The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom

by Tobias Smollett Narrated by Finian Silverwood

Overview

The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom follows the sinister rise and scheming exploits of its villainous protagonist, a cold-hearted and manipulative rogue determined to climb the social ladder by any means necessary. Unlike Smollett's more sympathetic rogues, Ferdinand is driven not by wit or survival but by calculated malice, deceit, and ambition. Posing as a nobleman, he insinuates himself into aristocratic circles across Europe, preying on the gullible and exploiting their trust for personal gain. Though his schemes often backfire in darkly comic fashion, the novel offers a chilling exploration of human greed and moral corruption. Written with Smollett's signature irony and satirical edge, Count Fathom stands apart in his canon for its focus on vice rather than virtue.

Editorial Reviews

Studies in Scottish Literature

One of the major benefits of Beasley’s excellent edition of Fathom will be to make Smollett’s most experimental novel better known to eighteenth-century scholars, but also, thanks to its wealth of annotations, to convey to a wider public an intuitive sense of what is felt like to be living in mid-eighteenth century Britain.

Eighteenth-Century Scotland

The appearance of Ferdinand Count Fathom is a cause for great celebration. . . . [Beasley’s] detailed and stylish introduction places this neglected novel (so clearly the ancestor of Thackeray’s Barry Lyndon) in the various contexts of Smollett’s career, the eighteenth-century literary scene, and the tradition of the novel. His textual notes are comprehensive, reliable, and exact. . . . It is impossible to imagine anything superseding it for many years to come.

Choice

The appearance of the first volume of a major scholarly edition of the works of Tobias Smollett is an important event. . . . If the other editors of separate volumes in the series but match Beasley's work with Fathom, the whole project has been well worth the long wait. He has done a superb job. The introduction defines the place of this novel in Smollett's whole career. Also Beasley develops arguments that Fathom was a notable experiment in fiction, 'a serious and unblushing representation of remorseless (at least until the end) villainy,' and that the work represents an attempt to discover a way of presenting the relation between fiction and real life. Beasley's notes, more comprehensive than any ever offered before, are especially illuminating as identifications of literary allusions and historical references. No major research library can afford to pass over this volume. Indeed, all major libraries will want to subscribe to the entire edition. Most highly recommended.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940195632793
Publisher:	Interactive Media
Publication date:	06/26/2025
Edition description:	Unabridged

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