First published in 1749, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling is considered one of the best and most influential early novels in English literature. Henry Fielding was a respected dramatist, essayist, and satirist, and as a public official, he helped to establish London’s first professional police force.

A comic novel that blends romance, realism, picaresque, and social commentary—while passing itself off as a true history of a life as well as a reflection of human nature—The History of Tom Jones has amused readers for centuries with its account of an orphan (or foundling) who, after he is cast out by the generous man who raised him, travels throughout the South of England having several adventures in love, friendship, and folly while meeting an array of vivid and memorably flawed characters. Eventually, after he is plotted against and thrown in prison, he learns his parentage and is reconciled with his family and his virtuous beloved, the Squire’s daughter Sophia Western.

While some critics thought the comedic elements to be frivolous and the overall story lacking in moral tone, most contemporaries praised the novel for its lively pacing, vivid characters, complex structure, and biting satire, and the widespread popularity of the book guaranteed its place in the English literary canon. In addition to later novels, The History of Tom Jones has also been adapted into opera, TV shows, and films.

Of the four printings in Fielding’s lifetime, the fourth and last is generally considered authoritative and serves as the basis of the Norton Critical Edition, upon which this guide relies. The 1973 Norton edition retains the 18th-century custom of capitalizing proper nouns, a style which, for the sake of accuracy, will be reflected in quotations, along with the original British spelling.

Content Warning: The novel contains references to rape and incest, which this guide discusses.

Plot Summary

Mr. Allworthy is a wealthy and well-respected gentleman who lives with his unmarried sister, Miss Bridget Allworthy, on his estate in Somersetshire. Upon returning from a trip to London, Allworthy finds an infant in his bed. He asks his sister to care for the boy and names him Tom. Tom’s mother is identified as Jenny Jones, a young unmarried servant girl, and his father is presumed to be Partridge, who ran the school that Jenny attended. Jenny is sent away in disgrace, and Allworthy’s sister, Miss Bridget, helps to raise the boy. Miss Bridget marries an army captain and has a child, Blifil. After the captain dies, Tom and Blifil grow up together. Their tutors praise young Blifil for being a steady, virtuous boy, while Tom is a wild young rascal.

When Black George, Allworthy’s gamekeeper, is dismissed, Tom asks Sophia, (the daughter of his neighbor, Squire Western), to intervene on Black George’s behalf. Sophia is young and beautiful, but Tom is interested in Molly Seagrim, the gamekeeper’s daughter. Molly is pregnant, but she and Tom part ways when he learns that Molly has other lovers and the child is likely not Tom’s. Not long afterward, Tom saves Sophia from falling off her horse, breaking his arm in the process. He then recuperates at the Western home and grows more attached to Sophia, who likewise falls in love with him.

When Mr. Allworthy falls ill, Tom rushes to his bedside. Meanwhile, Blifil learns that his mother has died and that he will inherit most of Allworthy’s estate, aside from one property that will go to Tom. When Allworthy recovers, Tom is so overjoyed that he gets drunk at dinner and sneaks away with Molly. Blifil and their tutor, Thwackum, try to expose Molly’s indiscretion, and Tom fights both men. Sophia, coming upon the scene with her father and aunt, faints at the sight of blood, and Tom revives her.

Sophia’s Aunt Western believes that Sophia is attached to Blifil and suggests a marriage between the two. Because Sophia will inherit her father’s property, Blifil agrees to the match. When the Squire and Aunt Western learn that Sophia cares for Tom Jones, they are horrified, for they will never allow Sophia to marry a “bastard” (a now-outdated term for a child born out of wedlock). Despite Sophia’s objections, they insist that she marry Blifil, and she resolves to run away.

After Blifil tells Allworthy stories about Tom’s wild behavior, Allworthy sends Tom away, giving him money to support himself. Tom falls in with soldiers in the King’s army; they are marching north to put down the Jacobite rebellion. This historical reference sets the story’s events in 1745. Tom quarrels with an ensign and is injured in the resulting fight. He runs away, and the barber who treats him turns out to be Partridge, who reveals that he is not really Tom’s father. Partridge joins Tom on his travels, during which they meet a hermit called the Man of the Hill who entertains them with his eventful life story.

Tom rescues a woman who is being robbed and attacked by Ensign Northerton. He escorts the woman, Mrs. Waters, to a nearby inn. An angry man named Fitzpatrick arrives, searching for his wife, Harriet Fitzpatrick, and storms into Mrs. Waters’s room, where Mrs. Waters is in bed with Tom. Coincidentally, Sophia and her lady’s maid also visit the inn, and Sophia is mortified to learn that Tom was in bed with another woman. She leaves her muff on his bed and departs, joining Mrs. Fitzpatrick, who is running away from her husband. When Tom finds the muff, he sets out in pursuit of Sophia, and so does her father, Squire Western. Meanwhile, Mrs. Waters leaves the inn in the company of Mr. Fitzpatrick.

The Squire eventually loses Sophia’s trail and gives up pursuit of his daughter. Tom, who finds the pocketbook that Sophia dropped in her travels, follows her to London, where she is staying with a wealthy widow named Lady Bellaston. Lady Bellaston takes Tom as her lover, providing him with clothing and money, and plots to keep him and Sophia apart.

Tom wins over his landlady, Mrs. Miller, after helping her cousin out of financial distress. Then, he encourages Nightengale, a gentleman boarding at the house, to marry the landlady’s daughter, whom Nightengale has gotten pregnant. Tom has less success in his efforts to woo Sophia, for she refuses to marry without her father’s consent and is jealous of Tom’s affairs. Meanwhile, Lady Bellaston, wishing to remove her rival (Sophia), suggests to an interested young lord named Fellamar that he should rape Sophia so that she will be forced to marry him to maintain any vestige of respectability. Squire Western intervenes and rescues Sophia. Tom ends his affair with Lady Bellaston, hoping that he might eventually win Sophia back.

Because Sophia refuses to marry either Fellamar or Blifil, the Squire and Aunt Western lock her in her room. Lady Bellaston plots with Fellamar to have Tom kidnapped and impressed onto a naval ship, but before their plans can succeed, Tom is attacked by Fitzpatrick, who believes that Tom has slept with his wife. Tom wounds Fitzpatrick and is taken to jail, and it appears that Fitzpatrick may die of his wounds; if he does, then Tom will be guilty of murder as well. When Blifil and Mr. Allworthy come to stay with Mrs. Miller, Blifil hires a lawyer to investigate the claims against Tom. Mrs. Waters visits Tom in jail, and Partridge, identifying Mrs. Waters as Jenny Jones, announces that Tom has slept with his own mother. Tom repents of his life of folly and vice and swears that he will hereafter pursue a path of virtue.

In an attempt to get to the bottom of these accusations, Mr. Allworthy interrogates Mrs. Waters, the former Jenny Jones, who reveals that Tom is actually Miss Bridget’s son. Just before her death, Bridget confessed the truth of Tom’s parentage in a letter that Blifil intercepted. Allworthy further learns that Black George stole the 500 pounds that Allworthy gave Tom for his support, and he also discovers that Blifil’s lawyer has been influencing witnesses to exaggerate the gravity of Tom’s crimes.

Fitzpatrick does not die of his wounds, and Fellamar helps to free Tom from jail. Tom reconciles with Allworthy, who embraces him as a nephew and suggests that Tom marry Sophia. Meanwhile, Blifil departs in disgrace. Tom begs Sophia’s forgiveness and vows his loyalty, and at her father’s urging, she consents to wed Tom at once. They take up residence at the Squire’s estate, where they raise a family, enjoying prosperity along with the admiration of their neighbors and many friends.