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2.43 AVERAGE
2.43 AVERAGE
Couldn't get Fifty Shades of Grey out of my mind as I read this novel. I think Pamela is definitely the precursor to that novel given the dominant/submissive relationship structure of master and servant Richardson utilizes. I'm torn in how I feel about this novel because Mr. B attempts rape multiple times, but then Pamela forgives and marries him when he finally shapes up. Technically, she's being the good Christian in forgiving him, but the marriage and "romance" strike me as problematic. Maybe I'm not a good enough Catholic, but I don't think I'd ever marry a man who attempted to rape me.
Uuuuugh I wanted to love it because Jane Austen loved it but this book is INSUFFERABLE because both the hero and heroine are INSUFFERABLE (though not equally so - she's a righteous melodramatic weirdo and he's a predator) and I thought I was being so patient but then I had only made it through 32 of 96(!!!!!) letters. Life is too short, sorry Jane.
1.75 stars. Reading this felt like a fever dream I'll spend the rest of my life trying to forget.
genuinely a lot i found really interesting here. i felt for pamela. it’s inherently a fascinating situation to read about today: recognisable yet ultimately alien. i liked how writing was portrayed within the text, as such a source of power to keep, and such an act of love to give. i thought the stakes were compelling. i found the romance interesting, certainly, and thought you could really see the roots of more modern ambiguous romances in it, which use their problematic elements as a source of titillation or empowerment (i am thinking about the film secretary specifically, although i don’t think liking that means liking this), which is a lens which makes what pamela a little less grim. i genuinely found this notable and provoking.
unfortunately it also took me forever to read and was often a real drag and could have easily been a hundred pages shorter, with all its minutiae and repetition.
unfortunately it also took me forever to read and was often a real drag and could have easily been a hundred pages shorter, with all its minutiae and repetition.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I found this book both difficult to read (having been written in the 18th century) and mostly fairly boring. I found Pamela's obsession with preserving her "virtue" to be old-fashioned and extreme (she says more than once that she would rather die than lose her virginity before marriage ). In addition, I found the about-face from being scared of Mr B's advances to being in love with him and marrying him somewhat distasteful and strange. I suppose the book is of its time and there are some interesting parts but overall it wasn't really for me. I might have enjoyed an abridged version more.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Sexual harassment
Minor: Slavery
Moll bu kızı biraz örnek alsaydı şimdiye büyük abiyle 35. çocuğu yapmıştı. Malum 100 çocuk yapma kapasitesine sahip.
adventurous
dark
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Don’t really remember this book (had to read it for a college course), but I don’t think i had strong feelings either way about the writing (though it was the first epistolary novel I had read so I thought that was cool). Negative feelings for all the rape-y stuff, though i think it was ameliorated somewhat by the fact that it was written by an 18th century man, and the subtitle (something about “virtue rewarded”) clued me into what I was in for.
I really wanted to prove all of the naysayers wrong when I began this book (which I picked up at a used book sale due to Pamela being my mother's name). However, by the very fact that it took me months to read it, it can be determined that this was not a particularly enjoyable read. In fact, my finishing it seems almost as momentous as passing my PhD comprehensive exams last week.
It goes without saying that the ideas presented in this novel are out of date and seemingly ridiculous in this day and age; this, I think, is not a weakness, but lends to whatever level of charm it possesses. It is the writing style that is hard to digest at first. I think it will be difficult to go back to reading straightforward prose. The worst part of Pamela is that it is just too long-winded. It is about 350 pages too long, which I assume is why others choose to reach for the abridged version. After one gets past the writing style, the first 200 pages are fairly entertaining mainly due to their absurdity. (The fact of her being about 14 aside...) At times you just want to scream at her to sleep with him already! Her opinion towards the creepy, obnoxious, would-be rapist (I mean she is just asking for it since she's so pretty--eye roll!) Mr. B changes far too early in the book, leaving the last 300 pages as basically a venue for Samuel Richardson to vent his opinions on society, religion, and politics.
In conclusion, I'm glad I read it and I'm also REALLY glad its over.
It goes without saying that the ideas presented in this novel are out of date and seemingly ridiculous in this day and age; this, I think, is not a weakness, but lends to whatever level of charm it possesses. It is the writing style that is hard to digest at first. I think it will be difficult to go back to reading straightforward prose. The worst part of Pamela is that it is just too long-winded. It is about 350 pages too long, which I assume is why others choose to reach for the abridged version. After one gets past the writing style, the first 200 pages are fairly entertaining mainly due to their absurdity. (The fact of her being about 14 aside...) At times you just want to scream at her to sleep with him already! Her opinion towards the creepy, obnoxious, would-be rapist (I mean she is just asking for it since she's so pretty--eye roll!) Mr. B changes far too early in the book, leaving the last 300 pages as basically a venue for Samuel Richardson to vent his opinions on society, religion, and politics.
In conclusion, I'm glad I read it and I'm also REALLY glad its over.