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Clarissa: or The History of a Young Lady, Volume 1
This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curated for quality. Quality assurance was conducted on each of these books in an attempt to remove books with imperfections introduced by the digitization process. Though we have made best efforts - the books may have occasional errors that do not impede the reading experience. We believe this work is culturally important and have elected to bring the book back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.
- GenresClassics18th Century
Audiobook
First published March 26, 2012
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About the author
Samuel Richardson
1,678 books207 followers
Pamela
(1740) and
Clarissa Harlowe
(1748) of English writer Samuel Richardson helped to legitimize the novel as a literary form in English.
An established printer and publisher for most of his life, Richardson wrote his first novel at the age of 51. He is best known for his major 18th-century epistolary novel Sir Charles Grandison (1753).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_...
An established printer and publisher for most of his life, Richardson wrote his first novel at the age of 51. He is best known for his major 18th-century epistolary novel Sir Charles Grandison (1753).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_...
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 7, 2023
Review is for entire book, not just volume 1. Contains spoilers.
I regret to inform you that this 102-hour, 1,500-page, 970K-words long book is a masterpiece that you should probably read some day. Sorry!
Published in 1748, 65 years before Austen's Pride and Prejudice, the book is written as a series of 500+ letters. Clarissa is a virtuous young woman whom her family tries to marry to a rich jerk so that they can profit from the connection. They imprison her in her room until she changes her mind. They plan on forcing her to marry him, but before that can happen, the dashing Lovelace, tricks her into running away from her family and into his "protection". He basically imprisons her and tries to force her to give up her virtue. She refuses. He drugs her and date-rapes her. Then he tries to make her marry him to make everything ok. This is the hope of everybody, because apparently the thought was that marriage wipes away the shame that is foisted on the woman. Clarissa rejects this, and dies from a broken heart. Lovelace is killed in a rapier duel by Clarissa's distant cousin.
The book is obviously too long. But if you can put that aside (a heavy ask, to be sure), this book has much to commend himself. Although most of the characters are one-dimensional, the stakes are always very high. Lovelace is truly one of the great villains of English literature. Is he a psychopath, a sociopath, or just a narcissist? The genius of his character is manyfold. First, his character is psychologically true. He's not Snidely Whiplash, even though his personality will give you whiplash. He can be remorseful, manic, clever, charming, and extremely malevolent. Richardson, whether he realizes it or not, uses Lovelace as a vehicle for satire and commentary. At times, Lovelace wonders how forcing him to marry Clarissa against her will serve any concept of justice. He idly imagines a world where marriages are contracts of only 10 years.
The first fifth of the novel (20 hours in the audiobook) focus on Clarissa's family trying to force her to marry a local rich jerk. I was reminded of the documentary "Happy Shiny People" about the Duggar family and how women are brainwashed into obedience to first their fathers, and then their husband. Clarissa's steadfast refusal to be bullied is impressive, but I was struck by how her family never played the God card. Clarissa is told to do her "duty", but there is no theological argument that it's God's will that she has to obey her father, and that if she doesn't obey, she will go to hell.
I don't know how much this book influenced Jane Austen. I don't believe she ever mentioned it. She did write a parody of Richardson's other doorstop novel, "Sir Charles Granderson." She did write a novel of letters in "Lady Susan," and "Sense and Sensibility" was originally a novel of letters. But it's not a path she chose to pursue. Perhaps she was limited by the time and length requirements of following the Richardson model. "Lady Susan" is confusing to read. Maybe it wouldn't have been so confusing if it wasn't so condensed. But Austen probably didn't have the wherewithal to churn out a doorstop. Perhaps more importantly, she probably wanted to write women characters with more nuance. Austen's heroines are always prim and proper, but not nauseatingly so (except perhaps Fanny Price).
The link below is a good summary of the plot, and pretty closely matches my sentiments:
https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/...
I regret to inform you that this 102-hour, 1,500-page, 970K-words long book is a masterpiece that you should probably read some day. Sorry!
Published in 1748, 65 years before Austen's Pride and Prejudice, the book is written as a series of 500+ letters. Clarissa is a virtuous young woman whom her family tries to marry to a rich jerk so that they can profit from the connection. They imprison her in her room until she changes her mind. They plan on forcing her to marry him, but before that can happen, the dashing Lovelace, tricks her into running away from her family and into his "protection". He basically imprisons her and tries to force her to give up her virtue. She refuses. He drugs her and date-rapes her. Then he tries to make her marry him to make everything ok. This is the hope of everybody, because apparently the thought was that marriage wipes away the shame that is foisted on the woman. Clarissa rejects this, and dies from a broken heart. Lovelace is killed in a rapier duel by Clarissa's distant cousin.
The book is obviously too long. But if you can put that aside (a heavy ask, to be sure), this book has much to commend himself. Although most of the characters are one-dimensional, the stakes are always very high. Lovelace is truly one of the great villains of English literature. Is he a psychopath, a sociopath, or just a narcissist? The genius of his character is manyfold. First, his character is psychologically true. He's not Snidely Whiplash, even though his personality will give you whiplash. He can be remorseful, manic, clever, charming, and extremely malevolent. Richardson, whether he realizes it or not, uses Lovelace as a vehicle for satire and commentary. At times, Lovelace wonders how forcing him to marry Clarissa against her will serve any concept of justice. He idly imagines a world where marriages are contracts of only 10 years.
