Fleetwood (novel)
Encyclopedia
William Godwin
's third novel, Fleetwood (1805) is like his first two, an eponymous tale (the title of the novel is the same as the name of the hero).
More than either Caleb Williams or St. Leon
, however, Fleetwood is intended as a criticism of Jean-Jacques Rousseau
and his ideas about the virtue of natural man. Like Emile
, the protagonist of Rousseau's treatise on education, Fleetwood is raised in the supposedly ideal world of nature. However, what is ideal for Rousseau turns out to be problematic in Fleetwood.
The novel, in a bildungsroman
style, follows the problematic consequences of the hero's natural education.
William Godwin
William Godwin was an English journalist, political philosopher and novelist. He is considered one of the first exponents of utilitarianism, and the first modern proponent of anarchism...
's third novel, Fleetwood (1805) is like his first two, an eponymous tale (the title of the novel is the same as the name of the hero).
More than either Caleb Williams or St. Leon
St. Leon (novel)
St. Leon: A Tale of the Sixteenth Century is eighteenth-century British philosopher William Godwin's second novel.The novel takes place during the Protestant Reformation and tells the tale of a penurious noble who finds the philosopher's stone and an elixir of immortality. Unbounded wealth and...
, however, Fleetwood is intended as a criticism of Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
and his ideas about the virtue of natural man. Like Emile
Emile: Or, On Education
Émile, or On Education is a treatise on the nature of education and on the nature of man written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who considered it to be the “best and most important of all my writings”. Due to a section of the book entitled “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” Émile was be...
, the protagonist of Rousseau's treatise on education, Fleetwood is raised in the supposedly ideal world of nature. However, what is ideal for Rousseau turns out to be problematic in Fleetwood.
The novel, in a bildungsroman
Bildungsroman
In literary criticism, bildungsroman or coming-of-age story is a literary genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood , and in which character change is thus extremely important...
style, follows the problematic consequences of the hero's natural education.