David Copperfield
A Classic of World Literature
First Edition - Charles Dickens - 1850
Dickens, Charles. THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD (London: Bradbury & Evans, 1850) First edition, bound from the original parts. With all first issue errors other than 'screamed' for 'screwed' (p. 132) which is only present in the first issue. With Chapter XXVII on p. 282 instead of p. 283 as listed in the Contents; p.16, line 1 & p. 225, line 22 - 'recal' instead of 'recall'; p. 19, 12 lines from the bottom "cha pter ;ut" shows; p. 387, 6 lines from the bottom 'coroboration' instead of 'corroboration'; p. 472, 13 lines from the bottom-- there is no closing of the quotation marks, first state of the engraved vignette title (dated). With 39 engraved plates and a vignette titlepage by H. K. Browne [Phiz]. 8vo, later antique three-quarter blue polished calf over marbled boards, the spine with raised bands double ruled in gilt, two compartments with a red morocco labels handsomely ruled and lettered in gilt, page edges untrimmed. xiv, [1], 624 pp. A handsome copy, quite fine internally, clean and solid with a bit of the usual toning to the plates and virtually none of the typical spotting, typical offsetting to the frontispiece and vignette title-page, the binding fine with only minor evidence of age.
FINE FIRST EDITION, BOUND IN HANDSOME BLUE CALF OVER BLUE MARBLED BOARDS. For many lovers of the author's works, DAVID COPPERFIELD ranks as the finest of his writings. "Of all my books," Dickens wrote, "I like this the best; like many fond parents I have my favourite child, and his name is David Copperfield." It is certainly Dickens' most personal and autobiographical work, especially in the remarkable early chapters describing David's provincial upbringing and his experiences in the bleak warehouses of London. Abounding in vivid characters such as Uriah Heep, Betsy Trotwood, Mr. Micawber, the Pegottys and Mr. Dick, DAVID COPPERFIELD continues to rank among Dickens' most popular and critically acclaimed works. In this work, Dickens displays his talents well: "his inordinate gift of observation, his sympathy with the humble, his power over the emotions and his incomparable endowment of unalloyed human fun...It gave what were then universally referred to as 'the lower orders' a new sense of self-respect, a new feeling of citizenship. Like the defiance of another Luther, or the Declaration of a new Independence, it emitted a fresh ray of hope across the firmament." [EB] In this way, Dickens' work is significant on many levels. |
