Oliver Goldsmith: The Vicar of Wakefield (1766)

Abstract

Goldsmith’s The Vicar of Wakefield traces the fortunes of a rural clergyman and his family in a manner which alternates between the comic and the apparently serious. There is some disagreement as to how far Goldsmith intended his main character, Dr Primrose, to be a satirical figure, but, whilst not wishing to enter into that controversy, I am treating the novel as non-satirical insofar as it deals with issues such as politics and religion. Although certain incidents and actions are clearly supposed to be humorous, Goldsmith generally treats political and religious notions as important rather than amusing. The novel was taken at face value by Goldsmith’s contemporaries and was frequently praised for the high moral tone which reviewers appear to have discovered in the work. This in itself provides some justification for approaching it as a serious piece; the author’s intention (even if one accepts that Goldsmith was as sophisticated as Hopkins suggests) is merely one factor to be considered. In a sociological study of literature intention must always be balanced against the overall social context of the work, including the response of readers and critics, as this remains a more reliable indicator of the work’s social relevance.¹