Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded, by Samuel Richardson
Title: Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded
Author: Samuel Richardson
First published: London, 1740
Link to text at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6124/pg6124.txt
Word count: 225748, (376 pages)
I'm going to start by giving some historical background, because I think it's important for understanding not only the book itself, but also the general influence it had on literature (and some other specific books on our reading list).
One of the first true fictional novels in English, Pamela was a bestseller in its time. It insinuated itself into the public consciousness to such a degree that it was cited in sermons and spawned a line of products including paintings, waxworks, and playing cards. It was even the source of what may be some of the first fan fiction, with several 'unofficial' sequels and satires published (some of which we should be seeing reviews of later this year). It was translated into French and Italian and developed into a stage production (the Neoclassical equivalent of a screenplay treatment) in 1743. I almost want to call it the Twilight of its era, but it has much more substance than that.
Written as a series of letters from the protagonist to her parents, it was a groundbreaking work. Wikipedia claims that it was Richardson's Pamela that popularized the form of the epistolary novel. It was also not entirely uncontroversial, questioning the social order and, frankly, being just a little titillating. (Not all that much, though; I'd rate it PG-13.) As an additional bonus, it was rumored to be based on a true story.
But what's it all about?
'Squire B-----' is the unnamed, 26-year-old, wealthy landowner who is supposed to take care of 15-year-old 'lady's maid' Pamela after his mother, her mistress, dies. Pamela senses that he may not have the most noble intentions toward her, but is willing to give him the benefit of the doubt until he gets her into a compromising situation and attempts to take advantage of her.
And now let's get it out of our system, shall we? The good squire repeatedly sexually harasses her, and when she does not cave in to his demands, he kidnaps her, keeps her prisoner for months (albeit in comfort at one of his other estates), continues to make inappropriate advances, lies to her, steals her correspondence, spies on her undressing, hides in her bedroom and attempts to rape her (she only escapes when she faints and he believes she has died), has a clergyman whom he believes she is enamored of robbed and beaten, ruins the lives of several people who try to help her, tricks her out of all of her money, insults her, calls her a slut, a hussy, a witch, and many other things besides, and attempts to buy her off; but the moment he finally realizes that he can never have her on his terms and offers to marry her, the girl practically wets herself in her rapture and dedicates the remainder of her life (or at least of the book) to being a perfectly subservient and model wife to her former tormentor.
Further, not a page goes by without our modern-day religious tolerance being tested by Pamela's constant prayers and praising God; she falls to her knees in beatific fervor at every opportunity, stretching even my patience as a practicing, believing Christian.
And those on Mary-Sue alert will have a field day with this paragon of virtue, whom everyone loves and praises on sight as being the most beautiful, most gracious creature any of them have ever beheld.
Having said all that, I still thought this was a good book, and I was able to enjoy it by keeping in mind the historical background and purpose for which the book was written. Recalling that this book was the product of a certain time, place, and social milieu, I was able to relativize and better understand the impact of the behaviors and motivations of the various characters. I think it's also important that Richardson wrote the book specifically as a 'conduct book', which was meant to teach the reader about social norms and acceptable or desired behaviors. It was originally conceived as a series of letters between the various characters, mainly Pamela, her parents, and Mr. B-----, and as such was also meant to additionally instruct on the proper form of letter-writing.
However, as the book goes on, that format breaks down, and becomes a first-person narration from Pamela's point of view, although still couched in the form of a 'journal' meant for her parents to read at some later date (since Mr. B----- no longer allows her to send letters out). This is an awkward device and doesn't really work: entire conversations and scenes are related in such detail that it is not believable that Pamela remembered them later with such accuracy. Also, some of the subject matter, such as the more intimate and inappropriate advances made by the squire, are simply not the kind of thing that a 15-year-old girl in that era would so openly share with her parents, especially her father (the main addressee of her correspondence).
Behind all of these surface irritations, however, I found the story itself to be solid and the 'moral lessons' true. As a genre study, I was also easily able to see the basis for later Regency romances. I know I've made Pamela sound like something of a doormat, but the kernel of Elizabeth Bennet's witty sarcasm is there in exchanges like this:
At last he walked out with me, still bragging of his honour and his love. Yes, yes, sir, said I, your honour is to destroy mine: and your
love is to ruin me; I see it too plainly.
and, discussing the clergyman:
Do you find, sir, said I, that I encouraged his proposal, or do you not? Why, said he, you discourage his address in appearance; but no otherwise than all your cunning sex do to ours, to make us more eager in pursuing you.
Well, sir, said I, that is your comment; but it does not appear so in the text. Smartly said! says he: Where a d---l gottest thou, at these years, all this knowledge? And then thou hast a memory, as I see by your papers, that nothing escapes. Alas! sir, said I, what poor abilities I have, serve only to make me more miserable!--I have no pleasure in my memory, which impresses things upon me, that I could be glad never were, or everlastingly to forget.
There are also shades of the cruelty of Bronte's Heathcliff, in the escapades of the aforementioned Mr. B-----.
(Side note: You will also notice from the excerpts above that there is no dialogue punctuation or paragraph division between speakers. This made it a bit difficult to figure out who was talking sometimes, or even if a given sentence was spoken out loud or was part of Pamela's narration. Maybe there are other editions that follow modern dialogue conventions. If so, I would recommend reading one of them instead.)
I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of Regency romances, or who is interested in learning something about the lifestyle and society of the landed gentry in England in the first half of the 18th century. If you can't stand flowery talk, or get a rash merely at the thought of a meeting of evangelists, then you might want to skip it. I'm looking forward to hearing how the satires play out.
