David Copperfield: Chapter 52 Summary & Analysis

The meeting with Mr. Micawber approaches, and David and Miss Betsey discuss what they ought to do: Dora is very weak, and Miss Betsey feels she ought to stay with her and send Mr. Dick in her place. Dora, however, says that she won't forgive them if Miss Betsey stays home on her account: she threatens to make Jip bite her, teasingly claims that Miss Betsey never does anything to help her, and claims to be perfectly healthy. David and Miss Betsey therefore agree to go, and humor Dora by saying she is a "little Imposter, who feigned to be rather unwell, because she liked to be petted."

The next day, David, Miss Betsey, Mr. Dick, and Traddles set off together for Canterbury, and arrive that evening at the hotel Mr. Micawber has indicated. They are scheduled to meet Micawber for breakfast, but David goes out for an early morning walk along the familiar streets. The chiming bells, however, remind him of how much everything has changed: "their own age […] pretty Dora's youth; and of the many, never old, who had lived and loved and died, while the reverberations of the bells had hummed." He even happens to cross paths with the butcher who used to bully him, who now has a baby and is a "benignant member of society."

David returns to the inn and waits anxiously with Miss Betsey, Traddles, and Mr. Dick. When Mr. Micawber arrives, he refuses to eat anything and warns everyone that they will soon see "an eruption." He explains that Traddles has advised him on what he is planning to do, and asks his listeners to follow his lead, even though he is a "Waif and Stray upon the shore of human nature." David assures Micawber that they trust him, and he asks them to follow him to Wickfield and Heep's. Micawber leaves, and the rest of the group wait for five minutes, as he requested, before setting off.

When they arrive at Wickfield and Heep's, David approaches Mr. Micawber at his desk and asks for Agnes, as Micawber had told him to do. Mr. Micawber then shows David, Traddles, Miss Betsey, and Mr. Dick inside, and announces their presence to Uriah. Uriah is momentarily surprised, but then greets them fawningly, saying that he hopes Dora is doing better. He also remarks that despite all the changes in the office, he himself has not changed, which prompts Miss Betsey to say that Uriah is "pretty constant to the promise of [his] youth." Uriah pretends this is a compliment and sends Mr. Micawber to fetch Agnes and Mrs. Heep, explaining that Mr. Wickfield's condition keeps him busy with work—though he says this is a "pleasure as well as a duty."

Mr. Micawber shows Agnes in, and David notices that she looks tired and nervous. He also notices that Mr. Micawber and Traddles seem to be communicating silently with one another. Eventually, Traddles leaves the room. Meanwhile, Uriah repeatedly tells Mr. Micawber to leave, but Micawber ignores him, finally saying that he "chooses" to wait. Uriah grows pale and threatens to fire Micawber, saying he'll talk to him later. Mr. Micawber, however, suddenly bursts out that "if there is a scoundrel on this earth […] with whom [he has] already talked too much, that scoundrel's name is—HEEP!" At this, Uriah accuses David of being jealous of his own "rise," and using Micawber to get back at him. When David urges Micawber to "deal with [Uriah] as he deserves," Uriah warns Agnes and Miss Betsey not to take part in this "gang."

Traddles returns with Mrs. Heep and—when Uriah asks him who he is—explains that he has a power of attorney to act on Mr. Wickfield's behalf. Uriah sneers that Traddles probably tricked Mr. Wickfield into providing this, but Traddles says that they should refer the issue of "fraud" to Mr. Micawber. Worried, Mrs. Heep tries to reason with Uriah, but he snaps at her to be quiet. David, meanwhile, is shocked to see Uriah reveal the full extent of his "malice, insolence, and hatred." Uriah seems especially enraged over the prospect of losing Agnes, and again accuses David of conspiring with Mr. Micawber. Uriah says that while he has never pretended to be a gentleman, David is a hypocrite for plotting against Uriah while priding himself on his "honor."

Uriah invites Mr. Micawber to say what he has to say, and Micawber—who has barely been able to restrain himself—takes a letter from his pocket and begins to read. The letter was written by Micawber himself, and begins with a lengthy description of his own misfortunes. It was these, he says, that led him to Uriah, whom he describes as a "Forger and a Cheat." At this point, Uriah tries to snatch the letter away, but Micawber strikes his hand with a ruler and threatens to break his head if he comes near him again.

David and Traddles restrain Mr. Micawber, and he resumes reading his letter, explaining that his financial difficulties quickly forced him to ask Uriah for advances, just as Uriah had anticipated: by placing Micawber in his debt, Uriah secured his cooperation in falsifying business documents and deceiving Mr. Wickfield. This plunged Mr. Micawber into a state of depression, but with Agnes's encouragement, he began to collect information on what Uriah was doing.

Mr. Micawber begins to lay out his case against Uriah. His first "charge" is that Uriah took advantage of Mr. Wickfield's episodes of drunkenness to convince him to sign documents withdrawing money for fabricated business dealings. In this way, Uriah made it look as if Wickfield were the one behaving unethically. At this point, Uriah interrupts to again threaten David, but Mr. Micawber reminds Uriah that he himself has been living in Uriah's old house lately, and hints that he found an incriminating pocketbook Uriah left there. Hearing this, Mrs. Heep begs her son to be "umble" and "make terms," but Uriah tells her to be quiet.

