David Copperfield – Chapter I (I Am Born) – 100 MCQs

1. On which day of the week was David Copperfield born?
A) Monday
B) Wednesday
C) Friday
D) Sunday
Answer: C) Friday

2. At what time was David Copperfield born?
A) Noon
B) Twelve o’clock at night
C) Six in the morning
D) Nine in the evening
Answer: B) Twelve o’clock at night

3. What coincided with David Copperfield’s first cry?
A) Church bells ringing
B) Clock striking midnight
C) A thunderstorm
D) A baby’s lullaby
Answer: B) Clock striking midnight

4. What superstition surrounded children born on Friday nights?
A) They would be rich
B) They would see ghosts and be unlucky
C) They would never marry
D) They would become sailors
Answer: B) They would see ghosts and be unlucky

5. Who declared David Copperfield would be unlucky in life?
A) His aunt
B) His nurse and neighborhood women
C) His teacher
D) His father’s lawyer
Answer: B) His nurse and neighborhood women

6. What item was David born with that was advertised for sale?
A) A golden ring
B) A caul
C) A lock of hair
D) A christening robe
Answer: B) A caul

7. At what price was David’s caul initially advertised?
A) Ten pounds
B) Fifteen guineas
C) Twenty shillings
D) Five guineas
Answer: B) Fifteen guineas

8. What was the final offer made for the caul?
A) Two pounds and some sherry
B) Three pounds cash
C) One guinea only
D) Four pounds in gold
Answer: A) Two pounds and some sherry

9. What eventually happened to the caul?
A) It was burned
B) It was raffled
C) It was buried with his father
D) It was given to charity
Answer: B) It was raffled

10. How many members participated in the raffle for the caul?
A) 20
B) 30
C) 50
D) 100
Answer: C) 50

11. What was the entry fee per member for the raffle?
A) One penny
B) Half-a-crown
C) A shilling
D) Five guineas
Answer: B) Half-a-crown

12. Who won the raffle for David’s caul?
A) A sailor
B) A lawyer’s wife
C) An old lady with a hand-basket
D) Peggotty
Answer: C) An old lady with a hand-basket

13. How old was the woman who won the caul when she died?
A) 80
B) 92
C) 100
D) 75
Answer: B) 92

14. Where was David born?
A) London
B) Blunderstone, Suffolk
C) Yarmouth
D) Canterbury
Answer: B) Blunderstone, Suffolk

15. What was unusual about David’s father at the time of his birth?
A) He was at war
B) He was dead
C) He was missing
D) He was abroad on business
Answer: B) He was dead

16. How long before David’s birth did his father die?
A) Three months
B) Six months
C) One year
D) Two weeks
Answer: B) Six months

17. Who was David’s formidable great-aunt?
A) Miss Clara
B) Miss Trotwood (Betsey Trotwood)
C) Mrs. Murdstone
D) Miss Peggotty
Answer: B) Miss Trotwood (Betsey Trotwood)

18. What nickname did Clara use for Miss Betsey?
A) Auntie B
B) Miss Betsey
C) Aunt Bet
D) Lady Trotwood
Answer: B) Miss Betsey

19. Why did Miss Betsey dislike Clara Copperfield?
A) She was rich
B) She was too young and called a “wax doll”
C) She insulted Miss Betsey’s husband
D) She refused to visit Miss Betsey
Answer: B) She was too young and called a “wax doll”

20. What name did Miss Betsey want for the baby if it was a girl?
A) Clara Copperfield II
B) Betsey Trotwood Copperfield
C) Emily Copperfield
D) Dora Copperfield
Answer: B) Betsey Trotwood Copperfield

21. What was Clara Copperfield’s age at the time of marriage?
A) Below 18
B) Not yet 20
C) Exactly 25
D) Over 30
Answer: B) Not yet 20

22. How did Miss Betsey’s marriage end?
A) Divorce by law
B) Separation by mutual consent
C) Widowhood
D) Annulment
Answer: B) Separation by mutual consent

23. Where did Miss Betsey choose to live after her separation?
A) London townhouse
B) Seaside hamlet cottage
C) In her brother’s home
D) In India
Answer: B) Seaside hamlet cottage

