Henry Fielding's Classical Learning

Abstract

The standard accounts of Fielding's skill in Latin and Greek reveal the assumptions and methods that have dominated all studies of Fielding and the classics. Relying almost exclusively on our somewhat sketchy information about his education and on the sale catalog of his library, scholars have supposed that Fielding was fluent in both languages. This generalization is important because it supports another widespread belief about Fielding and ancient literature-that the Greek satirist Lucian had a greater impact on him than any other classical writer.3 Critics have cited Lucian's to buttress arguments about Fielding's genre, his use of quotation, and his narrative technique. In their research, however, scholars have virtually ignored another valuable source of information about Fielding's classical learning: the allusions and quotations in his journalism, translations, and novels. His references to ancient literature can provide new insights into his fluency in both languages and into the classical authors with whom he felt the greatest affinity. What does Fielding's use of ancient literature show about his skill in Latin and Greek? What classical authors figure most prominently in his writing? What does this knowledge suggest about the influence of the classics on Fielding? A review of this evidence demonstrates that Fielding read widely in both Latin and Greek literature, but that he was unable to read Greek without the help of Latin translations or other aids. Fielding's references to classical authors reveal a definite interest in ancient prose writers, but Latin poets, particularly Horace, figure far more prominently in the essays and journalism than scholars have generally assumed, while in the novels Homer and Virgil predominate.