One of my reading groups read Demon Copperhead in March. I knew that the writing of Demon Copperhead was influenced by Dickens’ book, and so I decided to re-read it. I seem to have read a succession of recent books that are written well-enough recently but I craved something a bit more complex and convoluted. When I thought about it, I read David Copperfield nearly 50 years ago at university and I thought that it could probably withstand a re-reading at that distance!
It certainly did, although it was a big ask. At 1024 pages in the Penguin edition (and over 2000 pages on my Kobo reader), it took me over 26 hours to read. But it has such a wide cast of characters who have found their way into literary culture that it rewards meeting them again in the original: Mister Micawber, always waiting for something to turn up, and the slimy Uriah Heep.
Fifty years later, I still find bubble-headed Dora and her stupid, snappy little dog Jip tedious and frustrating. Agnes is still too noble and angelic. If anything, Dickens’ depiction of women in this book has become even more problematic than it was back in the 1970s. The steely coldness of his step-father Mr Murdstone is ‘of a type’ more common back in Victorian times, but still conveys the sense of David’s security being stripped away bit by bit.
But what surprised me on this later reading is how much about colonial immigration – particularly to Australia- there is in the book. It’s almost like an advertising brochure for escaping your problems by heading off to the colonies. I hadn’t been quite so aware of Dickens’ social and legal commentary, either, when I read it 50 years ago. I think that I had more sympathy for David Copperfield’s creeping disillusionment with Dora and his marriage, and his dogged decision to keep on with the marriage, even though he was getting so little from it.
So worth 26 hours of my life? (In fact, if you consider that this is a second reading, that makes 52 hours of my life). Absolutely. As you will see, it enhanced my reading of Demon Copperhead immeasurably, and I’m grateful that, age and digital-attention-span notwithstanding, I can still tackle this big baggy monster of a book, and enjoy it thoroughly.
My rating: 9/10
Sourced from: e-book
The Resident Judge of Port Phillip 