The Expedition of Humphry Clinker: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Expedition of Humphry Clinker" is a novel by Tobias Smollett that unfolds through a series of letters written by various characters as they journey through England and Scotland. Central to the narrative is Matthew Bramble, a Welsh bachelor plagued by health issues, particularly gout and rheumatism. His correspondence reveals not only his ailments but also his observations on societal customs and the diverse locales they traverse. Tabitha Bramble, Matthew's sister, shares a more personal viewpoint, focusing on the relationships and daily annoyances of life, while her nephew Jerry Melford provides a youthful and scholarly perspective on their adventures.
Lydia Melford, Jerry's sister, is preoccupied with social dynamics and her correspondence with a young actor, highlighting themes of youth and romance. Winifred Jenkins, the family's maid, adds a humorous touch with her unconventional spelling and aspirations for a better life. The story also introduces Humphry Clinker, a young ostler who, after a twist of fate, is revealed to be Matthew Bramble's illegitimate son. Supporting characters, including George Dennison, a young actor pursuing Lydia, and Lieutenant Obadiah Lismahago, a soldier with entertaining stories, contribute to the rich tapestry of interactions and relationships throughout the expedition. The novel explores themes of family, identity, and social commentary within a humorous framework, making it a significant work in the tradition of epistolary literature.
The Expedition of Humphry Clinker: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Tobias Smollett
First published: 1771
Genre: Novel
Locale: England, Scotland, and Wales
Plot: Social satire
Time: Mid-eighteenth century
Matthew Bramble, a Welsh bachelor who, while traveling in England and Scotland, keeps track of his affairs at Brambleton Hall through correspondence with Dr. Richard Lewis, his physician and adviser. Bramble, an eccentric and a valetudinarian, writes at great length of his ailments—the most pronounced being gout and rheumatism—and gives detailed accounts of his various attacks. With the same fervor that he discusses personal matters—health and finances—he launches into tirades on laws, art, mores, funeral customs, and the social amenities of the various communities he and his party pass through on their travels. As various members of the entourage become attracted to one another and are married, and the group plans to return to Brambleton Hall, Bramble senses that his existence has been sedentary. In his newfound interest of hunting, he changes from an officious, cantankerous attitude toward the affairs of others. He writes Lewis that had he always had something to occupy his time (as he has in hunting), he would not have inflicted such long, tedious letters on his friend and adviser.
Tabitha Bramble, his sister. She is the female counterpart of her brother in telling her correspondents of the annoyances of everyday life. Hers is a more personal world than her brother's, people being of more importance than ideas and things. With little likelihood of a change in interests, Tabitha does return home a married woman.
Jerry Melford, the nephew of Matthew and Tabitha, whose letters to a classmate at Cambridge, where Jerry is regularly a student, give a more objective account of incidents of travel and family. With the articulateness of the scholar and the verve of youth, Jerry describes the lighter side of everyday happenings. In his final correspondence, he admits to his friend that in the midst of matrimonial goings-on he has almost succumbed to Cupid. However, fearing that the girl's qualities—frankness, good humor, handsomeness, and a genteel fortune—may not be permanent, he passes off his thought as idle reflections.
Lydia Melford, his sister. The recipient of her letters, Miss Letitia Willis, is the object of Jerry's “idle reflections.” Lydia, just out of boarding school, is concerned in her letters with the styles and movement of the young in various stops the party makes. Her primary concern, however, is with the presence or absence of young men. Lydia, it is learned, is carrying on a correspondence with a young actor, with Miss Willis acting as a go-between. A duel between the young man and Jerry is averted, but he continues to show up at various stages of the journey in various disguises. Lydia marries him after he has proved himself a young man of rank and wealth.
Winifred (Win) Jenkins, the maid, and the fifth of the letter writers whose correspondence makes up the story. Her correspondent is another servant at Brambleton Hall. Winifred's spelling exceeds all other known distortions of the English language. She sees people riding in “coxes,” visits a zoo where she sees “hillyfents,” looks forward to getting back “huom,” and closes her letters with “Yours with true infection.” Yet such ineptness does not hamper her personal achievements; able to make herself attractive, she is won by the natural son of Matthew Bramble. In the last letter in the book, Win makes her position clear to her former fellow servant, for she plans to return home as a member of the family rather than as a domestic. She reminds her correspondent that “Being, by God's blessing, removed to a higher spear, you'll excuse my being familiar with the lower servants of the family; but as I trust you'll behave respectful, and keep a proper distance, you may always depend upon the good will and purtection of Yours W. Loyd.”
Humphry Clinker, the country youth later revealed as Matthew Loyd, the illegitimate son of Matthew Bramble. Clinker, a poor, ragged ostler, is taken on the trip by Bramble after a clumsy coachman has been dismissed. Clinker proves to be the soul of good breeding, a devout lay preacher, and a hero in saving Bramble from drowning. Quite by accident, he hears Bramble addressed as Matthew Loyd, at which time Clinker produces a snuff box containing proof of his parentage. Bramble explains his having used the name Loyd as a young man for financial reasons and accepts Clinker as his son when “the sins of my youth rise up in judgment against me.” Clinker, under his legal name, marries Winifred Jenkins.
George Dennison, the young actor who successfully follows the party in pursuit of Lydia's hand. George has masqueraded as an actor, Wilson, to avoid an unwelcome marriage being forced on him by his parents. His status in rank and wealth are proved by his father's and Bramble's recognition of each other as former classmates at Oxford.
Lieutenant Obadiah Lismahago, a Scottish soldier who joins the party at Durham. Lismahago's shocking stories of the atrocities he suffered as a captive of the American Indians entertain the party and win the devotion of Miss Tabitha. Lismahago's manner of doing things is best illustrated by his wedding present to Tabitha: a fur cloak of American sables, valued at eighty guineas.
Mr. Dennison and Mrs. Dennison, country gentry and George Dennison's parents.