In the following excerpt, McKeon examines the representation of truth and the foundation of knowledge in Fielding's fiction, especially Jonathan Wild and Joseph Andrews. McKeon's book is an early and important major revision of Ian Watt's history of the eighteenth-century novel, The Rise of the Novel; in this chapter and throughout the book, McKeon emphasizes both cultural and philosophical movements as essential context for analyzing the development of this generic form.

In the following essay, noted scholar and Fielding editor Sheridan Baker offers a thorough account of Fielding's approach to quixotic comedy in both his drama and his fiction. Calling the theater "Fielding's apprenticeship," Baker demonstrates that Fielding's early comic plays provided the groundwork for his didactic use of comedy in the novel.

In this chapter from her book Natural Masques: Gender and Identity in Fielding's Plays and Novels, Campbell argues that Joseph Andrews not only compels us to examine assumptions about gender roles but also demonstrates the potential of the novel as a new genre to offer new modes of characterization.

In the following essay, originally published in 1990 and reprinted in 1998, Thomspon examines the importance of money and other valued objects in the context of eighteenth-century economic history. Focusing primarily on Tom Jones, Thompson suggests that Fielding's work reflects the instability of money—specifically cash—as a mode of social relations, responding by valorizing land and estates as true and lasting forms of wealth.

In the following excerpt from his book Henry Fielding and the Language of Irony, Hatfield examines Fielding's moral vision in the context of early eighteenth-century concerns about the increasing discontinuity between words and the things they were intended to represent. Taking into account Fielding's occasional prose as well as his major novels, Hatfield focuses on Fielding's pessimism with respect to the potential for clear and coherent communication.

In the following chapter from her book Henry Fielding's Novels and the Classical Tradition, Mace details the specific classical influences on Fielding's major novels and his use of the epic tradition. Mace includes a special section on Fielding's Amelia as a revision of Virgil's Aeneid.

In the following essay, McKenzie examines Fielding's use of physiology in each of his major novels, arguing that Fielding's depictions of theatrical displays of passion offer keys to interpreting the actions of his characters.

In the following excerpt, originally published in 1964 and reprinted in 1970 and 1987, Price maintains that the low social status of Fielding's virtuous characters subverts both social and generic expectations.