How do David Copperfield and Great Expectations fit the bildungsroman tradition?

David Copperfield (1850) and Great Expectations (1861) are quintessential examples of the bildungsroman, a literary genre that focuses on the moral, psychological, and social development of a protagonist from youth to adulthood.12

In these novels, Charles Dickens explores the "growing and learning processes" through the experiences of his heroes. Both works feature a first-person narrative that allows the reader to trace the protagonist's journey as they navigate struggle, suffering, and the eventual emergence of their identity within the adult world.23

• David Copperfield: Often described as a fictional autobiography, this novel explores the Romantic theme of the growth and comprehension of the self. It follows David from his "idyllic infancy" through various hardships—including the cruelty of his stepfather and his time in a factory—as he learns to tame his "undisciplined heart" and assumes a mature middle-class identity.43
• Great Expectations: This novel also serves as a classic example of the genre, focusing on the protagonist's development and the eventual resignation or realization that often characterizes the bildungsroman. It deeply engages with issues of social class and human worth as the hero matures.124

Dickens’s approach in these works is notable for how the "emerged ego" of the hero is eventually absorbed into the adult world.2