24. Why was Miss Betsey angry at David’s father?
A) He married without informing her
B) He chose a young wife she disapproved of
C) He borrowed money and never repaid
D) He left her cottage unattended
Answer: B) He chose a young wife she disapproved of

25. What nickname did Miss Betsey give Clara Copperfield?
A) Baby Clara
B) The Wax Doll
C) Little Widow
D) Child Bride
Answer: B) The Wax Doll

26. What did Miss Betsey do upon arriving at the Copperfield house?
A) Knocked politely on the door
B) Looked through the window pressing her nose to the glass
C) Called loudly from the gate
D) Waited silently in the garden
Answer: B) Looked through the window pressing her nose to the glass

27. How did Clara react to Miss Betsey’s sudden appearance?
A) She screamed and ran
B) She fainted
C) She hid behind a chair in agitation
D) She laughed nervously
Answer: C) She hid behind a chair in agitation

28. What was Miss Betsey’s initial assumption about the unborn child?
A) It would be a boy
B) It would be twins
C) It would be a girl
D) It would be stillborn
Answer: C) It would be a girl

29. What request did Miss Betsey make about the baby’s name?
A) To name it after her father
B) To call her Betsey Trotwood Copperfield
C) To name it after David’s father
D) To let her choose any name later
Answer: B) To call her Betsey Trotwood Copperfield

30. What personal vow did Miss Betsey make for the baby girl?
A) To raise her as her own child
B) To protect her from foolish confidences and heartbreak
C) To provide her a dowry
D) To ensure she becomes a governess
Answer: B) To protect her from foolish confidences and heartbreak

31. Who was Peggotty in relation to Clara Copperfield?
A) Sister
B) Servant and companion
C) Governess
D) Neighbor
Answer: B) Servant and companion

32. Why did Peggotty get her surname used instead of her first name?
A) She preferred it herself
B) Clara shared her first name
C) Miss Betsey disliked her first name
D) It was a family custom
Answer: B) Clara shared her first name

33. What was Miss Betsey’s opinion of the house’s name “The Rookery”?
A) Perfect and charming
B) Misleading because no rooks lived there
C) Inspired by old legends
D) Named after David’s grandfather
Answer: B) Misleading because no rooks lived there

34. How did Miss Betsey describe David Copperfield’s trusting nature?
A) Cautious but kind
B) Impractical and naive
C) Bold and daring
D) Wise beyond his age
Answer: B) Impractical and naive

35. What provision did David’s father leave for Clara?
A) 50 pounds a year
B) 100 pounds a year
C) 105 pounds a year
D) 200 pounds a year
Answer: C) 105 pounds a year

36. What was Miss Betsey’s reaction to the financial provision?
A) “Too generous!”
B) “He might have done worse.”
C) “She will never survive on this.”
D) “This is shamefully low!”
Answer: B) “He might have done worse.”

37. Which doctor attended Clara Copperfield during childbirth?
A) Dr. Strong
B) Dr. Chillip
C) Dr. Wickfield
D) Dr. Peggotty
Answer: B) Dr. Chillip

38. What peculiar habit did Miss Betsey show during the labor?
A) Plugging her ears with jewellers’ cotton
B) Singing loudly to distract herself
C) Baking bread in the kitchen
D) Pacing silently in the garden
Answer: A) Plugging her ears with jewellers’ cotton

39. How did Miss Betsey respond when she learned the baby was a boy?
A) She rejoiced
B) She fainted
C) She hit Dr. Chillip with her bonnet and stormed out
D) She congratulated Clara warmly
Answer: C) She hit Dr. Chillip with her bonnet and stormed out

40. Did Miss Betsey ever return after leaving the house post-birth?
A) Yes, after one month
B) Yes, when David turned one
C) No, she never returned
D) She sent letters but never came back
Answer: C) No, she never returned

41. What is the narrative perspective of David Copperfield?
A) Third-person omniscient
B) First-person retrospective
C) Second-person address
D) Third-person limited
Answer: B) First-person retrospective

42. Which major theme begins in this opening chapter?
A) Industrialization
B) Childhood and memory
C) War and heroism
D) Colonial expansion
Answer: B) Childhood and memory

43. What recurring motif is introduced through David’s birth superstitions?
A) Fate and destiny
B) Education
C) Travel
D) Friendship
Answer: A) Fate and destiny

