The Vicar of Wakefield (Oxford World's Classics)
by Oliver Goldsmith
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Book Summary Information
Author: Oliver GoldsmithBrand: Spring Arbor/Ingram
Editor: Arthur Friedman
Editor: Robert L. Mack
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-06-15
ISBN: 0192805126
Number of pages: 256
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Book Reviews of The Vicar of Wakefield (Oxford World's Classics)
Book Review: Sentimental but charming
Summary: 4 Stars
Regarded by some as a sentimental novel, Oliver Goldsmith's "The Vicar of Wakefield" (1766) describes the fortunes and misfortunes of the first-person narrator, Dr. Primrose, along with his wife and six children. The narrative is chiefly concerned with a description of Primrose's increasing adversity and the final restoration and elevation of his condition, in a story-line reminiscent of the Biblical book of Job. First the Primrose family loses their fortune, their home is engulfed by a fire, and eventually Primrose himself finds himself in prison, one daughter reportedly dead, another abducted, and a son jailed. But all is in the end restored as the narrative returns to the idyllic life of the Primrose home and its inhabitants as described at the end of the first chapter: "In short, a family likeness prevailed through all, and properly speaking, they had but one character, that of being all equally generous, credulous, simple, and inoffensive." The circle is completed with the closing words of the final chapter: "As soon as dinner was over, according to my old custom, I requested that the table might be taken away, to have the pleasure of seeing all my family assembled once more by a cheerful fireside. My two little ones sat upon each knee, the rest of the company by their partners. I had nothing now on this side of the grave to wish for, all my cares were over, my pleasure was unspeakable. It now only remained that my gratitude in good fortune should exceed my former submission in adversity." Although Primrose is a vicar, his congregational and pastoral charge rarely comes into the picture, and it is more the events in this family circle that are the focus of his story.
In the face of more than abundant adversity, Primrose remains the eternal optimist, a sweet and naïve vicar who portrays himself unaffected by the worldliness and faults he sees in the lives of those around him. Nowhere is his naivete more evident than when he falls prey to the same deceptive character he has previously chastized his son for falling victim to. Yet Primrose remains blind to his own flawed character with its intellectual and spiritual pride. For example, when his half-dead son makes his entrance in the closing stages, Primrose affirms his own freedom from vanity, although the statement in which he makes this bold assertion suggests the opposite: "He now therefore entered, handsomely dressed in his regimentals; and without vanity (for I am above it), he appeared as handsome a fellow as ever wore a military dress."
While one must at times roll one's eyes at his excessive parade of virtue, the reader cannot help feel a strong measure of sympathy for his overly sweet character and good intentions. When his house burns down, rather than mourn the loss of his worldly possessions, he rejoices in the safety of his children: "'Now,' cried I, holding up my children, 'now let the flames burn on, and all my possessions perish. Here they are, I have saved my, treasure. Here, my dearest, here are our treasures, and we shall yet be happy.'" When misfortune results in his incarceration, he sees prison as an opportunity to convert the ungodly: "I therefore promised to repeat my lecture next day, and actually conceived some hopes of making a reformation here; for it had ever been my opinion, that no man was past the hour of amendment, every heart lying open to the shafts of reproof, if the archer could but take a proper aim." Even his most malicious oppressors are reason for optimism: "... as my oppressor has been once my parishioner, I hope one day to present him up an unpolluted soul at the eternal tribunal." And upon discovering that Jenkinson's account about the death of his daughter is false, he chooses to be overjoyed at her return rather than angered by the deception: "'How could you,' cried I, turning to Mr Jenkinson, 'how could you add to my miseries by the story of her death! But it matters not, my pleasure at finding her again, is more than a recompence for the pain.' "
While Primrose's strength of spiritual character, moral fortitude and steadfastness in the face of crisis is exaggerated to the point of humor and wild improbability, it is nonetheless admirable in what it suggests about the human spirit. He sleeps untroubled while in prison and having suffered the most grave misfortune and being deprived of all that is dear to him: "After my usual meditations, and having praised my heavenly corrector, I laid myself down and slept with the utmost tranquility till morning." And rather than grieve over his misfortune after his house has been engulfed with flames, he sees it as a positive benefit, for it humbles his wife's pride and makes her more receptive to the return of his daughter from prostitution: "I proceeded to prepare them for the reception of our lost one, and tho' we had nothing but wretchedness now to impart, I was willing to procure her a welcome to what we had. This task would have been more difficult but for our recent calamity, which had humbled my wife's pride, and blunted it by more poignant afflictions." And when too much laughter and merriness displeases Primrose in preparation for the solemn ceremony of marriage, he makes it the occasion for spiritual correction: "I told them of the grave, becoming and sublime deportment they should assume upon this Mystical occasion, and read them two homilies and a thesis of my own composing, in order to prepare them." And even some of the other characters share this virtuous approach, for rather than commiserate with Wilmot upon the loss of his fortune to deception, the senior squire remarks: "your present disappointment does not entirely displease me. Your immoderate passion for wealth is now justly punished."
Like Job, Primrose suffers at the hand of increasing disasters, but unlike his Biblical counterpart, he doesn't go to the ash-heap to mourn or struggle with his condition or grief. He remains constant in hope and optimism, sees in the greatest disasters opportunities for spiritual correction and growth, and always retains the prospect of improving his fortunes, if not in this life then in the hereafter. Despite his overly optimistic character, this naïve and simple man who wants to serve God and his family presents a somewhat charming figure. We are curious what will be the outcome of his life, and our sense of expectation is heightened by the twists and turns of the plot, which for an 18th century work is reasonably fast paced and quite accessible for modern readers. While improbable, Primrose's journey from fortune to misfortune and back again might prove morally instructive not just to its protagonist, but to us all. - GODLY GADFLY
Summary of The Vicar of Wakefield (Oxford World's Classics)
Oliver Goldsmith's hugely successful novel of 1766 remained for generations one of the most highly regarded and beloved works of eighteenth-century fiction. It depicts the fall and rise of the Primrose family, presided over by the benevolent vicar, the narrator of a fairy-tale plot of impersonation and deception, the abduction of a beautiful heroine and the machinations of an aristocratic villain. By turns comic and sentimental, the novel's popularity owes much to its recognizable depiction of domestic life and loving family relationships.New to this edition is an introduction by Robert L. Mack that examines the reasons for the novels enduring popularity, as well as the critical debates over whether it is a straightforward novel of sentiment or a satire on the social and economic inequalities of the period and the very literary conventions and morality it seems to embody. This edition also includes a new, up-to-date bibliography and expanded notes, and contains reprints of Arthur Friedman's authoritative Oxford English Novels text of the corrected first edition of 1766.
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