Remarks on Clarissa (1749)

by Sarah Fielding

_Bellario_ said, and addedto it, That she thought _Clarissa's_ frankness of Heart was veryapparent, from the manner in which she had treated those Gentlemen herHeart had obliged her to refuse, and from the generous Advice she in somany Places gives Miss _Howe_, in relation to her Treatment of Mr._Hickman_: And pray, Sir, continued Miss _Gibson_, pardon my asking youone Question more, namely; whether you are not now satisfied with theConduct of the Author in the Management of his whole Story?

  _Bellario_ answered, That he was not only satisfied with it, but highlyapplauded all the material Parts of it; that the various distressfulSituations in which you had placed your Heroine, were noble beyondExpression; that these three last Volumes contained many Scenes, eachsingly arising to as high a Tragedy as can possibly be wrote; that theTears you had drawn from his Eyes were such Tears as flow'd from a Heartat once filled with Admiration and Compassion, and labouring underSensations too strong for any Utterance in Words; and that for the Sakeof _Clarissa_, he would never form any Judgment of a Work again till thewhole was lain before him. This was noble! this was candid! this waslike _Bellario_! and Miss _Gibson_ could not forbear saying, that sherejoyced in the Tears _he_ had shed for _Clarissa_. And, Sir, (continuedshe) 'I am convinced, that those whose Eyes melt not at Scenes ofwell-wrought Distress, cannot properly be said to laugh, from a liberaland chearful Spirit, at the true Scenes of comic Humour.'

  'The Beginning of this Season I went with a Lady, whose Acquaintance Iaccidentally fell into, to _Drury-Lane_ Play-house, where Mr. _Garrick_performed the Part of King _Lear_. I should have thought (tho' alteredand defaced as it is by Mr. _Tate_) that even Butchers must have wept;but to my great Astonishment, my Companion sat unmoved: Silent indeedshe was, only now and then said, _she did not love Tragedy_; that, forher part, _she had rather laugh than cry_, and liked a Comedy best. Ihad a Curiosity to see in what manner comic Scenes would affect her; andtherefore proposed going to _Covent-Garden_ Play-house the next Night,when Mr. _Quin_ was to play the Part of Sir _John Falstaff_, in _Harry_the Fourth. Accordingly we went. The Lady did, indeed, now and thencatch the Laugh of those around her, enough to move about her Features alittle; but upon the whole, was pretty near as unmov'd as she had beenthe Night before; and at last she confessed, that the Humours of Sir_John Falstaff_ was not the Sort of Comedy that pleased her Fancy; butthat the merry Dialogues between _Tom_ and _Phillis_ in the _ConsciousLovers_, and the comical Humours of _Ben_ and Miss _Prue_ in _Love forLove_, were more suited to her Taste. I was not much surprised, becauseI before suspected, that whoever could sit the Play of King _Lear_without weeping, would see Sir _John Falstaff_ without laughing.'

  Mr. _Dellincourt_ now raised a new Objection to _Clarissa_, in that shetalked so much of Religion, which he call'd Canting. Nay, Sir, said_Bellario_, 'I cannot see how she can be said to cant; for her religiousReflections are neither nonsensical or affected, but such as naturallyarise from a pious Mind in her several Situations; and if you are aChristian, Sir, I am sure you cannot, on Consideration, dislike thatPart of her Character.' Mr. _Dellincourt_ said, 'Yes, he was aChristian, and he did not dislike some of her Reflections, at least whenshe was near Death; but he thought she talked too much of Religion atthe Beginning; for it was unnatural for a young Beauty to have suchgrave Thoughts.' _Bellario_ smiled and said,

  'You put me in mind, Sir, of Dame _Quickly_, who when Sir _JohnFalstaff_, in his Illness, calls upon God, told him, to comfort him, shehoped there was no Occasion yet to think of any such Matters; supposing,that to think of God, except he was quite dying, was very unnecessary.And, indeed, I have often known a professed Christian excuse introducinga Word of Religion into Company, as if it would be indecent to mentionany such matters; but as to _Clarissa_, I think the Principles she hadimbibed from her Infancy from the good and pious Mrs. _Norton_, andwhich were afterwards strengthned by her Conversation with Doctor_Lewin_, renders it very natural for her to be early and steadilyreligious.' Mr. _Dellincourt_ made no Answer, but dropped his Objection;and Mr. _Barker_ said, 'that he thought there was one great Fault in theConduct of your Story; and that was, the Indelicacy of making _Clarissa_seek _Lovelace_ after the Outrage; for that he was strongly of Opinion,that she had better have escaped from Mrs. _Sinclair's_ and have avoidedthe Sight of _Lovelace_.' 'Indeed, Sir, said Miss _Gibson_, I believeshe would have been very thankful for your Advice, if you could at thesame time have found out any Expedient to have put it in Execution; butif you will please to recollect, you may remember the Difficulty she hadto escape once before, even when she was not suspected; and _Lovelace_now could have no manner of doubt, but that she would fly that House, ifnot prevented, as soon as her Strength would permit her to leave herBed.

