Tom, a foundling, is discovered one evening by the benevolent Squire Allworthy and his sister Bridget and brought up as a son in their household; when his sexual escapades and general misbehavior lead them to banish him, he sets out in search of both his fortune and his true identity. Amorous, high-spirited, and filled with what Fielding called the glorious lust of doing good, but with a tendency toward dissolution, Tom Jones is one of the first characters...

Abandoned as a baby, rescued and adopted by a country gentleman, Tom Jones grows up kind, handsome, free-spirited, and very popular with the ladies. But he cannot escape his lowly birth. When he falls in love with the bright, beautiful heiress Sophia Western, and she falls in love with him, their families unite against the match. They both end up in London, facing the wiles and whims of Sophia's aunt, the beguiling but dangerous Lady Bellaston, who...