Tom Jones. Teacher s notes LEVEL 6. About the author. Summary. Henry Fielding

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1 Henry Fielding About the author Henry Fielding, born in 1707, was a giant in the field of literature. His novels were highly innovative and lead directly to the modern novel; they were more psychologically realistic and the plots were more cleverly constructed than any previous novel. Fielding s books are very entertaining and they were hugely popular during his lifetime. Fielding also excelled in other areas. He was a successful dramatist and political journalist. In 1748, he became a magistrate, and in a profession where bribery and corruption were the norm, his integrity was notable. In April 1754, ill health forced him to resign, and he died in October of that same year, at the age of forty-seven. The great love of Fielding s life was his first wife, and it is said that Sophia Western, the heroine of, was modelled on her. When Fielding died, his cousin said of him, It is a pity he was not immortal, he was so formed for happiness. Summary The novel takes place in England in the eighteenth century, and begins with a rich, kind-hearted country gentleman, Mr Allworthy, keeping an abandoned baby which he finds in his bed. He calls the child, and brings him up in his house with Blifil, his nephew and heir. As the two boys grow up, the unpleasant Blifil becomes very jealous of Tom. Tom has a habit of getting into trouble, but he is also good-natured, charming and extremely attractive to women. Tom and a neighbour, the wealthy and lovely Sophia Western, fall in love, but Tom is an illegitimate child with little money and Sophia s father is furious at the thought of their marriage. Then Blifil poisons Mr Allworthy s mind against Tom, and Tom is banished from the house. Although Tom s heart belongs to Sophia, he is easily seduced by a pretty face. On the road to London, and in London itself, he has many amusing adventures. A host of characters scheme for money and love, and the hero s impulsive nature leads him into serious trouble. However, Tom s essential goodness eventually saves him, and the lovers are reunited. Chapters 1 3: Mr Thomas Allworthy, a rich landowner in south-west England, is a widower with three adult children. He lives in a large house with his sister Bridget who is middle-aged, plain and unmarried. One evening he is surprised to find a new-born baby boy in his bed. Jenny Jones, a servant in the house, admits that the child is hers but refuses to name the father. Allworthy decides to care for the child and gives him the name. Captain Blifil, a guest at Allworthy s house, falls in love with Bridget Allworthy and marries her because she is rich. They have a son who is educated in the house with. Jenny Jones had previously worked for a school master called Partridge and his wife had become jealous of Jenny s beauty and she thinks her husband might be the father of. She attacks Mr Partridge and their fight leads to a trial before Mr Allworthy. He calls for Jenny but she has left the village with a soldier. This changes Allworthy s positive opinion of Jenny and he says Partridge is guilty of having an affair with Jenny. Partridge loses his school, his wife dies and he moves away. Captain Blifil is jealous of Allworthy s growing love for young because he thinks the boy will inherit the family fortune. Blifil dies in a sudden accident. Most people in Mr Allworthy s house say that was born to be hanged because he is a very naughty boy and is always getting into trouble. In contrast, Captain Blifil s son is quiet and always well-behaved. Tom makes friends with Black George Seagrim, the gamekeeper on the estate and they often go hunting together. One day they shoot some birds which are flying over their neighbour s land. This is a crime and so Allworthy investigates. Tom admits to the crime but protects Seagrim by saying he was shooting alone. Tom and young Blifil have two teachers Mr Thwackum and Mr Square. The teachers hate each other because they both want to marry Mrs Blifil. c Pearson Education Limited Teacher s notes of 5

2 Chapters 4 6: Tom is now 18 and begins to be interested in girls. He meets, the beautiful Sophia Western and is attracted to her. Tom is also attracted to Molly, a daughter of Black George Seagrim. Molly gets pregnant. Sophia is very jealous. Tom tells Allworthy about Molly. Square and Thwackum want him punished but Allworthy forgives him and the girl. Whilst hunting together, Tom and Sophia are both thrown from their horses. Tom breaks his arm but he rushes to help Sophia. She is impressed by his kindness and bravery. Tom s affections are now divided between Molly and Sophia. He goes to see Molly but finds her in bed with Mr Square. Molly s sister tells Tom that Will Barnes is the father of Molly s baby. Chapters 7 8: Mr Allworthy fell sick and expected to die. He announced that he would leave all his property to young Mr Blifil and an income of 500 a year to his sister and young Tom. Allworthy recovers but his sister dies. Tom gets drunk to celebrate Allworthy s recovery. Whilst still slightly drunk he meets Molly and they go together into the forest. Blifil and Thwackum see them and follow them. Tom fights with Blifil. Thwackum joins the fight supporting Blifil but then Mr Western arrives and helps Tom. Sophia also arrives and faints at the sight of Tom covered with blood. Mrs Western, Sophia s aunt, begins to notice that Sophia is in love, but she thinks Sophia is in love with Mr Blifil. Mr Western goes to Mr Allworthy and suggests that Sophia and Blifil should get married. Sophia does not want to be forced to marry Blifil, but her father says he will throw her out of the house if she does not. Chapters 9 11: Tom hears about this. Blifil tells Allworthy about the fight. Allworthy gives Tom an envelope and tells him to leave the house. He writes a note to Sophia. Tom loses Allworthy s envelope without opening it, so now he has no money. Tom also loses his note to Sophia. Tom decides to go to sea. Mrs Western, Sophia s aunt tries to persuade her to marry Blifil. She refuses and decides to go to London to stay with a relative. Tom meets up with a group of soldiers at the inn. They drink together. One soldier, Northerton claims to know Sophia Western and says she has slept with half the young men of Bath. Tom gets angry and they fight. Northerton escapes. Tom meets a barber called Partridge who speaks a little (bad) Latin. They become friends. Chapters 12 14: One evening they are walking when they find a woman who is being attacked by Northerton. They save her but Northerton escapes again. Tom takes the woman to an inn in Upton. The landlady sees Tom and the half-naked woman. She does not want them to stay at the inn and fights with Tom. Partridge arrives and he is knocked down. The woman turns out to be the mistress of Captain Waters, one of the soldiers. Mrs Waters seduces Tom and they go to a room in the inn. A man arrives at the inn looking for a lady. A kitchen maid sends him upstairs to Mrs Waters s room. Confusion follows. Sophia, on her way to London, is staying in the same inn, and learns about Tom and Mrs Waters. She does not protest but sends her favourite ring to be left on Tom s bed pillow. Sophia leaves the inn. In the morning Sophia s father arrives looking for his daughter. He sees Tom with Sophia s ring and one of the other guests said that Tom slept with Sophia. Tom continued on his journey with Partridge. Chapters 15 17: Sophia and her maid, Honour, travel to London. On the road they meet another lady with her maid and a guide and they decide to travel together. The lady is Harriet Fitzpatrick, Sophia s cousin, who had been staying at the inn in Upton. Harriet tells Sophia about her life of cruelty and unhappiness with Mr Fitzpatrick who spent all her money. Sophia tells her story but does not mention. An Irish Lord arrives at the inn. He offers to take the two ladies to London in his carriage. Next morning, Sophia discovers that she has lost a valuable banknote given by her father. After two days of travelling, they arrive in London and go to the Irish Lord s house. As his wife is away, Harriet finds some lodgings and Sophia goes to her friend, Lady Bellaston. Tom and Partridge left Upton. On the road they meet a poor beggar. Partridge is rude to him but Tom gives him some money. The beggar offers to sell him a gold notebook he has found. It is Sophia s notebook which contains the valuable banknote. Tom held the notebook as if he was holding Sophia. Partridge thinks about the banknote! Arriving in London Partridge goes to find lodgings and Tom searches for Sophia. He goes to the Irish Lord s house and then to Harriet Fitzpatrick s house arriving just after Sophia has left. He decides to wait for her. Harriet, who does not know about Tom, goes to Lady Bellaston s house. Sophia is still asleep, but Lady Bellaston is interested to hear Harriet s story about the handsome fellow who wants to see Sophia. She invites Tom to a masked party at her house. c Pearson Education Limited Teacher s notes 2 of 5

3 Chapters 18 20: At the party, Tom meets Lady Bellaston who helps him with some money. Unfortunately she is falling in love with him, when he is desperate to see Sophia. Eventually he meets Sophia, gives her the notebook and starts to declare his love when Lady Bellaston arrives. Lord Fellamar, who also loves Sophia, is surprised that he has a rival. He decides to marry Sophia as quickly as possible but when he meets her and tries to kiss her she pushes him away. At that moment Mr Western, her father arrives. Sophia tells him about Lord Fellamar s attack and he decides to take her away. Honour, Sophia s maid, finds Tom and tells him what has happened. Tom is confused by the constant attention of Lady Bellaston and he is persuaded that the only solution is to propose marriage to her. Of course she refuses but she keeps his proposal letter. Mr Western again asks Sophia to marry Mr Blifil. When she refuses he locks her in her room. Lord Fellamar also asks Mr Western if he can marry Sophia, but he says she is promised to another. Black George Seagrim, the gamekeeper brings Sophia a cooked chicken. Inside the chicken there is a message from Tom. She sends a reply to Tom in which she said she would never marry another man. Lady Bellaston gives Tom s letter proposing marriage to Mrs Western, Sophia s aunt. Chapters 21 23: Tom gets into a fight at Mr Fitzpatrick s house and stabs him with his sword. Fitzpatrick is expected to die and Tom will be hanged. Black George brings him a note from Sophia. She says she has seen the proposal letter to Lady Bellaston and never wants to see him again. Thomas Allworthy and Blifil have arrived at Mrs Miller s house when news arrives about the fight and arrest of Tom. Mrs Western tells Allworthy about Mr Western s desire to force Sophia to marry Blifil. Allworthy says this is all wrong. Friends of Tom tell him Fitzpatrick is still alive, but friends of Lord Fellamar say they will tell lies to be sure that Tom is hanged. Tom sends another letter to Sophia. Mrs Waters visit Tom in prison and says she will defend him in court. Then Partridge tells Tom that Mrs Waters is actually Jenny Jones and so he has slept with his own mother! Eventually, Mr Allworthy learns the truth about the baby he found in his bed. Mrs Waters (Jenny Jones) explains that Tom is the son of Allworthy s sister Bridget and a young student called Summers. Before Bridget died she left a letter for her brother with young Blifil. Allworthy goes to Mr Western and suggests that Sophia should marry Tom. Allworthy goes to Tom and explains the story of his birth. The story ends happily as Tom and Sophia are finally united. Main characters in Mr Allworthy is a kind and generous man. His only fault is that often he does not see evil in other people. grows up to be a brave and handsome young man. He has affairs with many different women but his one true love is Sophia Western. Blifil is the opposite of Tom. He is superficially virtuous and honest but really evil. He wants to marry Sophia for her money. Bridget Allworthy is Mr Allworthy s not very beautiful sister. She marries Captain Blifil because he praises her religious ideas. She is the mother of young Blifil and (we later discover) of. Captain Blifil pretends to be religious but marries Bridget for her money. Mr Western is a neighbour of Mr Allworthy and the father of Sophia Western. He loves hunting and drinking. Mrs Western is the sister of Mr Western and the aunt of Sophia. Sophia Western is a young and beautiful woman. She represents the weak position of women in this period. Jenny Jones (Mrs Waters) is a servant girl who is not beautiful but very sexy. Partridge is a simple man with superficial signs of education. He appears first as a school master and employer of Jenny Jones and later as a travelling companion of. Mrs Fitzpatrick is Sophia s cousin. She is unhappily married to an Irish Lord who is stabbed a duel with Tom Jones. Lady Bellaston is a rich, middle-aged woman who is attracted to and wants to keep him as her lover. George Seagrim works as a gamekeeper for Mr Allworthy. He is not always honest but shows his loyalty to Tom at the end of the story. Thwackum and Square are teachers for Tom and young Blifil. Although they claim to be interested in philosophy and religion, they are selfish and only interested in their own success. c Pearson Education Limited Teacher s notes of 5

4 Lord Fellamar is simple aristocrat who is easily manipulated by Lady Bellaston. Background and themes is an entertaining introduction to the background of eighteenth century life. The key aspects are very well explained in the Introduction and do not need to be repeated here. Human weakness: The major theme of all early novels is the triumph of good over evil but Fielding was more interested in human weaknesses: the desire for money, power, position and honour, but also the more basic lusts for food, alcoholic drinks and sexual satisfaction. The hero of the story,, has many of these weaknesses, but is basically a good and honest man. His good looks make many women eager to chase him and because of his weaknesses, he often enjoys being caught! Although Squire Allworthy represents goodness in the story, he too also has weaknesses. He becomes angry and makes irrational decisions which he later regrets. Blifil, the son of Squire Allworthy s widowed sister, Bridget, is the most evil character but we learn in the last chapter, he is actually Tom s half-brother. Country life versus city life: The story also contrasts country ways with the more sophisticated behaviour of city dwellers. Discussion activities Introduction Chapters Research: Find Somerset on a map of England. Have students find out the distance between Somerset and London. How long do you think it would take to travel from Somerset to London 250 years ago if you were walking, riding a horse, travelling in a carriage? 2 Discuss: In pairs, have students discuss the following questions: What happened to Allworthy s three children? What happened to his young wife? How do you think this influenced his character and his feelings towards children? Work with another pair and share your answers. 3 Discuss: Ask students to describe how Bridget Allworthy s feelings about the baby changed during the sequence of events on page 3. 4 Role play and discuss: Have students form small groups and each student is a different person in Allworthy s village. Each person says what they think about Mr Allworthy and the baby. Have students try to represent all the different opinions described in Chapters 1 and 2. As a class, discuss the different opinions expressed by the people in the village. 5 Vocabulary: Have students find the word worthy in their dictionaries. What does this tell you about the writer s feeling about Mr Allworthy? Do you agree or disagree? Chapters Predict: Young Blifil is quiet and always well-behaved. is naughty and often gets into trouble. Have students discuss the following: Who do you think will be happier and more successful at the end of the story? Why? 7 Read carefully: Have students look at the first two sentences in Chapter 4. How do they make you feel about Sophia Western? 8 Discuss: Have students read the description of Sophia Western. Have them choose an actress to play the part of Sophia Western in a film. Make a list of reasons why this actress would be good in the role of Sophia Western. 9 Research: Using the Internet students answer the following questions: What is a gamekeeper? What are a gamekeeper s responsibilities? 10 Research: Molly Seagrim has a baby when she is sixteen years old. Ask students to discuss the following: Was that usual or unusual 250 years ago? Why did Molly Seagrim try to hide her pregnancy? What if Molly were in the same situation now? How do you think things would be the same? How do you think things would be different? Chapters Predict: The title of Chapter 7 is Mr Allworthy falls ill. Have students predict this: If he dies, who will inherit his land and money? What do you think will happen to Tom? 12 Write: Mr Allworthy is very ill and he expects he will die. Have students write his letter to his lawyer saying what he wants to do with his money and property. Students then share their letter with a partner. c Pearson Education Limited Teacher s notes of 5

5 13 Read carefully: Have students read this and discuss: He is perfect. So brave and yet so gentle. So kind, so clever, so handsome. What does it matter that he is poor? Who is Sophia talking about? Why does she say this? 14 Discuss: In pairs, students discuss the following questions: Why does Mr Western want Sophia to marry young Mr Blifil? Give all the reasons which are described in the book and add any you can think of. As a class, talk about what you discussed. Chapters Discuss: In pairs, students discuss the following question: Tom says he is going away to sea, why is Tom travelling to Bristol? After discussing the question, ask students to do some research and find out about the city of Bristol. 16 Discuss: As a class, students discuss the following questions: Why is Sophia travelling to London? What is she going to do when she gets there? What do you think about this? Chapters Predict: Ask students to think about the following: Do you remember the name Partridge from earlier in the story? Jenny Jones used to work in the house of a school master called Partridge. Do you think this might be the same man? 18 Write: Ask students to imagine that they are the landlady of the inn in Upton. Write her advertisement for the inn describing the rooms and the character of the inn. Invent any details she needs. Make a mockup of the ad including photos or images of the inn. 19 Discuss: In pairs, have students think about the description and behaviour of Mrs Waters at the hotel. Ask them to choose an actress to play the part of Mrs Waters in a film of. As a class, have the pairs share which actress they would choose to play the role of Mrs Waters and why. Have students vote for their choice. Chapters Role play: Have students role play the following conversation. Student A: Imagine that you are Sophia Western talking to the police after you discover that you have lost the notebook and the bank note. Describe what you have lost and tell the police where you lost it. Student B: You are the policeman interviewing Sophia. Take down Sophia s statement and ask her questions. Chapters Read carefully and discuss: Have students read carefully about Lady Bellaston and Lord Fellamar. Then they choose an actress and an actor to play the parts in a film of. In small groups, have students share their actress and actor choices. Have them vote in their groups for the best choices. As a class, have each group share their choices and explain why they chose the actress and actor. Have the class vote again to choose one actress and one actor for the roles. 22 Group work: Divide the class into two groups to discuss the following: Should Sophia marry rich Lord Fellamar or? Group A: Think of the reasons why she should marry Lord Fellamar. Group B: Think of the reasons why she should marry Tom. Have each group present their ideas and take a vote at the end to see if there is a winner. Chapters Predict: Ask students to predict the following: Which people do these things in the last three chapters of the story? a Tom gets into a fight with someone and stabs him with his sword. b Someone gives Sophia Tom s letter proposing marriage to Lady Bellaston. c Someone tries to make sure that is hanged. d Someone says she will help Tom. e Someone tells Tom that Mrs Waters is actually Jenny Jones. f Someone discovers the real name of his mother. g Someone discovers that is actually his nephew. 24 Research: Ask students to use the Internet to find out about the ancient Greek story of Oedipus. How does this story relate to? Remember that Henry Fielding had studied ancient Greek literature and certainly knew this story. 25 Discuss: Some people say that the most interesting of all the many characters in is the character of the narrator who speaks directly to the reader. Ask students to discuss this: Did you like the narrator? Did the narrator help you to understand and enjoy the story? Vocabulary activities For the Word List and vocabulary activities, go to c Pearson Education Limited Teacher s notes 5 of 5