Author: Samuel Richardson
First published: London, 1740
Link to text at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6124/pg6124.txt
Word count: 225748, (376 pages)
I'm going to start by giving some historical background, because I think it's important for understanding not only the book itself, but also the general influence it had on literature (and some other specific books on our reading list).
One of the first true fictional novels in English, Pamela was a bestseller in its time. It insinuated itself into the public consciousness to such a degree that it was cited in sermons and spawned a line of products including paintings, waxworks, and playing cards. It was even the source of what may be some of the first fan fiction, with several 'unofficial' sequels and satires published (some of which we should be seeing reviews of later this year). It was translated into French and Italian and developed into a stage production (the Neoclassical equivalent of a screenplay treatment) in 1743. I almost want to call it the Twilight of its era, but it has much more substance than that.
Written as a series of letters from the protagonist to her parents, it was a groundbreaking work. Wikipedia claims that it was Richardson's Pamela that popularized the form of the epistolary novel. It was also not entirely uncontroversial, questioning the social order and, frankly, being just a little titillating. (Not all that much, though; I'd rate it PG-13.) As an additional bonus, it was rumored to be based on a true story.
But what's it all about?
'Squire B-----' is the unnamed, 26-year-old, wealthy landowner who is supposed to take care of 15-year-old 'lady's maid' Pamela after his mother, her mistress, dies. Pamela senses that he may not have the most noble intentions toward her, but is willing to give him the benefit of the doubt until he gets her into a compromising situation and attempts to take advantage of her.
And now let's get it out of our system, shall we? The good squire repeatedly sexually harasses her, and when she does not cave in to his demands, he kidnaps her, keeps her prisoner for months (albeit in comfort at one of his other estates), continues to make inappropriate advances, lies to her, steals her correspondence, spies on her undressing, hides in her bedroom and attempts to rape her (she only escapes when she faints and he believes she has died), has a clergyman whom he believes she is enamored of robbed and beaten, ruins the lives of several people who try to help her, tricks her out of all of her money, insults her, calls her a slut, a hussy, a witch, and many other things besides, and attempts to buy her off; but the moment he finally realizes that he can never have her on his terms and offers to marry her, the girl practically wets herself in her rapture and dedicates the remainder of her life (or at least of the book) to being a perfectly subservient and model wife to her former tormentor.
Further, not a page goes by without our modern-day religious tolerance being tested by Pamela's constant prayers and praising God; she falls to her knees in beatific fervor at every opportunity, stretching even my patience as a practicing, believing Christian.
And those on Mary-Sue alert will have a field day with this paragon of virtue, whom everyone loves and praises on sight as being the most beautiful, most gracious creature any of them have ever beheld.
Having said all that, I still thought this was a good book, and I was able to enjoy it by keeping in mind the historical background and purpose for which the book was written. Recalling that this book was the product of a certain time, place, and social milieu, I was able to relativize and better understand the impact of the behaviors and motivations of the various characters. I think it's also important that Richardson wrote the book specifically as a 'conduct book', which was meant to teach the reader about social norms and acceptable or desired behaviors. It was originally conceived as a series of letters between the various characters, mainly Pamela, her parents, and Mr. B-----, and as such was also meant to additionally instruct on the proper form of letter-writing.
However, as the book goes on, that format breaks down, and becomes a first-person narration from Pamela's point of view, although still couched in the form of a 'journal' meant for her parents to read at some later date (since Mr. B----- no longer allows her to send letters out). This is an awkward device and doesn't really work: entire conversations and scenes are related in such detail that it is not believable that Pamela remembered them later with such accuracy. Also, some of the subject matter, such as the more intimate and inappropriate advances made by the squire, are simply not the kind of thing that a 15-year-old girl in that era would so openly share with her parents, especially her father (the main addressee of her correspondence).
Behind all of these surface irritations, however, I found the story itself to be solid and the 'moral lessons' true. As a genre study, I was also easily able to see the basis for later Regency romances. I know I've made Pamela sound like something of a doormat, but the kernel of Elizabeth Bennet's witty sarcasm is there in exchanges like this:
At last he walked out with me, still bragging of his honour and his love. Yes, yes, sir, said I, your honour is to destroy mine: and your
love is to ruin me; I see it too plainly.
and, discussing the clergyman:
Do you find, sir, said I, that I encouraged his proposal, or do you not? Why, said he, you discourage his address in appearance; but no otherwise than all your cunning sex do to ours, to make us more eager in pursuing you.
Well, sir, said I, that is your comment; but it does not appear so in the text. Smartly said! says he: Where a d---l gottest thou, at these years, all this knowledge? And then thou hast a memory, as I see by your papers, that nothing escapes. Alas! sir, said I, what poor abilities I have, serve only to make me more miserable!--I have no pleasure in my memory, which impresses things upon me, that I could be glad never were, or everlastingly to forget.
There are also shades of the cruelty of Bronte's Heathcliff, in the escapades of the aforementioned Mr. B-----.
(Side note: You will also notice from the excerpts above that there is no dialogue punctuation or paragraph division between speakers. This made it a bit difficult to figure out who was talking sometimes, or even if a given sentence was spoken out loud or was part of Pamela's narration. Maybe there are other editions that follow modern dialogue conventions. If so, I would recommend reading one of them instead.)
I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of Regency romances, or who is interested in learning something about the lifestyle and society of the landed gentry in England in the first half of the 18th century. If you can't stand flowery talk, or get a rash merely at the thought of a meeting of evangelists, then you might want to skip it. I'm looking forward to hearing how the satires play out.