What Drove You Crazy?, Copperfield rants welcome here |
 Jun 4 2009, 09:06 AM
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DDD's Protege  Posts: 314 Joined: 10:49am March 13, 2009 Location: On the Horizon   |
I think everyone has, at some point, wished that they could jump inside the book that they are reading and give the character some advice, give them a warning, or knock some sense into them! With that in mind, was there anything that drove you crazy in David Copperfield that you wished that you could have done something about?
For my part, I had trouble adapting to the fact that the book's protagonist was so passive. It bugged me the way that David let people walk all over him sometimes. I can understand that when he first arrived at school, he would be grateful for Steerforth's friendship and unsure of the unwritten social rules, so he would give in to the demands for his money and his food. But when they were grown, he put up no objection to Steerforth calling him "Daisy" (even in Victorian times, this could not have been a flattering nickname for a man, I think), getting him extremely drunk, or really whatever Steerforth wanted to do, just so David could have the honor of his friendship. Not that Steerforth always treated him badly, but mostly it seems as though David valued his friendship so much that he would not say a word to jeopardize it. Also, after he married Dora, there is a section that describes how they are so inept at housekeeping that they are not even very successful at shopping; the shopkeepers take advantage of their inexperience and give them inferior product. They also have a problem with being taken advantage of by a series of servants. Geez, grow a spine already, David! I was also shocked that David would sit by silently and let Rosa Dartle torment Emily without stepping in to stop her. I know that he wanted Mr. Peggoty to be the one to rescue Emily, but really! Way to stand up for a lady, David! Even more shocking to me was how he did nothing but watch when the "mystery man" was harassing Aunt Betsey for money at her cottage. Even though David had seen the man before, he had no idea at that point who he was or how much of a danger he was to Aunt Betsey, and here he was at her home. I was waiting for David to go and confront him, for I think he would have done anything for Aunt Betsey, but he just stood in the shadows and watched. So although for the most part, David showed a lot of personal growth throughout the course of the book, I think he remained mostly acquiescent to the end. Ok, my rant is over. Anyone else have something that drove them crazy from this book? -------------------- "Only love...can leave such a mark / But only love...can heal such a scar" -U2 |
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