a “rain of tears” and he knows Dora has died.
  54. Mr. Micawber’s Transactions: David Copperfield copes with his grief. He decides to go abroad as soon as the situation with Uriah Heep is resolved and the emigrants have left for Australia. David, Miss Betsey, Agnes Wickfield, and Tommy Traddles meet at the Micawbers house to discuss the state of Mr. Wickfield’s business and the financing of the Micawbers emigration to Australia. After the Micawbers greet everyone and discuss their plans for going to Australia, they leave the others to discuss the business at hand. Traddles begins by praising Mr. Micawber’s industrious and thorough work on the papers and books, as well as the number of letters he’s written. Miss Betsey comments, “I believe he dreams in letters!” Traddles says he and Micawber have determined Mr. Wickfield, once he dissolves his business, will not be in debt, and Agnes proposes to “rent the dear old house and keep a school.” Miss Betsey’s money has been recovered. They come up with a plan to finance the Micawbers’ emigration in a way that will prevent the family from running through the entire amount at once. Uriah Heep, who has disappeared from London with his mother, still has some I.O.U.s from Mr. Micawber, so they anticipate Mr. Micawber will be arrested several times for debt before they emigrate. It’s decided Traddles will pay these off each time Micawber is arrested, so he won’t have to spend any time in jail. David has been concerned because his aunt has been “in and out of London” every day for the past two weeks. A few times she was out all day, and one night she returned after midnight. When they return to London, she reveals her husband had been in the hospital, and he died the night before they left for Canterbury. David and Miss Betsey attend her husband’s burial exactly 36 years from the day she married him.
  55. Tempest: Peggotty has come to London to spend time with her brother before he leaves for Australia. They talk about Ham Peggotty, and David decides to give Ham’s letter to Emily now, so she can send a response to him before she leaves, if she likes. When Emily does send a response, David decides to take it to Ham himself. His coach is forced to stop at an inn before reaching Yarmouth due to a tremendous rain and wind storm. The wind blows through the night and picks up the next day. In Yarmouth, groups of people are on the beach—wives, old sailors, children, and ship owners—worrying about sailors caught at sea. “High watery walls” come roaring in to the beach. David searches for Ham and is told he has gone to Lowestoft to repair a ship; he’s expected back the next morning. David spends the night at the inn, and the storm is still raging when he’s awakened in the morning by people shouting that a schooner is about to be wrecked on the beach. Rushing to the shore, David sees a ship rolling broadside on the waves. Four men can be seen on the deck, one with long curly hair, clinging to the rigging. The ship turns over, and finally only the man with the curly hair remains on what’s left of the ship. On the shore, David sees Ham, with ropes attached to him, preparing to swim out to make a rescue. David tries to persuade him not to go, but Ham insists, and David is swept along by the crowd. Ham plunges into the sea, and just as he approaches the ship a wave overtakes it and breaks it up. Ham is pulled back to shore, dead, and his body is taken to a house nearby. As David sits beside him, someone comes to him and leads him to a body washed ashore. On the part of the shore where David had played as a child, lying among the ruins of Mr. Peggotty’s old converted boat, is James Steerforth’s body. As narrator, David Copperfield tells the reader that these events affected him so powerfully, he still dreams of it.
  56. The New Wound, and the Old: David Copperfield recalls Steerforth’s parting request to “think of me at my best,” and he knows he does think of him that way. Feeling responsible for informing Mrs. Steerforth about her son’s death, David arranges to accompany the body to London that night. When he informs Mrs. Steerforth and Miss Dartle, Miss Dartle rages at Mrs. Steerforth for how she had dealt with her son, claiming she loved him better than his mother ever had. Mrs. Steerforth, affected by the shock, is unable to speak or move. The doctors can do nothing for her; she lies “like a statue,” and Steerforth’s body is laid in her room. David visits one last time, lifting Steerforth’s hand to his heart.
  57. The Emigrants: David Copperfield asks Mr. Micawber to help him prevent Mr. Peggotty and Emily from learning of the deaths in Yarmouth before they embark on their journey. Mr. Micawber vows to keep any newspapers from falling into Mr. Peggotty’s hands. Everyone, except Emily, gathers at the Micawbers’ lodgings the night before the emigrants are to depart. They share punch and hopes of success. Mrs. Micawber holds forth on the expectation that her husband’s talents will be appreciated in Australia in a way they never were in his home country, and he’ll finally attain the wealth and success he deserves. Mr. Micawber is arrested for one of Uriah Heep’s I.O.U.s, and he’s released when Tommy Traddles pays the debt. The following afternoon, David and Peggotty board the ship for a last farewell before it puts out to sea. Mr. Peggotty says Mr. Micawber has just been arrested again for a Heep I.O.U. Mr. Peggotty has paid the money Micawber owed, and David reimburses him. They go down between decks where emigrants of all ages are finding their berths, arranging their baggage, and claiming their spaces for the long voyage. David is pleased to learn Mr. Peggotty has persuaded Martha Endell to go with them. The time comes for visitors to go ashore. As the ship pulls away to cheering crowds on the docks, David catches a last glimpse of Emily, standing at Mr. Peggotty’s side.
  58. Absence: David Copperfield goes abroad where, “left alone with [his] undisciplined heart,” he copes with his grief over all he has lost—”love, friendship, interest.” After traveling for about a year, he settles for a while in Switzerland. He begins to write again and publishes his third novel, which increases his literary fame. He begins to think he missed his chance at happiness in his youth, when his “undisciplined heart” led him away from Agnes Wickfield. He finally admits to himself he loves her, but he believes it’s too late; he thinks she could never feel the same way about him. Most importantly, he doesn’t want to disturb the relationship they do have. With these thoughts in mind, David returns home after three years.
