The Expedition Of Humphry Clinker

Before I was born my aunt had gone such lengths in the way of flirting witha recruiting officer that her reputation was a little singed. She afterwardsmade adva... » 

Before I was born my aunt had gone such lengths in the way of flirting witha recruiting officer that her reputation was a little singed. She afterwardsmade advances to the curate of the parish... from To Sir Watkin Phillips ofJesus college Oxon Bath May 6 An often overlooked but neverthelessimportant name in the history of the English novel Tobias Smollett greatlyinfluenced Dickens with his unsentimental depiction of poverty and was afavorite of William Makepeace Thackeray who called The Expedition of HumphryClinker the most laughable story that has ever been written since the goodlyart of novelwriting began. An early example of the epistolary novelconsisting entirely of letters written between its characters this isSmolletts last book completed and published just before his death in 1771.Far less brutal than his earlier work it is the comic story of HumphryClinker a poor lad who joins a touring party of aristocrats on their journeythrough city and country. Smolletts satire on the welltodo and thefripperies that consumed their society echoes in countless writers who cameafter him from Jane Austen to Bridget Jones with her diary. Scottish writerTOBIAS GEORGE SMOLLETT 17211771 trained as a surgeon but found far moresuccess as a novelist he also worked as an editor and translator. Among hisworks are Roderick Random 1748 and The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle 1751. «