Mr. Micawber's second charge is that Uriah also forged Mr. Wickfield's signature on various documents, including one in which Uriah supposedly advances money to Mr. Wickfield to protect his reputation (that is, by providing him with the money Wickfield was supposed to have withdrawn). Mr. Micawber says that the pocketbook backs up his claims, because it contains Uriah's attempts at replicating Mr. Wickfield's signature. As Micawber speaks, Uriah unlocks a drawer in his desk and then, suddenly remembering that others are watching, stops short.  Meanwhile, Traddles confirms that Micawber gave him the incriminating pocketbook earlier that day, and Mrs. Heep again pleads with her son to be "umble." Uriah retorts that she might as well shoot him, and his mother protests that she loves him and has promised Traddles she would convince her son to set things right.

Uriah once again ignores Mrs. Heep and fixates on David as the cause of all his problems. Meanwhile, Mr. Micawber proceeds to his final charge, which is that Uriah has used both Mr. Wickfield's supposed business misdealings and his "weaknesses," "faults," "virtues," "honor," and "parental affections" to manipulate and cheat him. Most recently, Uriah convinced Mr. Wickfield to sign over the partnership and his furniture to Heep. He was able to accomplish this, in part, by making Wickfield believe that he had lost all his money in unwise investments and was in fact in danger of defaulting on various contracts. Wickfield felt so much shame over what he had supposedly done that he felt he had no choice except to give in to Uriah's demands. By this point, Agnes is crying in both sadness and relief.

Micawber announces that he is now nearly finished, and simply needs to provide his evidence. He becomes distracted, however, by imagining in detail all the sufferings he and his family will undergo as a result of the sacrifice he has made in leaving Uriah's employment. Meanwhile, Uriah opens a safe he keeps in the office, only to find that all the books in it are gone. Micawber explains that he took them, and Traddles says that he now has them.

Suddenly, Miss Betsey grabs Uriah by the collar and says she wants her property back: she explains that she thought Mr. Wickfield was responsible for its loss, so she had until this point concealed the fact that she had invested it through his firm. David pulls his aunt away from Uriah, assuring her that they will recover the money. Meanwhile, Mrs. Heep continues to plead with her son and everyone else in the room.

Uriah asks what David wants to do, and Traddles explains what "must be done." First, he says, Uriah needs to give back the contract in which Mr. Wickfield signed away his part in the firm. More than that, Uriah needs to return all the money he has stolen, and provide all of his accounts to ensure that he is telling the truth. Traddles tells Uriah to stay in his room until he and the others have had a chance to go over those accounts, and—when Uriah says he won't—threatens to get the law involved and have Uriah arrested. Mrs. Heep begs Uriah to do as Traddles says, and he reluctantly tells her to go fetch the contract. Mr. Dick goes with her, and she returns with the contract and all the accounts.

Traddles tells Uriah he can go think things over in his room. Before leaving, however, Uriah turns to David and says he has "always been an upstart" determined to bring Uriah down. David retorts that it is Uriah who has always been "against all the world," and that greed is inevitably punished. Uriah says David sounds like the teachers at the charity school he attended, threatens to get revenge on Mr. Micawber, and leaves.

Mr. Micawber announces that he can now reconcile with Mrs. Micawber and the rest of his family, and invites everyone to follow him to his house. Agnes remains behind to comfort Mr. Wickfield, and Traddles stays to guard Uriah, but Mr. Dick, Miss Betsey, and David go with Mr. Micawber, grateful for all he has done. When they arrive at his home, Mr. Micawber immediately runs to his wife and embraces her, explaining that "the cloud is past from [his] mind" and welcoming the return of poverty if it means the return of "mutual confidence." Mrs. Micawber is so overwhelmed that she faints and has to be revived by Miss Betsey.

Miss Betsey is surprised at how large the Micawber family is, and asks what the eldest son is being trained to do. Mr. Micawber says that he had hoped his son would become part of a church choir, but admits that he is currently singing in public-houses. Mrs. Micawber insists that her son "means well," and Micawber agrees, but says that he has not "carrie[d] out his meaning, in any given direction whatsoever." This irritates the son, who asks how he is supposed to find another line of work, and Miss Betsey—who has been thinking this entire time—asks whether the family has thought about emigrating.

Mr. Micawber says that he always wanted to emigrate (though David doubts he ever thought of it before). He explains, however, that he doesn't have enough money to make the voyage. Miss Betsey says that Mr. Micawber's helpfulness entitles him to a reward, and Micawber says that while he couldn't accept a gift, he would agree to a loan. Miss Betsey assures him that he can set any terms he likes, and urges him to consider going with Mr. Peggotty and little Em'ly to Australia. Meanwhile, Mrs. Micawber wonders aloud whether Australia is the kind of place where her husband "would have a fair chance of rising in the social scale," and Miss Betsey says that it is, as long as he is "industrious." Mr. and Mrs. Micawber agree that Australia sounds like their "legitimate sphere of action."