Being an epistolatory novel, it is written mainly in the immediate past tense, but the characters occasionally use the present and future tense in their letters.
Characters of The Expedition of Humphry Clinker:
Mathew Bramble is a Welsh squire who openly claims to be a misanthrope, however, often proves to be a sympathetic charitable person. He continuously tries to improve the lives of people around him. Mathew is suffering from Gout, rheumatism, and hypochondria. A hypochondriac is a person who obsesses about their health and often diagnoses themselves with illnesses based on their observations. Mathew is unmarried and his former name was Mathew Lloyd. During the journey, he continues to write letters to Dr. Lewis, his physician. Tabitha Bramble is the younger sister of Mathew. She is a forthright, outspoken woman who is tired of being overlooked in favor of younger, prettier women. She is very attentive towards the business of Brambleton-hall as she feels that her estate’s success can help her win a desirable husband. She does so by writing letters to Mrs. Gwyllim, the housekeeper at Brambleton Hall while she is traveling. She is a foolish and cantankerous spinster who wishes to marry a high-class rich man. Jeremy Melford is Mathew and Tabitha's nephew, an intelligent young man. He is over-protective of his younger sister Lydia Melford. Jeremy writes letters to his friend Sir Watkin Phillips of Jesus College, Oxford while Lydia writes letters to her friend Miss Letitia Willis at Gloucester. John Thomas is a carriage driver and footman of the Barmble family.
Humphry Clinker is a poor stableman who joins the Bramble family on their journey. He impresses the Bramble family with his good nature and devotion to God. He is a naive but good-hearted man who values the importance of forgiveness. Winifred Jenkins is Tabitha’s maid. She is a young beautiful girl who appears to be more intelligent than Tabitha and Lydia. She falls in love with Humphry. Winifred too writes letters to other servants at Brambleton Hall. Lt. Obadiah Lismahago is a proud, selfish, argumentative man who is not very rich but pretends to be. His interactions with Mathew, Tabitha, and Humphry mellows him down and he improves in his nature. Mr. Dennison is a rich old man who has known Mathew for a long. Mr. Dennison has a son George Dennison who became estranged from his parents after refusing a marriage they had arranged for him. He is a kind, intelligent gentleman with a flair for poetry and acting. He temporarily discards his true name and takes up the last name of his friend Charles Wilson.
Summary of The Expedition of Humphry Clinker:
Mathew Bramble is a Welsh squire who is suffering from Gout that causes great pain and stiffness. His physician Dr. Lewis advises him to travel to Bristol which is known for its curative mineral waters. His family members, younger sister Tabitha, niece Lydia Melford, and her elder brother Jeremy Melford accompany him. Tabitha decides to take her maid Winifred along with them to help during the travel. Two days before their departure to Bristol, Jeremy catches some letters written by a young poor man Wilson which reveals that Lydia is in a love affair with him. Jeremy is against this relationship because Wilson is a poor man and he fears that Lydia won’t lead a happy life with him. He questions Wilson about the letters who refuses to explain his relationship with Lydia. Angried, Jeremy calls Wilson for a duel with the pistol. When Mathew Bramble comes to know about this escalating argument, he intervenes and both Jeremy and Wilson get arrested. Mathew and Tabitha try to explain to Lydia that Wilson is a poor actor with no apparent family name and fortune and thus he is an unfit suitor for someone of Lydia’s social status. Jeremy continues to fume and to calm him down, Lydia promises that she will not keep any contact with Wilson.
The family travels to Bristol and Wilson follows them in the guise of a peddler. He tries to meet Lydia to explain to her that Wilson is his temporary name and in reality, he belongs to a rich family. However, he fails to meet Lydia and encounters Winifred instead. He tells Winifred about his reality but Winifred forgets his real name. Despite spending some time in Bristol, Mathew feels no improvement and his health. Rather, he feels that the damp environment of Bristol is worsening his situation. Thus, the family decides to move to Bath which is a seaside city known for its sea-bathing resorts. Mathew hopes that the saltwater may cure him. In Bath, Mathew meets many of his old friends including James Quinn, the famous actor. However, his health doesn’t improve. He comes to know that the water in the city's bathhouses passes through an old graveyard. He further learns that the residual water from the bathhouses is transferred to city inns and cafes where it is served to customers. Mathew is appalled by these revelations and decides to leave the city immediately. They decide to head to London. On their way, they meet an accident near Marlborough when their career overturns. Tabitha gets outraged and admonishes the carriage driver. John Thomas gets offended and immediately leaves the job as he gets bitten by Tabitha’s dog Chowder. This forced Mathew to hire a new footman. He hires a local peasant and stableman named Humphry Clinker who becomes the carriage driver. Humphry is very poor he doesn’t even have a pair of pants. Matthew learns that Humphry was born out of wedlock and currently lives in abject poverty. He buys Humphry new clothes. Tabitha objects to such spending but Mathew decides to take Humphry with him throughout their travel to London.
