Assignment -Tom Jones as a comic epic in prose

Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji university,Bhavanagar

Name :Pandya  Mehal Jitendrabhai 

Roll no. :19 

Semester :sem -1

Enrollment no. :2069108420200029

Batch :2019-2021

Paper : The neo -classical

Assignment -Topic :Tom Jones as a comic epic in prose

   English Department -Bhavanagar 

Tom  Jones as comic epic in prose 

Introduction:-

.          Tom Jone is written by Henry Fielding Henry Fielding was born 22 April 17 7 and he died on 8 8 October 1754 fielding was well known English novelist ine he also wrote drama in his work we can see the Satirical Prowess.   who's you feeling is undoubtedly one of the great know where is true vastly succeed in making a permanent impact and effect on the letter generation of the novelist.Henry give right form to the novel. He was become more famous with his Novel Tom John Tom Jones is a picaresque novel and it is also known as comic Epic prose so let's discuss about it.S.Diana Neill describes it as “a great novel in itself and a microcosm of the next hundred years in prose fiction.”

          The novels event are women with in 18 books as we know there in an Epic there are so many characters plot events and themes which are related to each other we can find the human nature through its story and event from John has so many characters.

Characters:-

Squire  Allworthy: 

              a wealthy and  wise landowner, magistrate, and philanthropist residing in somersetshire, England.

Bridget Allworthy :

                The metronly sister of square,she has little to recommend Herbert her wealth she is finally learnt Tom's real mother.

  

Tom Jones :

             The hero of the novel.he is the illegitimate son of Bridget. Allworthy  adopt Tom and even though he does not know that Tom is really his nephew he treat him as if he were his own son. 

 Jenny john : 

                     an intelligent servant in the home of the school master she is accused of being a mother for her own good all over the comments her and send her out of the neighbourhood.

 Mr. Partridge :

          the schoolmaster he is team lead superstitious Visit with a Sri Viswa wife and falsely accused of ringtones father

 captain Blifil : 

            A hypocritical fortune Seeker who pretends virtual while taking advantage of Allworthy's hospitality and Bridget nature  instinect.

  Master Blifil : 

              The villainous son of Bridget and captain belief.Like his father, he hopes to rule the entire Allworthy estate and therefore does everything in his power to see that Tom is disowned by Allworthy. 

 Sophia western :

          The lonely intelligent and virtues georgia of the squad she is loved by Tom  and his ok to go to hand from the framework of the action in the novel. 

 Squire western: 

         Allworthy's neighbour, he ardently loves three things :the hunt, the bottle, and  his daughter, and probably in that order.

Mrs. Honour: 

         Sophia's servant  and she helps sophia to escape from her father's demand that she marry Bilifil  and accompanies her to london.

Mrs. Miller :

            A widow  of clergymen, she now boarding house  in squire Allworthy had befriends her and Tom stays in her  house whenever he arrived in london. she is a nice hearted and virtuous woman.

          

 Nancy Miller : Mrs. Miller's daughter. She became the lover of one of her mother's tenants.

   

 Other characters like,  Mr.Nightingale ,Lady Bellaston,Lord Fellamar,Mr.summer,Mr.Watson,

Mr.Fitzpatrick, Molly seagrim, Lawyer Dowling, Ensign Northerton  etc. 

  

    The Epic is generally defined :-

    

       First we see the definition of epic a long narrative poem on a great and serious subject related with the 11 star in way or centred on Hero Ek Aur divine figure on woods reaction depends the destiny of a group and the human race and human nature.

     In modern use this term Epic is generally applied to only in the works on matter of great importance.

What, then is a Comic Epic in Prose?

                 Thus a comic epic in prose chiefly promises a variety of characters involved in a very comprehensive action. The novelist’s tone is light, even frivolous, and he gives mildly satirical, ironical exposition of the ridiculous. It is epical in scale and it is concerns the ridiculous in human life. It is not romance since it is highly, down-to-earth realistic.

    Tom Jones is novels it has 18 books so it is a prose and there is a also given so it is a comic Epic prose Tom Jones is a comic Epic in prose it is a comic epic in prose by virtue of its classical approach its width and trembling narration and it is not because it has a secret is pointed out by a critic and Epic has no  secret but let us say Tom John as Epic prose.

        Enjoying freedom of an artist he burst onto the literary scene which gives so many hours for writing a kind of epic like 'Tom Jones'.The bulk of the novel is a challenge to an epic we can't surely called Pride and Prejudice or Great Expectations and Epic.Its reason is their concentration on action and a little space for the movement, whereas this novel moves on rambling to any distance. Epic is an honest narrative.

Plot of the novel :-

 Allworthy saw a baby boy on his bed,and also finds a woman named jenny johns and her tutor Mr. Partridge.Mr.Allworthy send jenny away from the country. In Spite of the criticism of the parish.Allworthy decides to bring up listen to bring up the boy. He got married with Bridget she also married with Captain blifil and gave birth to a son with same name.Captain blifill regards Tom Jones with jealousy during meditating on money matters captain Blifil falls dead of an apoplexy. The narrator skips toward twelve years Tom and Blifil  had been brought up together.Allworthy is the only person who Shows consistent affection. Tom is wild and Blifil is pious.Tom frequently steals to support the family of Blank George one of Allworthy's the servants.Tom spends much time with squire western. she is neighbour of Allworthy -since the squire is impressed by tom's sportsmanship .Sophia western,daughter of squire western. She falls in love with Tom. Tom had already bestowed his affection on Molly seagrim the poor girl. 

    When Molly become pregnant,  Tom prevents Allworthy from spending on Molly to prison by admitting that he is the father of the baby. Tom's commitment to the molly ends when he discovers that she has been having a relationship with other man also. Tom's father falls I'll  which states that Blifil will inherit of his estate. Although Tom is also provided for. A lawyer named Dowling arrives and announce the sudden and unexpected death of Bridget Allworthy. Tom called "bastard" by Blifil and also hitting and retaliates.Mrs western the aunt with whom  Sophia spend much of her youth comes to stay at her brother's house brothers'. she and the squire fight constantly but the unit over Mrs westerns plan to marriage Sophia with Blifil. But Sophia was against this proposal. She loves Tom.So Blifil always pouring the poison in ear of Tom's father against Tom. Tom is a guy who has affairs with girls and also he has bad habit. He also not want leave Sophia. Apart from that Sophia run away because she doesn't want to marry with blifil.sophia came to know that Tom's affair with Bellaston is over now. squire Western look Sofia in her bedroom Mr fitzpatrick this begins a dual with Tom, and Tom is arrested. There so many phonomon after that at the end Mrs. Western eagerly encourage and force her to marry with Tom. Sophia agree to marry with Tom.Apart from that Mr. Allworthy came to know about Blifil's right side of bad mind. He gave his all estate to Tom. 

Humour in novel:-

Fielding a critic,dominates his narrative through the comic spirit.He finds humour even in the tragic situation.Laughter is a weapon which must be wielded wittingly.

 Tom Jones has numerous humorous situation.we can take for example the behaviour of Deborah Wilkins whose mode of enquiry for finding out the present of Tom was humorous enough. Her outrageous sincerity about the affair evoke our sense of humour and laugh. 

   The behaviour of Partridge and the behaviour of Adams both set us rolling with laughter.The very name of partridge represent the essence of his nomenclature  indeed the funny name.There was a good split, which was humorous in itself. 

   Often  the learning of the Doctor in novel Tom Jones makes the reader laugh. At the death of Captain Blifil the Doctor agree without being in a dilemma: Those doctors, whom, to avoid any malicious application, we may distinguish the names of Dr. Y and Dr. Z checking his pulse,Dr. Y was his right hand and Dr.Z was his left hand. They both agreed that he was dead.Dr Z of an epilepsy and other holding that he died of an apoplexy.This kind of humourness situation had been repeated in this novel.Tom lies ill and the physician came to see him.

     ‘Tom Jones’ is epical in scale

              If ‘Tom Jones’ is comic in spirit, it is epical in scale. It offers at least forty well-portrayed characters drawn from different cross section of society. There are lords, justices of peace, lawyers, servants, highwaymen, parsons, innkeepers, soldiers, gypsies, country squires and many others.

·   

   The prose in ‘Tom Jones’

             ‘In prose’ is not merely a tag to fill out the phrase ‘comic epic in prose’ It was a well-known belief that poetry is appropriate to the expression of the more elevated thoughts and the celebration of great actions. ‘In prose’ plants us firmly once and for all in the ordinary world with which Fielding was primarily pre-occupied. As a realist attempting a comic epic he found prose with a comic turn given to its phrase as a very suitable medium although when he goes really high in Tom Jones, his prose turns lyrical and soars high like ‘an archangel brooding over mankind’.

· 

     Epic unities

           In ‘Tom Jones ‘, Fielding also shows his concern for the epic unities. The headings of the various Books indicate the time taken by the action described in them Book 1 tells us ‘as much of the birth of the foundling as in necessary’. Books 2 and 3 summarise events till Tom is arrived at the age of seventeen. Book lV is described as ‘ containing a year’ material is given in the first four Books the action is made to come well within a year. The action in all the important epics ,The Iliad, The odyssey ,The Aeneid, is completed within a year.

             

      The action is comprehensive and well extended in space. It includes within its folds the countryside, the highways and the great urban society of London. The rural as well as urban society is portrayed almost in entirety. The action is so distributed that three units consisting of six Books each strictly observe the unity of place.

 Conclusion :-

    If we refer to Aristotle’s original triangulation. We find that non-dramatic equivalent of the comedy is lampoon, of tragedy, epic. With the new opening before him, Fielding takes cross bearings on the old landmarks and attempts a comic epic. ‘In prose’ gives him a third bearing and his triangulation is complete. He leaves an  old track, but he does not get lost. W.L. Renwick in’ Essays and Studies’, rightly remarks:

“ In that great phrase ‘comic epic in prose, Fielding evoked

a critical tradition, claimed his authority, asserted right

of the new ……to the craft of the comedy and the dignity of

the epic and assumed moral responsibilities of both along

with the freedom of prose.”

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