The first fifth of the novel (20 hours in the audiobook) focus on Clarissa's family trying to force her to marry a local rich jerk. I was reminded of the documentary "Happy Shiny People" about the Duggar family and how women are brainwashed into obedience to first their fathers, and then their husband. Clarissa's steadfast refusal to be bullied is impressive, but I was struck by how her family never played the God card. Clarissa is told to do her "duty", but there is no theological argument that it's God's will that she has to obey her father, and that if she doesn't obey, she will go to hell.
I don't know how much this book influenced Jane Austen. I don't believe she ever mentioned it. She did write a parody of Richardson's other doorstop novel, "Sir Charles Granderson." She did write a novel of letters in "Lady Susan," and "Sense and Sensibility" was originally a novel of letters. But it's not a path she chose to pursue. Perhaps she was limited by the time and length requirements of following the Richardson model. "Lady Susan" is confusing to read. Maybe it wouldn't have been so confusing if it wasn't so condensed. But Austen probably didn't have the wherewithal to churn out a doorstop. Perhaps more importantly, she probably wanted to write women characters with more nuance. Austen's heroines are always prim and proper, but not nauseatingly so (except perhaps Fanny Price).
The link below is a good summary of the plot, and pretty closely matches my sentiments:
https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/...
March 28, 2023
I was completely enthralled by this: the detailed description of how badly Clarissa is treated by everyone except Anna Howe, and how she perserveres to maintain her "upstandingness" despite it all was completely mesmerizing. And one reason for this is the epistolary form, which allows the reader to observe the reflections of the writers upon action, as opposed to viewing the action first hand. And I am definitely here for that! And listening to it made everything flow so much more naturally. The performance was absolutely amazing. I am keeping the book version on here to so I can track the pages, but I am defintiely mainly listening to this mammoth than reading it. (I do peek at the book now and then).
March 9, 2023
Read for Engl 3204 - Origins of the Novel Spring '23
Not my favorite epistolary. Probably because of the time period and Clarissa really just seems like she has a victim mentality. Idk. Would not read the other 7 volumes
Not my favorite epistolary. Probably because of the time period and Clarissa really just seems like she has a victim mentality. Idk. Would not read the other 7 volumes
August 25, 2021
lengthy but worth the read or listen
April 3, 2023
Exceptional! I only wish it were longer... ;-)
October 17, 2025
I listened to 33.6 hours of letters only to find that there are two more volumes of equal length, and I just don't believe I have the strength to persevere.
June 16, 2021
Hooked but not sure why
***
If ever anyone spoke with more words than need be the author is certainly the example of such a one. That first sentence sums up the type of language used in this dated text. The story is intriguing but it's certainly told in many more words than are necessary. Perhaps the wordiness was a sign of the times are maybe had some more significance during the original time of publication it would be easier to follow where it not for the occasional misprints. I do not believe the heroine or her aunt actually mentioned ebooks, pretty sure that one's a typo. I'm sure there are others as well but the old English makes them difficult to spot and hash out and now on to volume two.
***I have now read the first few letters of Volume II. Though the second Volume contains a caveat warning the reader that it was made possible through the work of volunteers typing from older books, I cannot help but believe it was the first novel/volume which deserved the warning. This first novel felt like decoding nonsense and was a confusing chore. Though I'm less than a tenth of the way into the second,I find it a mush more pleasant read. I am reading with ease, and have found several noteworthy lines worth remembering. I cannot say I found any such take away from this version of the first. Which is the author's and which the volunteers? From the acclaim given the work, I assume the author.
***
If ever anyone spoke with more words than need be the author is certainly the example of such a one. That first sentence sums up the type of language used in this dated text. The story is intriguing but it's certainly told in many more words than are necessary. Perhaps the wordiness was a sign of the times are maybe had some more significance during the original time of publication it would be easier to follow where it not for the occasional misprints. I do not believe the heroine or her aunt actually mentioned ebooks, pretty sure that one's a typo. I'm sure there are others as well but the old English makes them difficult to spot and hash out and now on to volume two.
***I have now read the first few letters of Volume II. Though the second Volume contains a caveat warning the reader that it was made possible through the work of volunteers typing from older books, I cannot help but believe it was the first novel/volume which deserved the warning. This first novel felt like decoding nonsense and was a confusing chore. Though I'm less than a tenth of the way into the second,I find it a mush more pleasant read. I am reading with ease, and have found several noteworthy lines worth remembering. I cannot say I found any such take away from this version of the first. Which is the author's and which the volunteers? From the acclaim given the work, I assume the author.
January 9, 2025
Naxos AudioBooks, which gave us the first English performance of Remembrance of Things Past now takes on the longest novel in the English canon. Richardson’s masterpiece is a work of profound psychological penetration, and the Naxos performance is completely convincing and keeps one wanting to listen to just one more letter before pausing the recording. Highly recommended.
March 18, 2025
Magnificent writing and story telling! I could not put it down.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews