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Book 1, Chapter 17
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Joseph Andrews, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Hypocrisy
Lust vs. Chastity
Social Class
Religion and Charity
Summary
Analysis
Betty is 21 years old, good-natured, and generous. She might have been a good nun, but she can’t stay chaste in her current position as a chambermaid at an inn, where many guests fall in love with her—and occasionally, she falls for them. Mr. Tow-wouse often squeezes and kisses her. Betty likes Joseph Andrews as soon as she meets him, and she likes him even better as he recovers. One day, she is overcome and embraces Joseph, but he still wants to protect his chastity, so he flings her away.
The way that Mr. Tow-wouse abuses his authority over Betty provides a mirror image of how Lady Booby wielded her power over Joseph Andrews. Like Joseph, Betty has been taken advantage of by many different people in her life, and her affection for Joseph seems to be based in part on the fact that he’s one of the few people who isn’t trying to take advantage of her.
Themes
Joseph Andrews’s rejection disappoints Betty. She contemplates revenge, but then she remembers that she still has to go make Mr. Tow-wouse’s bed. As usual, he begins to squeeze her, but this time, Mrs. Tow-wouse enters the room and surprises them. The narrator presumes that Betty is fired and Mr. Tow-wouse is scolded.
Despite the fact that the landlord Mr. Tow-wouse is the one who is in the wrong, Betty is the one who gets fired, demonstrating how it is often the servants that suffer the consequences of their masters’ behavior.
Themes
