Pamela or Virtue... Reexamined

Pamela; or Virtue Reexamined

by Omar García

In this essay, I will talk about how Samuel Richardson (1689-1761), who is sometimes considered the “father of modern novelists” in English, (T. Nelson, 1890:154), reexamines the concept of virtue in his major work Pamela (1740). The book in question is an epistolary novel that some regard as the first modern novel in English. It holds, thus, an historical importance related also with literary virtuosity.

The reasons why Richardson wrote the story are explained by himself in some non-fiction letters he wrote, where he stated that he had been asked to write about 3 letters “to instruct two handsome girls who were obliged to go out of service”, and to teach them “how to avoid the snares that might be lead against their virtue” (Richardson, 1804: LIII). In addition, Richardson wrote non-fiction letters in which he plainly stated that “the author's object in Pamela is two-fold: to reclaim a libertine by the influence of virtuous affection, and to conduct virtue safe and triumphant through the severest trials, to an honourable reward.” (Idem: LIV)

Bearing this in mind, we can understand why Richardson created Pamela the way she was. By making her the protagonist, Richardson outlined a character who had the same qualities of the people to whom the message was addressed. From the beginning, she was already established in a house, Lady B. has just died, and the options of staying where she is or leaving the place to return to his parents are suggested.

Throughout the novel, we see that Pamela is deeply religious and constantly pondering about the spiritual and godly ways. The epistolary thoughts, however, are not like the Apostle Paul’s. Indeed she has the sense of searching and cultivating virtue, constantly reexamining how she could maintain it or improve it in accordance to God’s will. However, Pamela, is often in the middle of a crossroads and quandaries related to his life with Mr. B.

She feels uncomfortable at times. Specially when the man is seen as a threat to her virtue and dignity. But Pamela strives to keep herself virtuous, and ultimately attributes the highest value to her moral and emotional aspects of life.

Pamela is often seeking God’s will, whom she credits for her improvement in character throughout the novel. In the second half of the novel, we read a lot about the good qualities she has developed in the midst of her situation. Rather than letting herself to decay socially, Pamela feels her time there has taken out the best out of her and invested effort to edify her identity, which, ultimately, is rewarded in the novel.

There is a thesis which suggests the idea that because Pamela praises herself too much, she might be merely justifying her own ways and hiding her dark side. This, however, seems implausible to me, because, if such were the case, Richardson would have given someone else a voice to clarify it and explain it. Yet, he wrote clearly the purpose of the novel, and since most of the whole book is written from Pamela’s perception, we can take it as a sample of a honest and personal examination about the motifs and reasoning of a little young girl who wants to preserve her virtue, as Luebering explains (2010:85).

Stylistically speaking, Samuel Richardson’s solution to reconcile Pamela and Mr. B might be simplistic, but at the same time, is clever. When he reads her letters – the very ones we are reading too – he changes his perception, and with this, Samuel Richardson directly connects us - as readers - to the story, which is amazing.

We can, therefore, track two important features in this book. One the one hand, it was intended to be a realistic depiction of the psychological character of a female at the time and space where Samuel Richardson lived. On the other hand, Richardson, as a staunch Anglican (Black & Gregory, 1991:93), made up a principled story that intended to inculcate morals and religious virtues, as can be seen throughout the story.

   Bibliography

• Berg, Kristine Syvertsen (2011). Love and Social Differences in Samuel Richardson’s Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded and Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. Department of Literature, University of Oslo https://www.duo.uio.no/bitstream/handle/10852/25304/Bergx-xmaster.pdf?sequence=1
• Black & Gregory (1991). Culture, Politics and Society in Britain, 1660-1800. Manchester University .
• Luebering, J. E. (2010). English Literature from the Restoration Through the Romantic Period. The Rosen Publishing Group
• National Cyclopaedia. (1884). The national encyclopædia. Libr. ed.
• Richardson, Samuel (1740). Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded. Project Gutenberg. E-Book released on April 23, 2009.  www.gutenberg.org/files/6124/6124-h/6124-h.htm
• T. Nelson & son. (1890). Lives of English Authors: A Biographical History of English Literature.