#despite it having sooooo much in common with david's mother. who no one ever argues is supposed to be unsympathetic!

[britneyshakespeare]

Accordingly, I told Agnes about my declaration of poverty, about the cookery book, the housekeeping accounts, and all the rest of it. "Oh, Trotwood!" she remonstrated, with a smile. "Just your old headlong way! You might have been in earnest in striving to get on in the world, without being so very sudden with a timid, loving, inexperienced girl. Poor Dora!" I never heard such sweet forbearing kindness expressed in a voice, as she expressed in making this reply. It was as if I had seen her admiringly and tenderly embracing Dora, and tacitly reproving me, by her considerate protection, for my hot haste in fluttering that little heart. It was as if I had seen Dora, in all her fascinating artlessness, caressing Agnes, and thanking her, and coaxingly appealing against me, and loving me with all her childish innocence. I felt so grateful to Agnes, and admired her so! I saw those two together, in a bright perspective, such well-associated friends, each adorning the other so much!

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens, Chapter 39: Wickfield and Heep

#diana rereads david copperfield #i havent been updating this tag bc i havent really had the motivation to make posts but yes im still in happyland rereading this book #AND THAT'S THAT ON THE RIVALRY BETWEEN AGNES AND DORA #seriously it's been 5 years and i still can't get over the stigma ppl attach to dora that i REALLY do not think is supported by the text #dora is an imperfect character. and often in dickens ppl associate imperfection with unworthiness. #dora IS worthy. like i cant get over it. she has all the right friends sympathizing with her #but so much of the audience do not sympathize w her faults or her backstory at all #despite it having sooooo much in common with david's mother. who no one ever argues is supposed to be unsympathetic! #dickens #david copperfield #agnes wickfield #dora spenlow #dora has all the faults that ppl don't care to sympathize with real beautiful young women who have been condescended to all their lives. #she feels incompetent she feels she has no control in anything. her best friend is her dog for a reason #bc jip doesn't expect anything of her but to love and care for him. she is not one of her masters #and for that matter she is less of a master of jip than she is his indulging friend. #in the saddest sense. jip and dora are equals. jip represents all the control that dora has in the world (very little) #and she loves jip. and many ppl love dora. but no one has any more expectations of her than the dog. #ppl accept her subservience. #ppl act like dora is just frivolous and doesn't care about making david's life any easier when she doesn't believe she can help him w thing #like domestic duties. but EVERYONE in dora's life tells david NOT to expect anything of her. #she is only REPEATING what everyone has already been telling her AND him the whole time. she has no self-efficacy #dora spenlow is a tragic heroine. love it or leave it