Pamela

Now I am going to discuss an extract from "Pamela" written by Samuel Richardson in 1740-1741. Richardson borrowed the title name from Sidney's pastoral "Arcadia".

When the novel appeared it was an immediate success all over Europe, perhaps because it reminded readers of the Cinderella folk tale and the heroine is so pure, so unhappy and finally so lucky.

The novel is also known with a subtitle: Virtue Rewarded. Pamela is an epistolary novel. An epistolary novel is organized by letters. The writer of the letters is Pamela and her parents are the receiver.

Pamela is a 15-year-old girl. She works as a made in an aristocracy family for the mistress of the family. When the mistress dies her son tries to seduces her. She is the model of virtue that a girl has to have.  

Letter XXI:

The letter is made up by different sequences.

The function of the first sequence, for the reader, is to make the reader understand the situation of Pamela's fear in front of her Master's attention and she is preparing to go back home.  

Right from the start the language used by Pamela like "feared" and "dread" make clear to the reader her fear for her master. In the extract is an important character: Mrs Jervis who is another servant. Both ladies are friend and have a close relationship. The remarked theme of all the story is Pamela who feels afraid to lose her virtue.

In the second paragraph Mrs Jervis gives you and Pamela an important information, she lets the reader know that Pamela's master is very interested in her but he does not want she knows that, thanks to the phrase: "I must not tell you...".

In the third paragraph Pamela describes her biggest fear: she is afraid by the possibility of losing her virtue.

In the fourth paragraph  Pamela's opinion about her witty is expressed: she thinks that if any lady in the land is wit as she, they must be poor ladies, because she is not able to manage her life. The last sentence "But let that pass" seems as if she were trying to send away her thoughts.

 In the fifth paragraph Pamela expresses her thoughts, she thinks she vexes him because "he can't make a fool of such a one as I".

In the last part of the letter Pamela seems to add a list of reasons that obstruct her departure, but the intelligent reader may understand that all the reasons seems to be only excuses not to leave.

Pamela's fears continue to come to surface: she does not want to stay in the house and Mr. B, her master, says she shall go away but the governess informs Pamela that he added he "wished that he knew a lady of birth, just such another as yourself, in person and mind, and he would marry her tomorrow".

The reaction of Pamela betrays her real feelings, as a matter of fact she is interested by the word "marry" but immediately after she criticizes his behaviour and also the possible one of the lady of birth.

The dialogue between Pamela and Mrs Jervis seems to become a discussion; Pamela underlines once again that she knows which is the real aim of the master and her great fear. She adds she will feel safe only when she will be at home with her parents.

All the letter is made up by exchanges of dialogue that speed down the reading but the free direct speech lets the reader feel as if he were present on the scene, as if he were observing the situation from the inner.