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David Copperfield · Chapters

Chapters explained

Chapter companions for David Copperfield by Charles Dickens.

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  1. Chapter 1

    Preface to the 1850 Edition

    Dickens reflects on the completion of David Copperfield, expressing both pleasure in finishing a long design and regret at parting from the characters he has created. He notes that he has said all he intended in the story itself and looks forward to future work with gratitude for the reception of this novel.

  2. Chapter 2

    Preface to the Charles Dickens Edition

    In this preface, Dickens reflects on the personal and emotional experience of completing David Copperfield, describing the difficulty of detaching himself from the story and its characters. He confesses that of all his books, this one is his favorite, and he regards it as a beloved child of his imagination.

  3. Chapter 3

    Dedication

    The author affectionately inscribes the book to the Honorable Mr. and Mrs. Richard Watson of Rockingham, Northamptonshire.

  4. Chapter 4

    David Copperfield

    The novel opens with David Copperfield's birth, introducing his family and the early influences on his life, including his mother Clara, the devoted servant Peggotty, and the formidable Aunt Betsey Trotwood. The chapter establishes themes of orphanhood, domesticity, and the role of women, setting the stage for David's formative years.

  5. Chapter 5

    I Am Born

    David Copperfield introduces his birth, describing his father's death before his birth, his mother's vulnerable state, and the unexpected visit of his formidable great-aunt, Miss Betsey Trotwood, who disapproves of the family's impracticality and leaves in disappointment upon learning the newborn is a boy.

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  1. Chapter 6II: I Observe
  2. Chapter 7I Have a Change
  3. Chapter 8IV: I Fall Into Disgrace
  4. Chapter 9I Am Sent Away from Home
  5. Chapter 10VI: I Enlarge My Circle of Acquaintance
  6. Chapter 11My "First Half" at Salem House
  7. Chapter 12My Holidays. Especially One Happy Afternoon
  8. Chapter 13I Have a Memorable Birthday
  9. Chapter 14I Become Neglected, and Am Provided For
  10. Chapter 15XI: I Begin Life on My Own Account, and Don’t Like It
  11. Chapter 16Liking Life on My Own Account No Better, I Form a Great Resolution
  12. Chapter 17XIII: The Sequel of My Resolution
  13. Chapter 18My Aunt Makes Up Her Mind About Me
  14. Chapter 19XV: I Make Another Beginning
  15. Chapter 20XVI: I Am a New Boy in More Senses Than One
  16. Chapter 21Somebody Turns Up
  17. Chapter 22A Retrospect
  18. Chapter 23XIX: I Look About Me, and Make a Discovery
  19. Chapter 24Steerforth's Home
  20. Chapter 25Little Em'ly
  21. Chapter 26Some Old Scenes, and Some New People
  22. Chapter 27XXIII: I Corroborate Mr. Dick, and Choose a Profession
  23. Chapter 28My First Dissipation
  24. Chapter 29Good and Bad Angels
  25. Chapter 30I Fall Into Captivity
  26. Chapter 31Tommy Traddles
  27. Chapter 32Mr. Micawber's Gauntlet
  28. Chapter 33XXIX: I Visit Steerforth at His Home, Again
  29. Chapter 34A Loss
  30. Chapter 35A Greater Loss
  31. Chapter 36The Beginning of a Long Journey
  32. Chapter 37Blissful
  33. Chapter 38My Aunt Astonishes Me
  34. Chapter 39Depression
  35. Chapter 40Enthusiasm
  36. Chapter 41A Little Cold Water
  37. Chapter 42A Dissolution of Partnership
  38. Chapter 43Wickfield and Heep
  39. Chapter 44The Wanderer
  40. Chapter 45Dora's Aunts
  41. Chapter 46XLII: Mischief
  42. Chapter 47XLIII: Another Retrospect
  43. Chapter 48XLIV: Our Housekeeping
  44. Chapter 49XLV: Mr. Dick Fulfils My Aunt’s Predictions
  45. Chapter 50XLVI: Intelligence
  46. Chapter 51Martha
  47. Chapter 52Domestic
  48. Chapter 53I Am Involved in Mystery
  49. Chapter 54Mr. Peggotty's Dream Comes True
  50. Chapter 55LI: The Beginning of a Longer Journey
  51. Chapter 56I Assist at an Explosion
  52. Chapter 57LIII: Another Retrospect
  53. Chapter 58Mr. Micawber's Transactions
  54. Chapter 59Tempest
  55. Chapter 60LVI: The New Wound, and the Old
  56. Chapter 61LVII: The Emigrants
  57. Chapter 62LVIII: Absence
  58. Chapter 63LIX: Return
  59. Chapter 64Agnes
  60. Chapter 65LXI: I Am Shown Two Interesting Penitents
  61. Chapter 66A Light Shines on My Way
  62. Chapter 67LXIII: A Visitor
  63. Chapter 68A Last Retrospect
David Copperfield — Chapters Explained