  As to the Indelicacy of _Clarissa's_ seeking _Lovelace_, said_Bellario_, 'I confess I do not see it; however, I will leave thatmatter to be decided by the Ladies', who all agreed, that they thoughtit no Breach of the strictest Modesty to declare it was their Opinion,that the whole Scene, as it now stands, is what it _should be_, andwould have admited of no Alteration, but for the worse; that thepicturesque Manner in which a young Woman, without Fear or Confusion,beholds the Man who dared imagine his Guilt could baffle all herResolutions, and sink her Soul to Cowardice, most beautifully displaysthe Power of conscious Innocence; and, on the other hand, that theconfused Mind, the flattering Speech, unavoidable even by a _Lovelace_when his guilty Soul was awed by the Presence of an Object injuredbeyond the Power of Reparation, displays the Deformity of Wickedness inall its Force. In short, this Scene was allowed to be Virtue's Triumph,and _Clarissa's_ Conduct to be a direct Opposition to that of all thosewhining Women, who blubber out an humble Petition to be joined for Lifeto the Men who have betrayed them.

  Had not _Clarissa_ seen _Lovelace_, said Miss _Gibson_, her Triumphcould never have been so compleat; and as I think the Impossibility ofher Escape at that time, from Mrs. _Sinclair's_, is very apparent, hadshe not sought him, the true Lovers of _Clarissa_ must have mourned theLoss of seeing her Behaviour in such an uncommon Situation.

  _Bellario_ gave these Sentiments a Sanction by his Approbation, and therest of the Company either concurr'd with his Opinion, or at least didnot contradict him; and the next Day Miss _Gibson_ received thefollowing Letter from _Bellario_.

  ~_MADAM_~,

  You seem'd so pleased last Night with my Conversion, if I may be allowedthe Expression, to your Favourite _Clarissa_, that I could not seek anyRepose till I had thrown together my Thoughts on that Head, in order toaddress them to you; nor am I ashamed to confess, that the Author'sDesign is more noble, and his Execution of it much happier, than I evensuspected till I had seen the whole.

  In a Series of familiar Letters to relate a compleat Story, where thereis such a Variety of Characters, every one conducing to the forming thenecessary Incidents to the Completion of that Story, is a Method sointirely new, so much an Original manner of Writing, that the Authorseems to have a Right to make his own Laws; the painting Nature isindeed his Aim, but the Vehicle by which he conveys his lively Portraitsto the Mind is so much his own Invention, that he may guide and directit according to his own Will and Pleasure. _Aristotle_ drew his Rules ofEpic Poetry from _Homer_, and not _Homer_ from _Aristotle_; tho' hadthey been Cotemporaries, perhaps that had been a Point much disputed.

  As to the Length of the Story, I fancy that Complaint arises from thegreat Earnestness the Characters inspire the Reader with to know theEvent; and on a second Reading may vanish. _Clarissa_ is not intended asa Dramatic, but as a real Picture of human Life, where Story can movebut slowly, where the Characters must open by degrees, and the Reader'sown Judgment form them from different Parts, as they display themselvesaccording to the Incidents that arise. As for Example; the Behaviour of_Lovelace_ to his Rosebud must strike every one, at first View, withAdmiration and Esteem for him; but when his Character comes to blaze inits full Light, it is very apparent that his Pride preserved hisRosebud, as well as it destroyed _Clarissa_; like _Milton's Satan_, hecould for a Time cloath himself like an Angel
of Light, even to theDeception of _Uriel_.

  _For neither Man, nor Angel can discern Hypocrisie; the only Evil that walks Invisible, except to God alone, By his permissive Will, through Heaven and Earth: And oft, though Wisdom wake, Suspicion sleeps At Wisdom's Gate, and to Simplicity Resigns her Charge; while Goodness thinks no ill Where no Ill seems; which now, for once, beguiled_ Uriel, _though Regent of the Sun, and held The sharpest-sighted Spirit of all in Heaven._

  Proud Spirits, such as _Satan's_ and _Lovelace's_, require Objects oftheir Envy, as Food for their Malice, to compleat their Triumph andapplaud their own Wickedness. From this Incident of the Rosebud, and thesubsequent Behaviour of _Lovelace_, arises a Moral which can never betoo often inculcated; namely, that Pride has the Art of putting on theMask of Virtue in