51 pages • 1 hour read
Henry FieldingThe History of the Adventures of Joseph Andrews and of His Friend Mr. Abraham Adams
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1742A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Book 1, Chapters 11-18Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Book 1, Chapter 11 Summary: “Of several new matters not expected”
Joseph sets course for Lady Booby’s country home, where his sweetheart Fanny Goodwill lives. Fanny has known Joseph since they were young, and they wanted to get married before Joseph left for London. However, Parson Adams advised them to wait a few years until they could save some money and begin a comfortable life together.
A storm forces Joseph to stop at an inn owned by a man named Timotheus. Another man arrives at the inn; Joseph recognizes him as the servant of one of Sir Thomas’s neighbors. After the storm ends the two men set out together.
Book 1, Chapter 12 Summary: “Containing many surprising adventures which Joseph Andrews met with on the road, scarce credible to those who have never travelled in a stage-coach.”
Joseph’s friend reaches his destination at about two in the morning, so Joseph continues alone. Two men ambush him, demanding his money and clothes. Joseph, in his sweet nature, thinks the best of the thieves and asks for compassion, imploring them to leave him a few shillings and allow him to keep his clothing. When his request for mercy is rejected, he tries to defend himself but is outnumbered. The two thieves beat Joseph with sticks, strip him naked, and leave him for dead.
Just as Joseph is coming to, people pass by in a stagecoach and debate whether they should help him. The gentlewoman in the coach is scandalized that Joseph is naked, and an older gentleman is afraid that they will be robbed too. A young lawyer advises that they should help Joseph to avoid being held legally accountable for his death. After more deliberation they decide to rescue him for their own self-preservation. Joseph, despite his near-death state, refuses to enter the coach unless given some sort of covering to maintain decency. None of the high-class passengers are willing to give Joseph their coat. The postilion, a young man with a history of thievery, is the only one willing to lend his coat (his only piece of outerwear).
The coach makes it to an inn, where the capable and caring maid gives Joseph a bed and summons the doctor. When the doctor hears that Joseph is of low class, he goes back to bed. At dawn the inn owners, Mr. and Mrs. Tow-wouse, learn of the robbery and their injured guest. Mrs. Tow-wouse thinks of herself rather than having compassion for Joseph. The doctor finally comes to tend Joseph’s injuries and states that he has little hope for Joseph’s recovery.
Book 1, Chapter 13 Summary: “What happened to Joseph during his sickness at the inn, with the curious discourse between him and Mr. Barnabas, the parson of the parish.”
The doctor informs Joseph that he is in danger of dying. Joseph wishes he could see Fanny again, “but God’s will be done” (45). The clergyman, Mr. Barnabas, is sent for. He hears Joseph talking to himself about Fanny while standing outside Joseph’s door. Joseph finds comfort in the virtue he maintained in his relationship with Fanny, knowing he is guiltless before God and can “face death without fear” (45). To prepare him for death, Barnabas states that Joseph must forgive the thieves who robbed him. When Joseph asks what it means to forgive them as a Christian should, Barnabas gives an unhelpful explanation. Joseph’s sweet and humble disposition prepares him to face death more than any advice from the proud and selfish clergyman. Joseph requests some tea for his dry throat, but Mrs. Tow-wouse, again showing a lack of compassion, refuses to make him any. Betty the maid kindly brings him tea.
Book 1, Chapter 14 Summary: “Being very full of adventures which succeeded each other at the inn.”
A new guest arrives at the inn and hears about the robbery, as well as the poor man who is close to death. The gentleman feels compassion for Joseph but can see that Mrs. Tow-wouse is not a compassionate hostess. He asks the doctor to do all he can for Joseph and displays humility while the doctor shows off his education and knowledge. Betty tells Joseph that one of the thieves has been caught, and Joseph asks her to search for a small piece of gold with a ribbon tied to it, which was stolen and has sentimental value. The robber is searched and the gold piece is found, as is Joseph’s clothing. The gentleman recognizes the clothing as that of the servants of a family he knows. He asks to see “the poor creature above-stairs” (49). When the gentleman comes upstairs, Joseph recognizes his good friend Parson Abraham Adams. Meanwhile, the robber is to be held until the morning, when he can be taken before a judge.
Book 1, Chapter 15 Summary: “Showing how Mrs. Tow-wouse was a little mollified; and how officious Mr. Barnabas and the surgeon were to prosecute the thief: with a dissertation accounting for their zeal, and that of many other persons not mentioned in this history.”
Mrs. Tow-wouse shows more kindness to Joseph once she sees how familiar he is with Adams, thinking Joseph may be of higher status than she suspected. Encouragement from Adams gives Joseph a stronger will to live, as well as an appetite, improving his chances at making a recovery. Barnabas and the doctor debate how to present evidence against the thief, which is simply a continuation of the “constant contention” (52) between the two gentlemen about their scientific knowledge. The narrator notes the way vanity affects us all, from the lowest wretch to the highest hero.
