David Copperfield Study Questions & Topics for Discussion

David Copperfield Topics for Discussion

1. Is David Copperfield's childhood at all like that of American children in the nineteenth century?

2. Could an Edward Murdstone exploit a young naive woman like Clara Copperfield today? How has society and the legal system in England or America changed since 1850?

3. Dan'l Peggotty and his family are lower class English people. Has Dickens presented them realistically?

4. While England, even in 1850, was a democracy to an extent, it still had (and has) a rigid class system. How has Dickens presented this in David Copperfield?

5. Dickens is noted for his ability to create character in his fiction. How typically does he present minor characters in David Copperfield?

6. The very name, Little Em'ly, is rather sentimental. She is called this all through the novel. Does the reader ever see her as a realistic human being?

7. Is Dickens...
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