44. What does the “caul” symbolize in Victorian belief?
A) Wealth
B) Protection from drowning
C) Intelligence
D) Long life
Answer: B) Protection from drowning

45. How is Clara Copperfield’s vulnerability shown during Miss Betsey’s visit?
A) Through her fainting and constant tears
B) Through her harsh words
C) Through her laughter at Miss Betsey
D) Through her strong argument with Peggotty
Answer: A) Through her fainting and constant tears

46. Which natural element mirrors Clara’s emotions in the chapter?
A) Sea tides
B) Wind among the elm trees
C) Heavy rain
D) Sunshine in the garden
Answer: B) Wind among the elm trees

47. How does Dickens create comic relief amid the tense childbirth scene?
A) By describing Miss Betsey’s flattened nose at the window
B) By showing Dr. Chillip dancing
C) By having Peggotty sing songs
D) By making the baby laugh at birth
Answer: A) By describing Miss Betsey’s flattened nose at the window

48. What is ironic about naming the house “The Rookery”?
A) It was surrounded by crows instead
B) There were no rooks in the area
C) It was built on a riverbank, not near trees
D) The house belonged to someone named Rook
Answer: B) There were no rooks in the area

49. What symbolizes David’s isolation in this chapter?
A) His posthumous birth
B) The empty rook’s nests
C) His father’s grave in the churchyard
D) The lonely elm trees
Answer: C) His father’s grave in the churchyard

50. What is Miss Betsey’s opinion on “meandering”?
A) She encourages it
B) She condemns it and prefers order
C) She associates it with wealth
D) She considers it necessary for sailors
Answer: B) She condemns it and prefers order

51. What humorous phrase does Miss Betsey use when Clara cries?
A) “Oh, mercy me!”
B) “Tut, tut, tut!”
C) “Fie, fie, fie!”
D) “Hush, hush, hush!”
Answer: B) “Tut, tut, tut!”

52. Why does Miss Betsey command Clara to remove her cap?
A) To see her hair and face
B) To check for lice
C) To measure her head for a bonnet
D) To embarrass her in front of Peggotty
Answer: A) To see her hair and face

53. What is Miss Betsey’s exclamation after seeing Clara without her cap?
A) “You are a very angel!”
B) “You are a very Baby!”
C) “You are a very beauty!”
D) “You are a very fool!”
Answer: B) “You are a very Baby!”

54. What does Clara fear about becoming a mother?
A) She will not survive childbirth
B) She cannot raise the baby alone
C) She will lose her beauty
D) She will disappoint Miss Betsey
Answer: A) She will not survive childbirth

55. What nickname is Clara’s servant Peggotty often called by David?
A) Peggy
B) Aunt Peg
C) Peggotty
D) Pegs
Answer: C) Peggotty

56. What is Miss Betsey’s immediate reaction to hearing it’s a boy?
A) She blesses the child
B) She smiles quietly
C) She strikes Dr. Chillip with her bonnet and leaves
D) She hugs Clara
Answer: C) She strikes Dr. Chillip with her bonnet and leaves

57. What habit does Dr. Chillip display when walking into rooms?
A) He walks briskly and loudly
B) He sidles in and walks softly
C) He skips and hums tunes
D) He stomps angrily
Answer: B) He sidles in and walks softly

58. What mood dominates the opening of the novel?
A) Joyful anticipation
B) Foreboding and melancholy
C) Humorous banter
D) Celebratory excitement
Answer: B) Foreboding and melancholy

59. Which Victorian social belief is shown in the sale of the caul?
A) Selling charms to protect sailors from drowning
B) Selling cauls for curing diseases
C) Selling cauls to predict wealth
D) Selling cauls as marriage tokens
Answer: A) Selling charms to protect sailors from drowning

60. What does David call Miss Betsey metaphorically after she leaves?
A) A stormy cloud
B) A vanished fairy
C) A raging wind
D) A lost angel
Answer: B) A vanished fairy

61. Where is Blunderstone located?
A) Norfolk
B) Suffolk
C) Kent
D) Cornwall
Answer: B) Suffolk

62. How does David describe his father’s gravestone in childhood memories?
A) A comforting sight
B) A lonely white stone in the churchyard
C) A large black monument
D) A stone hidden in weeds
Answer: B) A lonely white stone in the churchyard

