Uriah Heep is a villain in Charles Dickens’ novel David Copperfield, described as having a physical disorder causing repetitive movements. He uses his pretense of humility to deceive and commit crimes. Heep’s plans are eventually discovered, and he is imprisoned. Heep is a memorable character and a contrast to David’s hard work and virtue.
Uriah Heep is one of writer Charles Dickens’ villains par excellence. He appears in the novel David Copperfield as an antagonist, a suitable foil to most of David’s plans. Dickens describes him as tall and lanky, pale white with pale red hair and having a propensity for constant movement or wriggling. The latter feature has suggested to modern physicians and literary critics that Dickens was describing Heep as having a physical disorder, which some suggest was dystonia, a neurological disorder causing repetitive movements, odd postures, and twisting and uncontrolled movements.
Medical metaphor
Uriah Heep’s wriggling movements are considered an extended metaphor. When young David first shakes Heep’s hand, David describes him as cold and suspicious. The sheep is compared to an eel and a fish. His cold-heartedness and intriguing manner suggest that Heep’s condition may have been used to enhance these metaphors. Some critics may think that Dickens was attempting to vilify people who have disease by giving Heep a medical ailment, but others point out that the book also contains the admirable Miss Mowcher, who has dwarfism and displays a true heart and good intentions, and that other characters in Dickens’ novels who have physical ailments are excellent people.
What sets Uriah Heep apart most is not his alleged medical condition, but his constant claim that he is “humble” or lowly. Many people believe that a truly humble person would not proclaim his humility, because that would be the opposite of being humble. Uriah Heep uses his pretense of being “humble” to refuse favors and then work behind the scenes to bribe the law firm of his employer, Mr. Wickfield, and to deliberately steal money from David’s great-aunt and other clients of the firm of Wickfield.
Intrigue revealed
As Uriah Heep grows in stature, eventually becoming the lead partner in Wickfield’s law firm, he begins to express hopes of eventually marrying Wickfield’s daughter Agnes, with whom David eventually discovers he is in love. Uriah Heep also begins to show his resentment and jealousy towards David more and more because he suspects Agnes has feelings for David and because David seems to him to be a child of fortune who in no way deserves to be loved or appreciated. At the end of the book, Heep admits that he always hated David and did everything in his power to ruin him financially.
As befits a Dickens novel, Uriah Heep finally gets his comeuppance, in a scene where he is criticized by David Wilkins’ friend Micawber as a “Heep of infamy!” Heep’s plans are discovered and he is eventually imprisoned. When David visits him in prison, Heep has returned to his former position of humility, which is greatly admired by the jailers because he shows true repentance.
Memorable villain
Much of David Copperfield upholds the Victorian theme of seriousness, so Heep provides a fitting contrast to David, who gradually becomes successful by working hard and earnestly. Heep uses shortcuts instead of serious means and is a master of deception who only wants success in life through crooked and evil methods. For the novel’s theme to work, Heep must be exposed for being a villain, and instead virtuous hard work must be commended. Still, Heep is one of Dickens’ most memorable characters. The extended metaphor of the “fish” and coldness of him works well and creates a character that could cause some readers to feel a few shivers down their spine.
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