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The History of Tom Jones: A Foundling
The History of Tom A Foundling (Wordsworth Classics) [Paperback] Henry Fielding
711 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1992
About the author
Henry Fielding
2,546 books400 followersHenry Fielding (1707 - 1754) was an English dramatist, journalist and novelist. The son of an army lieutenant and a judge's daughter, he was educated at Eton School and the University of Leiden before returning to England where he wrote a series of farces, operas and light comedies.
Fielding formed his own company and was running the Little Theatre, Haymarket, when one of his satirical plays began to upset the government. The passing of the Theatrical Licensing Act in 1737 effectively ended Fielding's career as a playwright.
In 1739, Fielding turned to journalism and became editor of The Champion. He also began writing novels, including: The Adventures of Joseph Andrews (1742) and Jonathan Wild (1743).
Fielding was made a justice of the peace for Westminster and Middlesex in 1748. He campaigned against legal corruption and helped his half-brother, Sir John Fielding, establish the Bow Street Runners.
In 1749, Fielding's novel The History of Tom Jones was published to public acclaim. Critics agree that it is one of the greatest comic novels in the English language. He followed this success with another well received novel, Amelia, in 1751.
Fielding continued as a journalist and his satirical journal, Covent Garden, continued to upset those in power. Throughout his life, Fielding suffered from poor health. By 1752, he could not move without the help of crutches. In an attempt to overcome his health problems, Henry Fielding went to live in Portugal, but this was not successful, and he died in Lisbon in 1754.
Fielding formed his own company and was running the Little Theatre, Haymarket, when one of his satirical plays began to upset the government. The passing of the Theatrical Licensing Act in 1737 effectively ended Fielding's career as a playwright.
In 1739, Fielding turned to journalism and became editor of The Champion. He also began writing novels, including: The Adventures of Joseph Andrews (1742) and Jonathan Wild (1743).
Fielding was made a justice of the peace for Westminster and Middlesex in 1748. He campaigned against legal corruption and helped his half-brother, Sir John Fielding, establish the Bow Street Runners.
In 1749, Fielding's novel The History of Tom Jones was published to public acclaim. Critics agree that it is one of the greatest comic novels in the English language. He followed this success with another well received novel, Amelia, in 1751.
Fielding continued as a journalist and his satirical journal, Covent Garden, continued to upset those in power. Throughout his life, Fielding suffered from poor health. By 1752, he could not move without the help of crutches. In an attempt to overcome his health problems, Henry Fielding went to live in Portugal, but this was not successful, and he died in Lisbon in 1754.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 3, 2025
The most important thing to know about this book is that its author, Henry Fielding, has mad jokes. He famously wrote An Apology for the Life of Mrs. Shamela Andrews in response to the runaway success of Richardson's Pamela: Or Virtue Rewarded, so obviously he’s a known funny man. His humor, though a little dry and often oblique, is absolutely everywhere in this book and kept me amused and interested throughout. You might think, on first glance, that this book is a dense brick of a novel with nothing to offer modern readers but that’s not the whole truth, it’s also hilarious.
The gist of the story is that Tom Jones, an orphan raised by a kindly gentleman, has a heart of gold but screws up and gets himself into scrapes, less from any malice and more from being an impetuous young man. He falls in love with a neighboring squire's daughter, one Sophia Western, who he has no hope of ever attaining since he’s illegitimate and has no fortune. When an incident forces Jones away from his home, he embarks on all sorts of adventures, has affairs with all kinds of women, and generally gets up to mischief. Along the way are several amusing and pivotal minor characters helping or hindering Jones along his way.
Written as it was when the novel was still a fairly new thing, the author interjects so much of himself that he really counts as a character in his own right. Thankfully his insertions are usually humorous. He spends a lot of time denigrating critics in a way that feels very personal but reads as amusing, “...of which I am myself a better judge than any pitiful Critic whatever;” at another point referring to them as “little reptiles”. This author has definite opinions on just about everything and by God he's going to tell you all about them!
Tom Jones himself is hot. Not only simply hot, but one of the hottest young men in England, the most physically perfect man in any room he happens to be in. I know this because the author, directly through his own commentary and indirectly through several characters, never tired of telling me so. If there’s one thing Henry Fielding wants you to know about Mr. Tom Jones, it's that he's gorgeous. He’s alright as a character, but a little too perfect and honorable to be entirely believable. Much more interesting to me were Squire Western who has never once in his life been calm about anything and acts and speaks in a way that can only be described as manic.
The plot was interesting enough, but the real enjoyment I got from this novel was the style and tone it was written in. The language can be difficult to apprehend at first but once you’re familiar with it is very beautiful and is often used to great comic effect.
Though this was long, I generally enjoyed myself and am certainly glad I read it.
The gist of the story is that Tom Jones, an orphan raised by a kindly gentleman, has a heart of gold but screws up and gets himself into scrapes, less from any malice and more from being an impetuous young man. He falls in love with a neighboring squire's daughter, one Sophia Western, who he has no hope of ever attaining since he’s illegitimate and has no fortune. When an incident forces Jones away from his home, he embarks on all sorts of adventures, has affairs with all kinds of women, and generally gets up to mischief. Along the way are several amusing and pivotal minor characters helping or hindering Jones along his way.
Written as it was when the novel was still a fairly new thing, the author interjects so much of himself that he really counts as a character in his own right. Thankfully his insertions are usually humorous. He spends a lot of time denigrating critics in a way that feels very personal but reads as amusing, “...of which I am myself a better judge than any pitiful Critic whatever;” at another point referring to them as “little reptiles”. This author has definite opinions on just about everything and by God he's going to tell you all about them!
Tom Jones himself is hot. Not only simply hot, but one of the hottest young men in England, the most physically perfect man in any room he happens to be in. I know this because the author, directly through his own commentary and indirectly through several characters, never tired of telling me so. If there’s one thing Henry Fielding wants you to know about Mr. Tom Jones, it's that he's gorgeous. He’s alright as a character, but a little too perfect and honorable to be entirely believable. Much more interesting to me were Squire Western who has never once in his life been calm about anything and acts and speaks in a way that can only be described as manic.
The plot was interesting enough, but the real enjoyment I got from this novel was the style and tone it was written in. The language can be difficult to apprehend at first but once you’re familiar with it is very beautiful and is often used to great comic effect.
Though this was long, I generally enjoyed myself and am certainly glad I read it.
August 21, 2023
Wonderfully entertaining novel--and wickedly funny at times too. I can only imagine how it must have felt to read this when it was first published--perhaps somewhat scandalous! Again, another book that I'm shocked took me this long to finally read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews