Samuel Richardson (1) (1689–1761)
Author of Pamela: or, Virtue Rewarded
For other authors named Samuel Richardson, see the disambiguation page.
About the Author
A printer and bookseller who wrote love letters for servant girls as an apprentice, studied nights to improve himself, and married the boss's daughter, Samuel Richardson undertook at age 50 to write a book of sample courtesy notes, marriage proposals, job applications, and business letters for show more young people. While imagining situations for this book, he recalled an old scandal and developed it into Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded (1740--44), a novel about a servant girl whose firmness, vitality, literacy, and superior intelligence turn her master's lust into a decorous love that leads to their marriage. All of Pamela's virtues of fresh characterization, immediacy (what Richardson called "writing to the moment" of the character's consciousness), and the involvement of the reader in the character's intense and fluctuating fantasies, together with a much more focused seriousness, a more varied and differentiated cast of letter writers, and a more fundamental examination of moral and social issues, make his second novel, Clarissa Hawlowe (1747--48), a masterpiece. Although anyone who reads this huge novel for its plot may hang himself (as Richardson's friend Samuel Johnson said), readers have been fascinated by the complex conflict between Clarissa Harlowe and Robert Lovelace, two of the most fully realized characters, psychologically and socially, in all of literature. Like such great successors as Rousseau (see Vol. 3), an acknowledged follower of Richardson, Dostoevsky (see Vol. 2), and D. H. Lawrence, Richardson understands and shows us, in Diderot's (see Vols. 2 and 4) appreciative image, the black recesses of the cave of the mind. Although Richardson's last novel, Sir Charles Grandison (1753--54), like Pamela Part II , mainly undertakes comic delineation of manners, it also examines the serious issues of love between a Protestant and a Catholic, and experiments technically with flashbacks, with stenographic reports, and most assertively with a pure hero, a male Clarissa of irresistible charm and power. At its best, Richardson's work fuses the epistolary technique, the use of dramatic scenes, the traditions of religious biography, and the elements of current romantic fiction to achieve precise analysis, an air of total verisimilitude, and a vision of a world of primal psychological forces in conflict. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Works by Samuel Richardson
Pamela in Her Exalted Condition (The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Samuel Richardson) (2012) 8 copies
The correspondence of Samuel Richardson ... selected from the original manuscripts, bequeathed by him to his family :… (1964) 6 copies
Clarissa Harlowe, or the history of a young lady (in 9 volumes) and Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded (mobi) (2009) 5 copies
The works of Samuel Richardson : with a sketch of his life and writings.... Volume VIII: Clarissa. Book 4 (2016) 3 copies
Sir Charles Grandison 4 Volume Set (The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Samuel Richardson) (2022) 2 copies
Correspondence with Aaron Hill and the Hill Family (The Cambridge Edition of the Correspondence of Samuel Richardson) (2013) 2 copies
Clarissa (1st ed.) 1 copy
Sir Charles Grandison. Vol.3 1 copy
The History of Clarrisa Harlowe - Part 1 (The Novels of Mr. Samuel Richardson - Volume 5) (1999) 1 copy
Correspondence with Sarah Wescomb, Frances Grainger and Laetitia Pilkington (The Cambridge Edition of the… (2014) 1 copy
Sir Charles Grandison. Vol.1 1 copy
Sir Charles Grandison. Vol.2 1 copy
Lettres Angloises, ou Histoire de Miss. Clarisse Harlove, Vol. 1: Augmentée de l'Éloge de Richardson, des Lettres… (2017) 1 copy
Clarissa (Volume 2); Or, the History of a Young Lady: Comprehending the Most Important Concerns of Private Life; and… (2010) 1 copy
Letters Written to and for Particular Friends, on the Most Important Occasions. Directing not Only the Requisite Stile… (2018) 1 copy
Associated Works
Oogst der tijden : keur uit de werken van schrijvers en dichters aller volken en eeuwen (1940) — Contributor — 10 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1689-08-19
- Date of death
- 1761-07-04
- Burial location
- St Bride's Church, London, England, UK
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- Great Britain
- Country (for map)
- UK
- Birthplace
- Mackworth, Derbyshire, England
- Place of death
- Parson's Green, England, Great Britain
- Cause of death
- stroke
- Places of residence
- Mackworth, Derbyshire, England
London, England, Great Britain
Parson's Green, England, Great Britain - Education
- Christ's Hospital, Horsham, Sussex, England
- Occupations
- printer
publisher
novelist - Relationships
- Pilkington, Laetitia (friend)
Members
Discussions
Group read - Clarissa by Samuel Richardson in 75 Books Challenge for 2012 (December 2012)
[Pamela], by Samuel Richardson in 1001 Books to read before you die (December 2007)
Reviews
Lists
Epistolary Books (3)
United Kingdom (1)
1740s (1)
Didactic Fiction (1)
Out of Copyright (1)
Favourite Books (1)
Awards
You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 126
- Also by
- 4
- Members
- 5,088
- Popularity
- #4,917
- Rating
- 3.2
- Reviews
- 87
- ISBNs
- 354
- Languages
- 6
- Favorited
- 1
This was difficult to engage in initially. I liken it to the soap opera of the 1800s. But the middle section improved and I finally engaged in the book. It is a story of gender roles, sibling rivalry/greed, a family that becomes torn apart without a willingness to find a resolution to the conflict. To the gender role; women have little resources and men have freedoms. It also is a picture of a great friendship between two young ladies. I did wonder at what could have caused Clarissa's health to decline, there is no hint other than the aspect of trauma on the physical health of a young lady.
I am happy to have read this book. I read it on Kindle and also used Librovox recordings occasionally.… (more)