'Joseph Andrews'

Paper Summary:

This paper looks into the subject of morality and ethics as depicted by Henry Fielding in his novel "Joseph Andrews". The book seeks to discard the notions held by 18th century English society in connection with morality and thus offers a better and "more active" definition of the term. According to Fielding, morality was not solely connected with chastity and thus he highlights the importance of charity for attainment of "honor" and "respect". The paper objectively discusses the strengths and weaknesses of Fielding's views in connection with this subject and shows how the author conveyed his message through adept characterization.

From the Paper:

"When reading "Joseph Andrews", one needs to be very careful in order to be able to fully comprehend the messages, which exist between the lines and are not exactly put forth in obvious terms. In this book, which Henry Fielding described as an epic written in prose form, we find the plot and structure very similar to Greek and other ancient heroic tales with the only difference being that in this novel, the author has tried to dispel the notion that morality is strictly connected with chastity and religion. This is a very interesting highlight of Fielding's work, and one that made his writings stand out among heap of similar literary work during the Eighteenth century. In order to understand clearly what happens in Joseph Andrews and how characters represent morality or lack of it, it is important to first have some background information regarding the description of morality in the early Eighteenth century."

More papers on 'Joseph Andrews':

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• Analytical Essay # 63000 : "Joseph Andrews"

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