Contents introduction Chapter I. Henry Fielding – a biography

Justice, Mercy and Judgment

Fielding constantly puts the concepts of justice and mercy side by side and separately argues that justice is a sterile concept. This warns the reader against the hypocrisy of heroes who do not have a sense of compassion, but at the same time admire and follow the rules of justice. This has direct implications for assessing the reliability of their evidence. For example, the reader learns early on that in "Blifil", Tom does not have compassion, but displays a "high quality of justice". Similarly, Twakum and Square speak of compassion but prefer justice. On the contrary, Tom behaves with dignity everywhere: compassion, not justice, is its driving force. In Book 13, Chapter 10, when Tom learns that the passenger he rescued is Mrs. Miller's cousin, Mr. Anderson, Fielding's explanation of Tom's attitude shows his hatred of justice, his cruelty:
Tom was so happy with the happiness he had achieved that he could not bear the thought of their terrible consequences, if he had listened to the voice of firm justice, and not to the voice of mercy. attacked him on the main road.
Tom's attitude reflects Fielding's personal approach to justice and compassion. According to his master's degree, Fielding "often went beyond what might be a strict interpretation of the law, a benign mitigation of justice, and an impact on the spontaneous reformation of the law." As a general rule, Fielding, like Anderson, was lenient with "as yet incorrigible criminals" or those who are coerced into petty crimes out of financial necessity. Anderson, after Tom did him a favor, " began to beg for mercy ... This is the first time I've tried to steal, and I regret it." Anderson's condition reflects the concerns expressed by Fielding in his pamphlet The Pirates: "Whether there could be anything more terrifying than just seeing a poor creature... compelled to dishonesty out of sheer desire...". Similarly, when Tom ellaston apologizes to Sophia for his relationship with Mrs. , he is "seeking mercy, not justice ... justice I know should judge me". Here justice judges Tom only on the basis of his actions . Evidence of cause or extenuating circumstances cannot be accepted, so lack of justice is a cruel concept.
At the beginning of book 11, Fielding expresses his distrust of lawyers and judges who do not have a sense of compassion in a single theatrical-legal metaphor: “The critic ... expresses a judgment ... concluded. judgment in the legal sense, in which it is often identified with sentencing." Fielding shows a connection between critics and lawyers who I despaired of climbing onto the bench at Westminster Hall… o' the Yin benches…applied their judgment and condemned, that is condemned. Ruthlessly ."
helps explain Allworthy's paradoxical nature . He constantly reminds the reader that Allworthy is "good" and "does justice with compassion" when he refuses to send Jenny to Bridewell because she is a single mother , but she presides over several lawsuits that result in serious injustice. The injustice arises from Allworthy exceeding his official legal authority and failing to follow procedures to ensure a fair "trial".
Tom Jones dominates most of the action. Fielding establishes the role of judge for the student, but primarily exposes the shortcomings of Squire Western and Squire Allworthy as umpires. Fielding uses the laws of the game as a metaphor to expose the West's judicial failure. "Good" Allworthy , nominally, is a metaphorical contradiction of the West, as well as a penchant for jumping to conclusions based on partial listening to evidence. Fielding expects more from the student if he or she is meditating.¹²
Judgment may be legal or ethical on the part of the student. Fielding encourages the student to be open-minded about issues of legal liability and moral guilt, to be prepared to argue for or against a particular proposal, and to reconsider when new evidence emerges. He starts by setting his main characters up for confrontation and not revealing their innermost thoughts. Lawyer Dowling is an exception to the character combination rule, but Fielding reveals his character's true nature by pointing to his place in the "lower levels" of the law. While the protagonists explain their own actions and those of others, their initial motives are left up to the reader. The appearance of Fielding's characters reflects how the lawyer presented them to the court. This allows the reader to develop and maintain the objective objectivity that the main characters lack. This is a key part of assessing the relative reliability of the protagonists witnesses. In addition, the appearance of the characters increases the relative importance of the conditional evidence.
Tom Jones moved from eyewitness testimony to believing that "the situation is not a lie." Fielding shows that cases are less likely to lie than witnesses. However, it reflects the trained skepticism of the lawyer, which encourages the reader to be careful when considering whether the facts really speak for themselves. For example, was Tom's love of sports or any other reason to convince him to stay at Squire Wester after his arm was broken?; Was it the bloodshed that caused Sophia to faint after seeing the aftermath of the battle between Tom, Blifil and Twakam, or the fear of the West, or some other reason ? Thus, Fielding emphasizes the importance of considering all available evidence in context.
Fielding reinforces the importance of context by constantly changing tense. Court cases also do not develop along a harmonious line. The testimonies of subsequent witnesses suggest a different view of past events. The "hindsight" arising from future events allows the reader considering the actions of Dowling's lawyer to conclude that he is just as evil as Blyfill . Evidence from the character's "future" prior to the trivial incident with Little Tommy helps the reader determine Blifil's moral guilt.
The story of Little Tommy serves as a symbolic introduction to the main events of Tom Jones . It included all the elements expected to be seen in a trial, including the prosecution, the defendant, several witnesses who gave their opinion on the events, the panel of judges and the verdict. So Fielding sets the template for the lawsuit, which is Tom Jones . Although Blyfil is the defendant here , Tom is "on trial" for the balance of this book. Tom is confronted with a series of "charges" that require the reader to make a series of judgments before coming to a final conclusion. These judgments include an assessment of Tom's credibility by "witnesses for the prosecution". Fielding carefully develops the defense case, exposing the inaccuracies of the judges and witnesses who denounced Tom. Fielding does not hide Tom's shortcomings, but his skill as a lawyer is shown in how he represents "evil", such as Tom's inability to see the hypocrisy of others as a quality. After all, Tom's only real "crime" is the sloppiness and social habits of the time, and the simple belief that a penny villain would sue an heir like Sophia. This last difficulty was overcome with Tom's final acquittal after Blifil's evil was exposed and Allworthy accepts Tom as his heir.¹³
Tom's relationship with Sophia, and Tom's love for Sophia, the acquisition of "roughness and prudence qualities needed even by the best people" form the basis of many of Tom Jones 's acts . Tom's travels and caution largely reflect Fielding's life and maturity as a husband, father, lawyer, and judge. Fielding spent the first 30 years of his life escaping the law, and his theatrical performances reflected contemporary widespread legal protests and many aspects of the law. Lawyer Dowling's character reflects a persistent, popular, negative perception of the "lower levels" of the law. But Fielding, a lawyer and writer, balances the negative with the positive. Although Allworthy is not always a "good judge" or a good judge of character, he tries to soften justice with compassion, as he did in Fielding Bow Street. Finally, by collecting Tom Jones as a court case, Fielding shows that the law can produce a fair result if all available evidence is considered in context. And this Fielding makes the student responsible as a judge.