63. What emotion does young David feel toward his father’s grave?
A) Anger
B) Indifference
C) Compassion and pity
D) Fear of ghosts
Answer: C) Compassion and pity

64. What was Miss Betsey’s husband rumored to be seen riding in India?
A) A horse with a British officer
B) An elephant with a Baboon
C) A camel with a princess
D) A carriage with merchants
Answer: B) An elephant with a Baboon

65. What does Miss Betsey suspect about Clara Copperfield’s abilities as a housekeeper?
A) She is skilled and thrifty
B) She has no practical ideas of life
C) She is lazy but rich
D) She is too busy to care for a house
Answer: B) She has no practical ideas of life

66. How did David’s mother meet his father?
A) At church
B) While working as a nursery-governess in a family he visited
C) At a seaside resort
D) Through Miss Betsey’s introduction
Answer: B) While working as a nursery-governess in a family he visited

67. What phrase does Miss Betsey use to dismiss Clara’s crying during their conversation?
A) “Come, come!”
B) “Hush now!”
C) “Oh, mercy!”
D) “Enough!”
Answer: A) “Come, come!”

68. What does Miss Betsey do with her skirt while sitting by the fire?
A) Folds it neatly
B) Tucks it up on her knee
C) Lets it drag on the floor
D) Uses it to cover Clara
Answer: B) Tucks it up on her knee

69. What does Miss Betsey repeatedly do with her head while speaking of her past wrongs?
A) Nods cheerfully
B) Shakes in anger
C) Twitches it involuntarily
D) Bows respectfully
Answer: C) Twitches it involuntarily

70. Who does Miss Betsey criticize for calling the house “The Rookery”?
A) Peggotty
B) Clara
C) David’s father
D) The local priest
Answer: C) David’s father

71. How does Miss Betsey interpret David’s father’s trust in appearances (like old nests)?
A) As wisdom
B) As optimism
C) As naïveté
D) As arrogance
Answer: C) As naïveté

72. Which sound outside parallels the tense conversation between Clara and Miss Betsey?
A) Waves crashing on the shore
B) Wind rustling elm trees and empty nests
C) Birds chirping peacefully
D) Church bells ringing
Answer: B) Wind rustling elm trees and empty nests

73. What object was advertised along with the caul?
A) Clara’s jewelry
B) Mother’s own sherry
C) David’s baptism robe
D) Peggotty’s bonnet
Answer: B) Mother’s own sherry

74. What unusual financial exchange occurred during the caul’s attempted sale?
A) Cash and sherry offered together
B) Jewelry traded for food
C) A land deed instead of money
D) A promise of marriage in exchange
Answer: A) Cash and sherry offered together

75. Who fetched the nurse and doctor during Clara’s labor?
A) Peggotty
B) Ham Peggotty
C) Miss Betsey
D) A neighbor woman
Answer: B) Ham Peggotty

76. What was Ham Peggotty’s role during the birth?
A) He stayed hidden as an emergency messenger
B) He assisted in the delivery directly
C) He guarded the house from thieves
D) He fetched firewood
Answer: A) He stayed hidden as an emergency messenger

77. How does Ham describe Miss Betsey’s agitation during the birth?
A) She paced quietly in the hall
B) She shook him and tousled his hair in nervousness
C) She cried silently
D) She fainted repeatedly
Answer: B) She shook him and tousled his hair in nervousness

78. What peculiar store of items does Miss Betsey carry in her pocket?
A) Coins and trinkets
B) Jewellers’ cotton
C) Candies and pins
D) Keys and handkerchiefs
Answer: B) Jewellers’ cotton

79. How does Miss Betsey respond when Dr. Chillip politely touches his ear?
A) She laughs kindly
B) She calls him foolish
C) She yells “What!” and pulls the cotton out
D) She ignores him entirely
Answer: C) She yells “What!” and pulls the cotton out

80. What does Dr. Chillip softly suggest might be troubling Miss Betsey?
A) Local irritation in her ear
B) Headache from childbirth noises
C) Nervousness about the baby’s health
D) Fear of spirits
Answer: A) Local irritation in her ear

81. How does David Copperfield begin narrating his life?
A) “This is the story of my family.”
B) “Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life…”
C) “I was born in Suffolk.”
D) “My mother was a gentle lady.”
Answer: B) “Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life…”

