Tobias George Smollett
(born 1721 - died October 1771) - Renton, Dumbartonshire
Tobias George Smollett was an 18th century novelist and playwright originally from Dumbartonshire, but made his name in London. At the age of 14 he was apprenticed to a Glasgow doctor, and later studied medicine at Glasgow University. As a ship's surgeon in the Carrangena expedition against the Spanish in the West Indies, Smollett lived in Jamaica until 1744.
His early plays, like his medical practice, did not succeed, but his first novel, Roderick Random (1748), was an immediate success. His books were often satirical, humourous and coarse. Although his books were well received, he was not a rich man, and relied on translations and editing for funds.
The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle (1751) was written as a satire on the Grand Tour, yet Smollett was an eager exponent of travel. One of his finest works was the travelogue Travels in France and Italy (1766).
He was quick with his temper, and made several enemies in London. In 1760 his was fined £100 and imprisoned for three months for libelling Admiral Knowles. In later years he was unwell, and lived abroad for his health. Smollett died in Livorno in Italy in 1771, the year in which his finest novel, The Expedition of Humphrey Clinker, was published.
Key Titles
- The Adventures Of Roderick Random
Roderick is combative, often violent, but capable of great affection and generosity. His father had been disinherited and has left Scotland leaving his son penniless. - The Expedition Of Humphry Clinker
Smollett registered the bawdy, brutal side of 18th-century life, but towards the end of his life, he grew mellower, and 'Humphrey Clinker' (1771) is a tale of high good humour. Squire Bramble's picturesque tour of the Britain of George III is full of eccentric characters and comic adventures. - Travels Through France And Italy
Full of prejudice, grousing, sharp observation, and caustic satire, this is the first travel book in modern literature to go beyond the simple conveyance of information to reflect the writers state of mind.
Bibliography
- Advice: a Satire (1746)
- Reproof: a Satire (1747)
- The Adventures of Roderick Random - (1748)
- The Regicide, or James I of Scotland (1749)
- The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle (1751)
- A Faithful Narrative of the Base and Inhuman Arts that were Lately Practised upon the Brain of Habbakkuk Wilding (1752)
- An Essay upon the External Use of Water (1752)
- The Adventures of Ferdinand, Count Fathom (1753)
- The Reprisal, or the Tars of Old England (1757)
- A Complete History of England from the Descent of Julius Caesar to the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, 3 vols. (1757-58)
- The Adventures of Sir Launcelot Greaves (1762)
- A Continuation of the Complete History (1766)
- Travels through France and Italy - (1766)
- The History and Adventures of an Atom (1769)
- The Expedition of Humphry Clinker (1771)
- Ode to Independence (1773)
Biographies
- Tobias Smollett by Jeremy Lewis (2004)
- Tobias Smollett
This is a biography of the great 18th century novelist, Tobias Smollett, by the author of 'Cyril Connolly: A Life'. It is filled with curious details from the worlds of publishing, medicine, politics and literary life.