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Book 3, Chapter 3
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Joseph Andrews, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Hypocrisy
Lust vs. Chastity
Social Class
Religion and Charity
Summary
Analysis
Wilson comes back with a bottle. He and Abraham Adams sit in silence for a while. Then Wilson goes to leave, but Adams stops him. He wonders about the gentleman’s lost son and if he went on to become a great man. Wilson says he’d recognize the son if he ever saw him again, since he has a mark shaped like a strawberry on his left breast.
This passage, particularly the reference to the strawberry mark, strongly hints that Wilson’s son will make an appearance at some point in the story, and that Wilson will confirm his identity by looking at his left breast (which, fittingly, is also where the heart is located).
Themes
Literary Devices
Quiz
Test Yourself
Morning comes, and Wilson invites Abraham Adams on a tour of his small garden. Joseph Andrews wakes up and joins them. Wilson takes pride in his garden, which he cares for himself, and he talks about how good his life is in general. All of a sudden, they hear a gunshot, and the eldest daughter’s favorite dog comes in limping to die. Adams, Joseph, and Fanny can’t do much to help their host, so eventually, they leave. Adams declares that Wilson lives like people used to live in golden ages.
Adams declaration that Wilson lives in a golden age is perhaps a little exaggerated, especially given how modest Wilson’s garden is and how their visit ended with a dog being shot. Nevertheless, Wilson’s happiness in his marriage and with his family seems to be genuine, and this is indeed rare among characters in the novel.
Themes
Quiz
Test Yourself