Book 1, Chapter 16 Summary: “The escape of the thief. Mr. Adams’s disappointment. The arrival of two very extraordinary personages, and the introduction of Parson Adams to Parson Barnabas.”
When Barnabas and the doctor return to the inn, they find that the thief escaped during the night because of the constable’s poor judgment. Mrs. Tow-wouse is not surprised by the constable’s mistake, calling him a “drunken drowsy blockhead” (54). Joseph continues to improve but is not yet strong enough to continue his journey. Adams finds that his money is almost gone and asks to borrow a small sum from Mr. Tow-wouse, offering his sermons (which he believes to be worth at least 10 pounds per volume) as collateral. Mr. Tow-wouse does not have faith in the value of the sermons and refuses to lend the money. In a conversation with Barnabas and the doctor, Adams reveals that he is on his way to London, where he plans to sell his sermons to a bookseller. Barnabas tells Adams that it’s unlikely he will get as much money for his sermons as he expects, since no one reads sermons anymore, but Adams retains his high hopes. After a few days Joseph has healed enough to continue his journey, and Adams plans to continue toward London.
Book 1, Chapter 17 Summary: “A pleasant discourse between the two parsons and the bookseller, which was broke off by an unlucky accident happening in the inn, which produced a dialogue between Mrs. Tow-wouse and her maid of no gentle kind.”
A bookseller comes to the inn and tells Adams that sermons don’t sell well. Mrs. Tow-wouse interrupts the men’s discussion on sermons by accusing the maid Betty of sleeping with one of the inn guests. Betty leaves the inn, and Adams prevents Mrs. Tow-wouse from physically assaulting Betty as she leaves.
Book 1, Chapter 18 Summary: “The history of Betty the Chambermaid, and an account of what occasioned the violent scene in the preceding chapter.”
Betty is sweet-natured and compassionate but prone to flirtations from the many men who pass through the inn as guests. Although she has had many admirers over the last three years working at the inn, there were only a few whose affections she returned. One of her admirers is Mr. Tow-wouse, whose flirtations she had not reciprocated up until now. However, Betty is attracted to Joseph, and on this day she declares her passion for him. Joseph responds in virtue, maintaining his chastity by turning her out of his room and locking the door.
After this rejection Betty goes to make the bed in Mr. Tow-wouse’s room, only to find him there. Betty, being in a state of sexual arousal because of her attraction to Joseph, submits to Mr. Tow-wouse’s advances and has sex with him. Mrs. Tow-wouse discovers them and promptly fires Betty
Book 1, Chapters 11-18 Analysis
These chapters introduce Fanny and emphasize her love for Joseph, virtuous heart, and low status. All of these characteristics serve as continuing threads throughout the novel. Joseph’s character develops also further. His innocence is highlighted by how he responds to the thieves who rob him. He thinks the best of them even though they are only seeking self-gain: “he hoped they would be so generous as to return him a few shillings, to defray his charges on the way home” (40). Joseph displays a fiery spirit when he fights against the thieves, showing that although he is good-natured, he also stands up for himself and what he believes is right. His virtue is reinforced when he refuses sexual advances for the third time, this time from Betty.
Fielding also develops Adams’s character further, which is shown to be compassionate even before he knows Joseph’s identity. The conversations about his sermons demonstrate the high value Adams places on spiritual things, as well as how passionately he defends his beliefs. Despite Adams’s status as a gentleman and parson, he remains mostly unaffected by vanity and pride, unlike many other characters.
The theme of hypocrisy is further developed through other characters’ reactions to Joseph’s injured condition. For example, the high-class woman in the coach is so concerned with propriety she can’t stand to help a naked man, even though he is dying. The only reason the travelers help Joseph is to save their own skins from the possibility of being sued. Only the low-class postilion is selfless enough to give Joseph his coat. This part of the story bears several similarities to that of the Good Samaritan from the Bible. Although the high-class citizens do stop to help after deliberation, their selfish motivations are perhaps just as condemning as leaving Joseph to die.
Lower-class characters also exemplify hypocrisy, showing that no one is exempt from pretension. One such character is Mrs. Tow-wouse, who is unwilling to help Joseph because he is a “poor wretch” (44). Only thinking about herself, Mrs. Tow-wouse refuses to make Joseph tea or clothe him with one of her husband’s shirts. Her hypocrisy is demonstrated when she changes her mind about Joseph after Adams, whom she recognizes as a gentleman, expresses concern for Joseph. Ironically, Betty, the lowest-ranking person at the inn, is the most compassionate toward Joseph before Adams comes along.
Other characters, such as the doctor and Parson Barnabas, serve as a lesson on vanity. Both strive to appear educated and superior, but Barnabas is a parson who cannot explain forgiveness and dislikes sermons, and the doctor shirks his duty and lacks compassion. The narrator explains that vanity seeps into every aspect of life, and “all our passions are [vanity’s] slaves” (52), even seemingly good passions like pity and generosity. Vanity is a catalyst for the hypocrisy seen throughout the story.
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