  59. Return: David returns to London in the autumn, wanting to surprise his friends and Miss Betsey, who are expecting him at Christmas. He visits Tommy Traddles first and is surprised to find Traddles has finally married Sophy Crewler, the parson’s daughter whom he has been engaged to for a long time. They’re living in his law offices for the time being. Sophy Crewler’s sisters are visiting, and David is impressed by the warm family spirit surrounding Traddles. He returns to his hotel and is sitting in the coffee room when he spots Mr. Chillip, the doctor who helped bring him into the world. Mr. Chillip says Mr. Murdstone and his sister have nearly driven Mr. Murdstone’s young wife mad with their bullying and “firmness.” Mr. Chillip recalls the night David was born, and confesses it took him a while to recover from the fright of Miss Betsey hitting him with her bonnet. The next day, David surprises his aunt at her Dover cottage. He has a joyful reunion with Miss Betsey, Mr. Dick, and Peggotty, who has moved in as housekeeper.
  60. Agnes: Miss Betsey tells David that Mr. Micawber has paid back the money he owed when he left England, which suggests he’s doing well in Australia. Mr. Wickfield, she says, is “a reclaimed man,” in better mental and physical health. When David asks if Agnes Wickfield has a lover, Miss Betsey says she suspects Agnes “has an attachment.” The next morning, David goes to Canterbury to see Agnes. He tries to ask her if she has anyone special in her life, but she’s evasive, speaking instead about her school and her father. After dinner, Mr. Wickfield reminisces about his wife—telling David she married him against the wishes of her father, with whom she never reconciled—and says Agnes is very much like her mother. Unable to tell Agnes how much he’s in love with her, David urges her to always remember that “whatever new ties” she might form, he’ll always be there for her and love her as a sister. He rides back to Dover thinking she didn’t seem happy, and knowing he isn’t happy.
  61. I Am Shown Two Interesting Penitents: While he works on completing his next novel, David stays at his aunt’s cottage. He sometimes goes to London to see Traddles about business. David’s novels have made him so famous that he gets a lot of mail from admirers, and he receives a letter from Mr. Creakle, who is now a magistrate, offering to show him an example of prison reform that works. David and Traddles arrange for a tour of the prison. The goal of the prison is for the prisoners to be converted and to sincerely repent of their evil ways. Much is made of two model prisoners, number Twenty Seven and number Twenty Eight, who turn out to be none other than Uriah Heep and Littimer. Heep was sent to prison for bank fraud, conspiracy, and forgery; Littimer robbed a young man and was attempting to flee to America, disguised in a blonde wig and whiskers. But Miss Mowcher spotted Littimer on the street, toppled him over, and held on to him until the authorities arrived to arrest him. Heep continues to note how “umble” he is, and Littimer claims he was led into wickedness through “having lived a thoughtless life … in the service of young men.” David and Traddles see the prisoner’s hypocrisy immediately, but do not attempt to convince Creakle of it.
  62. A Light Shines on My Way: David Copperfield falls into the habit of spending at least one evening a week with Agnes Wickfield. One day, he asks his aunt if she knows anything more about Agnes’s romantic attachment. Miss Betsey says she believes Agnes is going to be married. On the way to Canterbury, David resolves to make his feelings known. He presses Agnes to tell him her secret, and her tearful response gives him some hope. It takes some time for him to tell her of his hopes, and her response confirms she has always loved him. Within two weeks, they have a quiet wedding. Agnes tells David that on the night Dora died, Dora had said she hoped only Agnes would “occupy this vacant place.”
  63. A Visitor: Ten years later, David is a successful author, happily married to Agnes, with his children playing about him, when a surprise visitor arrives at his door. Mr. Peggotty has come on his own, just to see everyone, he says, “afore I got to be too old,” and he stays with them nearly a month. Mr. Peggotty reports all of the emigrants are thriving in Australia. Mr. Micawber is now a respected magistrate. Emily has turned down marriage proposals, telling her uncle “that’s gone forever,” but she enjoys helping the sick, teaching children, and generally spreading kindness. Martha Endell is now married to a farmer. Mrs. Gummidge has been helpful and uncomplaining. Before Mr. Peggotty returns, he and David visit Ham Peggotty’s grave, and Mr. Peggotty takes from it a little bit of earth and a tuft of grass, for Emily. Mr. Peggotty had learned of the deaths of James Steerforth and Ham but continued to keep the news from Emily, who finally learned it from an old newspaper account a traveler brought to their home.
  64. A Last Retrospect: The narrator looks back on those in his life whose “faces are the most distinct” to him. Miss Betsey is more than 80 years old but is still able to walk “six miles at a stretch.” Peggotty is still with her, busily working at her needlework. Miss Betsey is godmother to David’s daughter, Betsey Trotwood, and she enjoys spoiling Betsey’s younger sister, Dora. Mr. Dick, now an old man, makes giant kites for David’s sons and still works on his Memorial when he has time. Old Mrs. Steerforth and Miss Rosa Dartle argue and quibble their days away. Julia Mills has married a wealthy Scotsman and surrounds herself with shallow “society” people, including the likes of Jack Maldon. Doctor Strong and Annie are happy, and he’s still working away on his dictionary. Tommy Traddles, now a successful magistrate, presides over Sophy Crewler’s birthday dinner “like a Patriarch,” surrounded by his and Sophy’s family, including their two sons. The person who is most important to David is Agnes, and he wishes only she will be near him when his life comes to its close.