It seems to me that the premise of Nussbaum’s article is a defence of Steerforth’s character and conduct. Nussbaum claims that the reader, like Copperfield, falls deeply in love with Steerforth despite Dickens’ attempts to portray him as a villain or a ‘bad Angel’(p.313). Instead she sees Steerforth as inhabiting an alternate world, a shadow land or dream world, in which he can exist with ‘Daisy’. This world is conjured by Steerforth and David in the secrecy and mystery which surrounds their friendship, and David has access to it through his ‘shadowy sister’ (Nussbaum, p.348) Betsey Trotwood, the female he should have been born as who exists in the dream world permanently. In contrast to Copperfield’s ‘other angel’ Steerforth, Nussbaum attacks Agnes as the ‘Angel of Death’ (Nussbaum, p.359), claiming that she is linked closely to death in the novel and that she is unlovable and unattractive as a character.
I am not convinced by Nussbaum’s interpretation of Steerforth’s character and his friendship with David. I feel she is glossing over the homoerotic undertones in her conviction that Steerforth and Daisy inhabit a shadow land. The relationship between the two boys clearly contains elements of a sexual nature, and these are evident even from their first meeting. One of the first things Copperfield notes about Steerforth is that he is ‘very good-looking’ (p.76) and he is anxious to please him from this moment on. The attraction appears to be mutual and Steerforth immediately lays claim on Copperfield: ‘You belong to my bedroom, I find’ (p.76). From this moment we are led through the progression and development of this close and often touching relationship between the two boys, but there are undertones of sexual desire throughout.
The secrecy and mystery that surrounds the boys’ friendship, as noted by Nussbaum, does not signify a secret world, but a secret shared between them of homosexual desire. These first stages of the relationship affected David so acutely that he is transported back to these first moments of excitement simply by the memory of them:
A certain mysterious feeling, consequent on the darkness, the secrecy of the revel, and the whisper in which everything was said, steals over me again. (p.77)The excitement of the secrecy that the boys are sharing is linked to the thrill of the nature of their relationship. Steerforth comes to educate Copperfield that ‘that were all right which [Copperfield] had a secret misgiving was nearly all wrong’ (p.77). Being a great deal older than David Steerforth introduces him to these secrets and feelings and he comes to see that his desires are not shameful.
Of course Copperfield purports to “fall in love” many a time throughout the novel, but these infatuations appear to attach themselves to any available and half-attractive woman that is present in David’s life. He claims to have feelings for Littl Em’ly, Miss Dartle, the eldest Miss Larkins, Dora, Agnes and several more besides. These feelings, therefore, cannot be considered to be true love as they appear to be inspired in David far too readily to earn that status. Instead they are mere entertainments, distractions even, to employ his public affection through a channel that is morally and socially acceptable to those around him. His fantasies with other women are merely a decoy, which is why he feels the need to attach himself to at least one at any point in his life, even from when he is a small boy.
Even in describing his love for these women, Copperfield appears to be trying to convince himself of his feelings. This is evident in his proclamation of love for Emily:
Of course I was in love with little Em’ly. I am sure I loved that baby…I am sure my fancy raised up something round that blue-eyed mite of a child, with etherealised, and made a very angel of her. (p.36)The repetition of ‘I am sure’ serves the opposite purpose of convincing us that David is particularly unsure of his feelings towards Emily, and his conviction that ‘of course’ he loves her suggests that he knows he should rather than that he actually does.
His love for Steerforth, however, is prevalent throughout, and no one ever replaces him in David’s affections. Even Steerforth’s own actions and elopement with Emily cannot shake Copperfield’s strong and determined love for him: ‘You have no best to me Steerforth …and no worst. You are always equally loved and cherished in my heart’ (p.373). Nussbaum suggests that the reader rejoices in this claim and sympathises with Copperfield’s feelings here. It seems, however, that we are led to believe that Steerforth is a bad influence on Copperfield, and perhaps that his influence on Copperfield is the reason for his homosexual persuasion and that this is an amoral path to have chosen.
Copperfield’s susceptibility is highlighted throughout the novel; he is always very small and vulnerable, he always has decisions made for him, he is almost a puppet in his own life. This is displayed most clearly in the scene in which his waiter manages to manipulate him easily into giving him most of his food and drink. Steerforth seems particularly aware of this trait of David’s, and he can be seen to act upon his vulnerability right from the start, when he takes all of Copperfield’s money. He also states later that he ‘feel[s] as if [David] were [his] property’ (p.250) and possessively nicknames him ‘my dear Daisy’ (p.250). The feminine nickname given to David also hints at an erotic relationship between the two of them, but one in which Steerforth is dominant and Copperfield is submissive.
Agnes represents the other side of the spectrum to that of Steerforth; she is presented as Copperfield’s ‘good Angel’ (p.313) and as a morally upright influence upon his character. Agnes warns David away from Steerforth:
It is very bold in me ... who have lived in such seclusion and can know so little of the world, to give you my advice so confidently, or even to have this strong opinion…I am certain that what I say is right. I am quite sure it is…when I caution you that you have made a dangerous friend. (p.314)Agnes’ stress on her innocence and inability to understand here hints at something unmentionable and even sordid in the issue she is addressing. It seems Agnes suspects the true nature of the relationship between Steerforth and Copperfield and is attempting to lead him away from it as his moral guide.
Nussbaum claims that Agnes’ ‘gesture’ (Nussbaum, p.358) is upward-pointing, and she claims it is a symbol of her link with death and heaven. It can also be viewed, however, as a symbol of her moral righteousness, of her social acceptability and her desire to help Copperfield remain upright in his morals and society. If Agnes represents all that is moral and upright, Steerforth represents all that is sordid and low, suggesting public attitudes to homosexual activity at the time. The fact that Copperfield marries Agnes at the end, whereas Steerforth is sent away like the ‘fallen woman’ and then found dead, endorses this idea of homosexuality as unacceptable both in the novel and in society at the time.
Perhaps one of the most telling points in the novel on this topic is the meeting between Copperfield and Steerforth’s mother and Miss Dartle. Here, despite her high esteem of Steerforth, his mother worries that ‘her son led but a wild life at college’ (p.251). This could be taken to imply a number of forms of misbehaviour or mischief until Miss Dartle takes up the conversation:
You know how ignorant I am, and that I only ask for information, but isn’t it always so? I thought that kind of life was on all hands understood to be – eh? (p.252)The rest of the conversation continues with plenty of gaps and silences whenever such subject as is being discussed is to be mentioned. This silence suggests that the subject is something unspeakable, something not to be mentioned in society and something that is only assumed and hinted at, much like the homoerotic nature of Steerforth and Daisy’s relationship. Miss Dartle appears to be voicing her observations and concerns without ever stating overtly what she is actually suggesting.
Nussbaum’s claims then that the reader falls in love with Steerforth seem completely unfounded and I certainly found myself almost repelled by this character until I studied the homosexual nature of his relationship with David and therefore came to realise that Dickens was perhaps deliberately making Steerforth repellent. We are led to see Steerforth as a bad influence upon the moral and social character of David Copperfield, and to admire Agnes who endeavours to keep David morally and socially upright throughout. It is clear, however, where Copperfield’s real affections lie throughout the novel. Despite the many heterosexual fancies he publicly admits, it is the secret desires and feelings David harbours for Steerforth that remain the example of true love in the novel.
Bibliography:
Dickens, Charles, David Copperfield (Hertfordshire: Wordsworth Editions Ltd., 1999).
Nussbaum, Martha, ‘Steerforth’s Arm: Love and the Moral Point of View’, Love’s Knowledge: Essays on Philosophy and Literature (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992).
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