The Fool of Quality
Encyclopedia
The Fool of Quality; or, The History of Henry, Earl of Moreland (1765
-70
), a picaresque
and sentimental novel
by the Irish writer Henry Brooke, is the only one of his works which has enjoyed any great reputation. The somewhat shapeless plot is an account of the doings of young Harry Clinton, who, rejected by his decadent and aristocratic father, is educated on enlightened principles by his philanthropic uncle. Thus equipped to fight the evils of the world the innocent yet wise hero does his best to better the lot of the unfortunate Hammel Clement and his family, and other deserving cases, in the intervals between the author’s frequent philosophical digressions and commentaries on the action.
It was also strongly influenced by John Locke
's On Education
, by the writings of the Christian mystic Jakob Böhme
, and by the spirit of the Methodist
movement.
, and with a preface by him in which he wrote that the book
The writer Thomas Day
, author of The History of Sandford and Merton
, was profoundly influenced by The Fool of Quality; indeed his biographer claims it was the book that appealed to him above all others. Charles Kingsley
, whose novel Yeast owes a considerable debt to The Fool of Quality, prepared his own edition of it in 1859. He considered the book "more pure, sacred and eternal than anything since the Faerie Queene
". In modern times The Fool of Qualitys rambling and digressive structure, and the sentimental extravagances which it shares with other novels of sensibility, have prevented it from reaching a wide readership. Many would agree with the critic who, in 1806, noted that
Walter Allen
went so far as to call it "one of the worst novels ever written, but a remarkable book".
1765 in literature
-Events:* Beginning of Sturm und Drang movement in German literature.* Arthur Murphy introduces Hester Thrale and her husband to Samuel Johnson.*Denis Diderot completes Encyclopédie.-New books:* Henry Brooke - The Fool of Quality...
-70
1770 in literature
The year 1770 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:* John Armstrong - Miscellanies* James Beattie -An Essay on the Nature and Immutability of Truth...
), a picaresque
Picaresque novel
The picaresque novel is a popular sub-genre of prose fiction which is usually satirical and depicts, in realistic and often humorous detail, the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class who lives by his wits in a corrupt society...
and sentimental novel
Sentimental novel
The sentimental novel or the novel of sensibility is an 18th century literary genre which celebrates the emotional and intellectual concepts of sentiment, sentimentalism, and sensibility...
by the Irish writer Henry Brooke, is the only one of his works which has enjoyed any great reputation. The somewhat shapeless plot is an account of the doings of young Harry Clinton, who, rejected by his decadent and aristocratic father, is educated on enlightened principles by his philanthropic uncle. Thus equipped to fight the evils of the world the innocent yet wise hero does his best to better the lot of the unfortunate Hammel Clement and his family, and other deserving cases, in the intervals between the author’s frequent philosophical digressions and commentaries on the action.
Influences
The Fool of Quality, it has been said, wasmore deeply stamped with the seal of RousseauJean-Jacques RousseauJean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
— the Rousseau of the second DiscourseDiscourse on InequalityDiscourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men , also commonly known as the "Second Discourse", is a work by philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau...
and of ÉmileEmile: Or, On EducationÉmile, or On Education is a treatise on the nature of education and on the nature of man written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who considered it to be the “best and most important of all my writings”. Due to a section of the book entitled “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” Émile was be...
— than is any other book of the period…Before we can find anything approaching to this keenness of feeling, this revolt against the wrongs of the social system, we have to go forward to the years immediately succeeding the outbreak of the French revolutionFrench RevolutionThe French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
It was also strongly influenced by John Locke
John Locke
John Locke FRS , widely known as the Father of Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, he is equally important to social...
's On Education
Some Thoughts Concerning Education
Some Thoughts Concerning Education is a 1693 treatise on the education of gentlemen written by the English philosopher John Locke. For over a century, it was the most important philosophical work on education in England...
, by the writings of the Christian mystic Jakob Böhme
Jakob Böhme
Jakob Böhme was a German Christian mystic and theologian. He is considered an original thinker within the Lutheran tradition...
, and by the spirit of the Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
movement.
Publication history and reception
The Fool of Quality was privately published in 5 volumes in 1765-1770, and a revised edition was published by Edward Johnston in 1776. Reviews were at first unfavourable, but critics quickly came to appreciate the novel's virtues. In 1781 a two-volume version was published under the title The History of Henry, Earl of Moreland, abridged and modified by John WesleyJohn Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
, and with a preface by him in which he wrote that the book
perpetually aims at inspiring and increasing every right affection; at the instilling gratitude to God and benevolence to man. And it does this, not by dry, dull, tedious precepts, but by the liveliest examples that can be conceived; by setting before your eyes one of the most beautiful pictures that ever was drawn in the world.
The writer Thomas Day
Thomas Day
Thomas Day was a British author and abolitionist. He was well-known for the children's book The History of Sandford and Merton which emphasized Rousseauvian educational ideals.-Life and works:...
, author of The History of Sandford and Merton
The History of Sandford and Merton
The History of Sandford and Merton was a bestselling children's book written by Thomas Day. He began his book as a contribution to Richard Lovell and Honora Edgeworth’s Harry and Lucy, a collection of short stories for children that Maria Edgeworth continued some years after Honora died...
, was profoundly influenced by The Fool of Quality; indeed his biographer claims it was the book that appealed to him above all others. Charles Kingsley
Charles Kingsley
Charles Kingsley was an English priest of the Church of England, university professor, historian and novelist, particularly associated with the West Country and northeast Hampshire.-Life and character:...
, whose novel Yeast owes a considerable debt to The Fool of Quality, prepared his own edition of it in 1859. He considered the book "more pure, sacred and eternal than anything since the Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene is an incomplete English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. The first half was published in 1590, and a second installment was published in 1596. The Faerie Queene is notable for its form: it was the first work written in Spenserian stanza and is one of the longest poems in the English...
". In modern times The Fool of Qualitys rambling and digressive structure, and the sentimental extravagances which it shares with other novels of sensibility, have prevented it from reaching a wide readership. Many would agree with the critic who, in 1806, noted that
an unnatural elevation is given to the most trifling circumstances and sentiments; every emotion is a rapture or an agony, every person seems to be the deity of the moment who attracts all eyes and all hearts; in short, we are in another world.
Walter Allen
Walter Allen
Walter Ernest Allen was an English literary critic and novelist. He is best known for his classic study The English Novel: a Short Critical History ....
went so far as to call it "one of the worst novels ever written, but a remarkable book".
External links
- Volume 1 and Volume 2 at Google Books
- Discussion from The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, May 15, 1887. (PDF document) - Discussion from The Cambridge History of English LiteratureThe Cambridge History of English and American LiteratureThe Cambridge History of English and American Literature was originally published by Cambridge University Press in 1907–1921. The 18 volumes include 303 chapters and more than 11,000 pages edited and written by a worldwide panel of 171 leading scholars and thinkers of the early twentieth century...