Pamela
Buy Now
By using these links, you support READO. We receive an affiliate commission without any additional costs to you.
Description
Fifteen-year-old Pamela Andrews, alone and unprotected, is relentlessly pursued by her dead mistress’s son. Although she is attracted to young Mr B., she holds out against his demands and threats of abduction and rape, determined to defend her virginity and abide by her own moral standards. Psychologically acute in its investigations of sex, freedom and power, Richardson’s first novel caused a sensation when it was first published, with its depiction of a servant heroine who dares to assert herself. Richly comic and full of lively scenes and descriptions, Pamela contains a diverse cast of characters, ranging from the vulgar and malevolent Mrs Jewkes to the aggressive but awkward country squire who serves this unusual love story as both its villain and its hero.
This edition incorporates all the revisions made by Richardson in his lifetime. Margaret A. Doody’s introduction discusses the genre of epistolary novels, and examines characterization, the role of women and class differences in Pamela.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Book Information
Posts
Sehr alt aber modern!
Dieses Buch kommt aus dem Jahr 1740 und ist im deutschen Sprachraum kaum vertreten, weshalb ich dieses Buch auf Englisch gelesen habe. Das Buch handelt von einer 15 jährigen Dienerin. Als ihre Herrin gestorben ist, wird sie in die Hände des Herrn B. transferiert, der nun versucht die arme Pamela zu vergewaltigen. Nach einigen Versuchen wird sie verschleppt und in ihrem neuen zu Hause misshandelt. Ihre Tugendhaftigkeit und Standhaftigkeit bis zum Ende hin sollen Pamela jedoch letzten Endes belohnen. Dies wird von Pamela in der 1. Person beschrieben, was dem Buch also auch feministischen Charakter verleiht, da man sieht, wie die Protagonistin im ersten Teil unter der patriarchalen Gesellschaft leidet, in der die Männer, wenn sie reich sind, frei über Frauen verfügen können. Der Autor kritisiert mit diesem Buch die aristokratische Tugend und die geringe soziale Mobilität der damaligen Gesellschaft, was durch die Tugend der ärmeren Bevölkerungsschicht ausgeglichen werden könnte. Des Weiteren motiviert das Buch zu tugendhaften Verhalten egal, was eine Autorität einem aufzwingt. Somit hat das Buch also auch aufklärerischen Charakter, da Befehle von Autoritäten in Frage gestellt werden und Tugend auf die erste Stelle gestellt wird. Leider zieht sich das Buch an einigen Stellen, weshalb ich dem Buch keine 4 Sterne geben würde. Sonst, wenn man mal seinen Horizont erweitern will, ist dieses Buch herzlich zu empfehlen :)
I really enjoyed this, not just for the historical context (even though this was fascinating) but also for the story. Of course, the big twist is shocking and really questionable by today's standarts, but I believe this could have worked with a better, more elaborate and believable redemption ark. As it is, for the time it is written in, him kind of seeing the error in his ways and making a decision that wasn't acceptable for people of his class and therefore a sacrifice was enough. Apart from that, the first part of the book makes for a pretty terrifying domestic horror story, while everything after that is pretty nice and mostly sweet - for the time period. Of course, the more terrifying part was the most interesting one, but after that, the niceness of the second part felt totally needed. Pamela paints an interesting picture of 18th century. I really liked the writing, it felt more fluent and less over the top and complicated than what I've read from the time period, while still being somewhat poetic in its style. If you go in, knowing what to expect and being ok with reading that, you can actually have fun with this book. I still kept this spoiler free, in case someone really doesn't want to know in advance.
Description
Fifteen-year-old Pamela Andrews, alone and unprotected, is relentlessly pursued by her dead mistress’s son. Although she is attracted to young Mr B., she holds out against his demands and threats of abduction and rape, determined to defend her virginity and abide by her own moral standards. Psychologically acute in its investigations of sex, freedom and power, Richardson’s first novel caused a sensation when it was first published, with its depiction of a servant heroine who dares to assert herself. Richly comic and full of lively scenes and descriptions, Pamela contains a diverse cast of characters, ranging from the vulgar and malevolent Mrs Jewkes to the aggressive but awkward country squire who serves this unusual love story as both its villain and its hero.
This edition incorporates all the revisions made by Richardson in his lifetime. Margaret A. Doody’s introduction discusses the genre of epistolary novels, and examines characterization, the role of women and class differences in Pamela.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Book Information
Posts
Sehr alt aber modern!
Dieses Buch kommt aus dem Jahr 1740 und ist im deutschen Sprachraum kaum vertreten, weshalb ich dieses Buch auf Englisch gelesen habe. Das Buch handelt von einer 15 jährigen Dienerin. Als ihre Herrin gestorben ist, wird sie in die Hände des Herrn B. transferiert, der nun versucht die arme Pamela zu vergewaltigen. Nach einigen Versuchen wird sie verschleppt und in ihrem neuen zu Hause misshandelt. Ihre Tugendhaftigkeit und Standhaftigkeit bis zum Ende hin sollen Pamela jedoch letzten Endes belohnen. Dies wird von Pamela in der 1. Person beschrieben, was dem Buch also auch feministischen Charakter verleiht, da man sieht, wie die Protagonistin im ersten Teil unter der patriarchalen Gesellschaft leidet, in der die Männer, wenn sie reich sind, frei über Frauen verfügen können. Der Autor kritisiert mit diesem Buch die aristokratische Tugend und die geringe soziale Mobilität der damaligen Gesellschaft, was durch die Tugend der ärmeren Bevölkerungsschicht ausgeglichen werden könnte. Des Weiteren motiviert das Buch zu tugendhaften Verhalten egal, was eine Autorität einem aufzwingt. Somit hat das Buch also auch aufklärerischen Charakter, da Befehle von Autoritäten in Frage gestellt werden und Tugend auf die erste Stelle gestellt wird. Leider zieht sich das Buch an einigen Stellen, weshalb ich dem Buch keine 4 Sterne geben würde. Sonst, wenn man mal seinen Horizont erweitern will, ist dieses Buch herzlich zu empfehlen :)
I really enjoyed this, not just for the historical context (even though this was fascinating) but also for the story. Of course, the big twist is shocking and really questionable by today's standarts, but I believe this could have worked with a better, more elaborate and believable redemption ark. As it is, for the time it is written in, him kind of seeing the error in his ways and making a decision that wasn't acceptable for people of his class and therefore a sacrifice was enough. Apart from that, the first part of the book makes for a pretty terrifying domestic horror story, while everything after that is pretty nice and mostly sweet - for the time period. Of course, the more terrifying part was the most interesting one, but after that, the niceness of the second part felt totally needed. Pamela paints an interesting picture of 18th century. I really liked the writing, it felt more fluent and less over the top and complicated than what I've read from the time period, while still being somewhat poetic in its style. If you go in, knowing what to expect and being ok with reading that, you can actually have fun with this book. I still kept this spoiler free, in case someone really doesn't want to know in advance.