Tristram Shandy (Cliffs Notes)

246 Pages·1968·0.77 MB·English

by  Laurence Sterne

title: Tristram Shandy : Notes ...
author:
publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (US)
isbn10 | asin:
print isbn13: 9780822013112
ebook isbn13: 9780822072140
language: English
Sterne, Laurence,--1713-1768.--Life and
subject
opinions of Tristram Shandy, gentleman.
publication date: 1968
lcc: PR3714.T73 \b .C5 1968eb
ddc: 823
Sterne, Laurence,--1713-1768.--Life and
subject:
opinions of Tristram Shandy, gentleman.
Page i
Page 1
Tristram Shandy
Notes
by
Charles Parish, Ph.D.
Department of English
Southern Illinois University
including
The Life of Sterne
Critical Introduction
List of Characters
Outline-Key to Tristram Shandy
A Note on the Text
Summaries and Commentaries
Review Questions and Essay Topics
Selected Bibliography
INCORPORATED
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA 68501
Page 2
Editor
Gary Carey, M.A.
University of Colorado
Consulting Editor
James L. Roberts, Ph.D.
Department of English
University of Nebraska
ISBN 0-8220-1311-8
© Copyright 1968
by
Cliffs Notes, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
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1999 Printing
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Cliffs Notes, Inc. Lincoln, Nebraska
Page 3
Contents
The Life of Sterne 5
Critical Introduction 7
List of Characters 11
Outline-Key to Tristram Shandy 13
A Note on the Text 21
Summaries and Commentaries
Book 1 22
Book 2 33
Book 3 41
Book 4 51
Book 5 61
Book 6 74
Book 7 87
Book 8 95
Book 9 105
Review Questions and Essay Topics 120
Selected Bibliography 123

Page 5
The Life of Sterne
Laurence Sterne was born in Ireland in 1713, and he died in London
in 1768. He might have died much earlier because of his weak lungs,
especially considering how much he laughed, but he managed to live
long enough to give his countrymen and the world two great books,
Tristram Shandy and A Sentimental Journey.
The influence of these two books went beyond the country and
century in which they were written. French, German, Italian, and
English sentimental journeys were a glut on the literary market, and
Tristram-Shandeism not only engendered hundreds of silly imitations
in Sterne's own time, but it also influenced great writers down to the
presentGoethe, Mann, Gide, Joyce, to mention a few.
Sterne was an unimportant person who suddenly became importantfor
many people, notoriousin 1759. His background was undistinguished.
The son of an army ensign, he grew up in army garrisons. There he
learned about soldiers, and without that knowledge and experience, he
could not have made Uncle Toby and Corporal Trim as convincing as
they are.
With the help of relatives, he went to Cambridge. After graduating
(1737), he entered the Church of England and, again with the help of
relatives, became vicar of Sutton (and subsequently, of Stillington) in
Yorkshire. It was a comfortable enough way to make a living, and it
did not require great effort or special piety. Several years later, he
married a woman with whom he never got along, Elizabeth Lumley,
and they had a child whom he adored, Lydia. It is quite unlikely that
he could have gotten along with any woman who didn't match him in
imagination, ingenuity, and capriciousness; as it was, Mrs. Sterne
went officially mad for a period of time and was probably unofficially
mad for most of her life. Sterne and his wife agreed not to disagree,
but his happiest moments were those when they lived apart.
During his time of country livingpre-Tristram Shandy dayshe
consoled himself with the pleasure available in York. It was not
London, but neither was it the backwoods. In addition, he had a
special group of friends, a men's club, called the "Demoniacks," chief
among whom
Page 6
was John Hall-Stevenson, the proprietor of a crazy castle named
"Crazy Castle." Most likely they gathered to get away from their
wives, to drink and carouse, and to pretend to be rakes; without doubt,
they read to each other bawdy passages from their favorite books. One
of the important consequences of this Symposium was the irreverent
attitude toward literature, the willingness to poke fun at "important"
authors and important people, that permeates Tristram Shandy.
Imagining an ideal, appreciative audience is important to an author;
whimsy that is directed toward a group of friends who understand and
laugh in response has a greater chance of success.
When the first two books of Tristram Shandy were published in 1759,
most readers were delighted. Some of them ceased to laugh, however,
when they discovered that the writer was a parson of the church. At
any rate, Sterne became a celebrity overnight, and many famous
peopleliterati and nobilityreceived him and applauded him; they called
him "Tristram" or "Parson Yorick," identifying him completely with
his book. Samuel Johnson thought him smutty and too peculiar in his
writing, but when Oliver Goldsmith suggested that Sterne was dull,
Johnson replied, "Why, no, Sir." Sterne reveled in his popularity and
prosperity, and he commuted between York and London, reaping the
fruits of fame.
The years between 1759 and 1768 were intensely busy ones for him.
He wrote his five installments of Tristram, several volumes of
Sermons of Mr. Yorick, and at the end of the period, A Sentimental
Journey. He struggled very hard to enjoy his life, having adequate
proofs that it was not to last for very long; he hoped to find in
relationships with women some recompense for the emptiness of his
marriage. No doubt he did, since whatever was ideal in those
relationships came in large part from his imagination.
Looking for a climate that would deal more gently with his damaged
lungs, he spent a good deal of time between 1762 and 1765 in France.
His wife and daughter were happy there, and he finally settled them
there permanently. His time in France furnished him with the material
for Bk. 7 of Tristram as well as for the charming and successful
Sentimental Journey.
This latter volume, a slim one, has won the hearts of readers and
critics consistently during its 200 years of existence (February, 1768).
The delicacy of the book pleases everyone, but there is still a lot of
Sternean muscle rippling robustly under the skin. The complexity of