82. What tone does the opening line set for the novel?
A) Humorous and ironic
B) Solemn and heroic
C) Mysterious and suspenseful
D) Angry and vengeful
Answer: A) Humorous and ironic

83. How does David describe his own birth in terms of destiny?
A) He was born lucky
B) He was born unlucky, as foretold
C) He was destined for greatness
D) He was born cursed by family disputes
Answer: B) He was born unlucky, as foretold

84. What belief about Friday births is repeated in the chapter?
A) Bringers of wealth
B) Ability to see ghosts
C) Long life and prosperity
D) Guaranteed fame
Answer: B) Ability to see ghosts

85. Who sold David’s caul to sailors?
A) Miss Betsey
B) The nurse
C) Peggotty
D) Dr. Chillip
Answer: B) The nurse

86. Why was the sailor tradition of buying cauls popular?
A) Belief it protected from drowning
B) Belief it brought good fortune in love
C) Belief it cured sea-sickness
D) Belief it provided wealth
Answer: A) Belief it protected from drowning

87. What irony is noted about the woman who won the caul?
A) She feared water and never went near it
B) She died by drowning
C) She sold it back to the Copperfields
D) She lost it before she could use it
Answer: A) She feared water and never went near it

88. What word does Dickens use to describe Clara Copperfield’s childish appearance?
A) “Doll-like”
B) “Baby”
C) “Little angel”
D) “Pretty flower”
Answer: B) “Baby”

89. What is Miss Betsey’s attitude toward young brides?
A) Sympathetic but stern
B) Admiring and supportive
C) Disdainful and critical
D) Amused but indifferent
Answer: C) Disdainful and critical

90. What financial inheritance is described for Clara?
A) 50 pounds a year
B) 105 pounds a year
C) 500 pounds a year
D) 10 pounds a month
Answer: B) 105 pounds a year

91. What does Miss Betsey think of this inheritance?
A) It is generous and sufficient
B) It is neither good nor bad – “might have done worse”
C) It is shamefully little
D) It is more than Clara deserves
Answer: B) It is neither good nor bad – “might have done worse”

92. How does Dickens describe Peggotty’s complexion?
A) Pale and fragile
B) Hard and red
C) Dark and freckled
D) Soft and fair
Answer: B) Hard and red

93. Why is Peggotty important in David’s life?
A) She is his strict teacher
B) She is a maternal figure and protector
C) She introduces him to Miss Betsey
D) She manages the family finances
Answer: B) She is a maternal figure and protector

94. What mood dominates the house during Clara’s childbirth?
A) Quiet and fearful tension
B) Joyous celebrations with neighbors
C) Calm and peaceful acceptance
D) Indifference from the servants
Answer: A) Quiet and fearful tension

95. How is Miss Betsey’s departure described?
A) Like a storm sweeping out
B) Like a fairy vanishing into the night
C) Like a queen in anger
D) Like a ghost haunting the house
Answer: B) Like a fairy vanishing into the night

96. What theme is reinforced by David’s father’s absence at his birth?
A) Lost inheritance
B) Loneliness and orphanhood
C) Family reunion
D) Childhood rebellion
Answer: B) Loneliness and orphanhood

97. Which image symbolizes the fragility of Clara Copperfield?
A) The wind in the elms
B) The empty rook’s nests
C) Her fainting and tears
D) The church bells
Answer: C) Her fainting and tears

98. Which image foreshadows future challenges in David’s life?
A) The wind striking the house
B) The name “Rookery”
C) Miss Betsey’s prediction of bad luck
D) The silence of the graveyard
Answer: C) Miss Betsey’s prediction of bad luck

99. How does Dickens balance sadness with humor in this chapter?
A) Through Dr. Chillip’s meekness and Miss Betsey’s comic outbursts
B) Through Clara’s laughter at the nurse
C) Through Peggotty’s storytelling
D) Through Ham’s jokes about the caul
Answer: A) Through Dr. Chillip’s meekness and Miss Betsey’s comic outbursts

100. What lasting impression does the chapter leave about David’s early life?
A) It was full of wealth and ease
B) It began in misfortune mixed with gentle humor
C) It was dominated by heroism and fame
D) It was entirely tragic with no hope
Answer: B) It began in misfortune mixed with gentle humor