Virtue, seduction and foundlings in the English novel of the 1700s
In short
The early English novel was obsessed with virtue and its loss. Defoe's Moll Flanders (1722) boasts of a heroine five times a wife and twelve years a whore who dies penitent. Richardson's Pamela (1740) rewards a servant's resistance, while Clarissa (1747–48) ends in tragedy. Fielding's Tom Jones (1749) makes a foundling, presumed illegitimate, its hero.
What the full article will cover
- Why did early novels focus on female virtue?
- What does Moll Flanders say about sex and survival?
- How do Pamela and Clarissa treat seduction?
- Why did Fielding answer Richardson with Tom Jones?
- How did readers and moralists react?
Frequently asked questions
- What does Pamela's subtitle 'Virtue Rewarded' mean?
- Is Tom Jones illegitimate?
- Why is Clarissa so long?
- Were these novels considered immoral?
Sources
- britannica.com — https://www.britannica.com/topic/Moll-Flanders
- britannica.com — https://www.britannica.com/topic/Clarissa-novel-by-Richardson
- britannica.com — https://www.britannica.com/topic/Tom-Jones-novel-by-Fielding
- gutenberg.org — https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6124
General information, not legal or religious advice.