Lydia and Jeremy are happy to live in the beautiful and busy city of London but Mathew finds little comfort. Mathew knows that Humphry has no formal education but he is surprised when he learns that Humphry gave sermons at the Methodist Church in London and got appointed there. This upsets Mathew because he supports the church of England. Soon after, Humphry gets arrested on suspicion of being a highway ruffian. The constable in charge of the case is certain that Humphry is innocent even though another man identified him as the robber. The accuser thought he would receive a reward for naming a potential suspect. Jeremy tries to help Humphry while a local man Edward Martin comes forward and argues for Humphry. Humphry is sent to jail for a day before his trial. Meanwhile, Mathew and Jeremy find out about the man who was robbed. The victim claims in the court that Humphry is not the man who robbed him. This episode alerts Mathew about the robberies on the roads and he decides to promote Humphry as the guard of the carreer. Since Mathew fails to find any cure in London, they decide to move to York. At Harrogate, some robbers attack the carriage of the Bramble family. Humphry faces the robbers with bravery and he also gets help from Edward Martin who was travelling in the same direction. After that, Martin asks Mathew to help him find an honest job and Mathew agrees to help him. At York, the Bramble family meets their distant relatives and Tabitha comes in contact with a wealthy man Mr. Micklewhimmen, and tries to woo him but learns that he is a charlatan who pretends to be suffering from physical infirmities to get special attention. She criticizes him and gets rid of him.
Mathew decides to move to Scarborough and hopes that bathing in the sea will help him but he fails to get any cure at Scarborough too. However, the other family members enjoy their time at Scarborough. Mathew decides to take a bath in the sea and removes his clothes before going into the water. But he finds that the sea water is unusually cold and this startles him. Meanwhile, Humphry who was observing him, feels that Mathew is struggling and drowning. He jumps in the water and drags Mathew out of the sea by picking up his ears. Mathew gets embarrassed as he finds himself naked in front of a score of onlookers.
The family soon leaves Scarborough and they decide to move to Stockton where they meet Edward Martin again. Edward reminds Mathew of his promise to help him find an honest job. Mathew convinces him to find work in the East Indies. They meet a retired soldier Lt. Obadiah Lismahago. Obadiah tells various stories of his bravery. He appears to be an argumentative and proudish person. Tabitha is fascinated by his stories. Lismahago travels with the Bramble family. Jeremy appoints a new valet Dutton. Both Dutton and Humphry struggle to attract Winifred’s attention. Dutton finds another woman and runs away with him and Winifred gets interested in Humphry. The Bramble family then moves to Scotland.
Tabitha is interested in Lt. Obadiah but she learns that he is not as wealthy as she would prefer. Nonetheless, she thinks that if she loses this chance, she may never get married. Meanwhile, Mathew feels that his health is improving and he determines that physical exercise has helped him get rid of his Gout. The family then decides to return to Brambleton Hall. Lt. Obadiah proposes to Tabitha and she agrees. Mathew too supports their marriage. Matthew Bramble nearly drowns when the family's carriage is overturned in a river. Humphry saves him and takes him to a nearby home which turns out to be the house of Charles Dennison. Charles Dennison is one old-time friend of Mathew. Mathew learns that Mr. Dennison’s only son ran away from home because he didn’t wish to marry the girl the family chose for him. Through Matthew's conversation with Dennison, Humphry learns that Matthew's original name was Matthew Lloyd. It comes out that Matthew is Humphry's father and that Humphry's real name is Matthew Lloyd Jr. Mathew accepts Huymphry as his son and Humphry too forgives Mathew for leaving him and his mother alone. During the same time, Mr. Dennison’s son returns to his home. Mathew and Lydia get startled when they see Wilson in front of them and then they learn that Wilson is his false name while his real name is George Dennison, the son of Mr. Charles Dennison. Everyone is happy after these revelations. Jeremy was happy for his sister who chose a wealthy handsome man as a life partner. Mathew and Mr. Dennison agree to the marriage of Lydia and George while Tabitha gets engaged to Lt. Obadiah. Humphry too proposes to Winifred and Mathew agrees to their marriage. Lydia and Wilson spend their honeymoon in Bath while the rest of the family returns to Brambleton-hall.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
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