Based on Henry Fielding’s “The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling,” the 2023 periodical romance drama Tom Jones portrays the charming and impulsive foundling Tom Jones, whose string of bad choices inexorably caused him to grow distant from Sophia Western, whom he genuinely loved. Despite knowing that Tom is a womanizer who sleeps with every other woman he meets, Sophia waits for him to return to her. This is a narrative that perpetuates the cliche of two lovebird characters being meant for each other despite their terrible decision-making and difficult conduct. Tom Jones, a PBS production, did not bring any novelty to the narrative, instead just decorating it with a romantic Disney atmosphere and depicting the socioeconomic disparities of 18th-century England.
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens In ‘Tom Jones’ Season 1?
The narrative of the story opens with Sophia describing Squire Allworthy, the richest man in the community, who one day found a baby in his bedroom. The squire learned that the baby’s name was Tom Jones and that his mother, Jenny Jones, was unaware of his paternity. She placed her son in Allworthy’s care because she wanted him to grow up prosperous. Allworthy, who shared a home with his sister Bridget, was committed to keeping the boy and raising him as his own. Sophia Western, the granddaughter of Squire Western, who lived next door, and her aunt had just returned from Jamaica. Sophia was a lady of color since her mother was a slave who’d passed away while giving birth, which was a very common fate for slaves in England in the 18th century. Sophia’s father had also passed away, so Squire Western was left to take over responsibility for Sophia, which he gladly accepted. Even though The Westerns treated their granddaughter like a princess, they had very rigid ideas about class disparities.
Tom grew up to be a neighborhood playboy who stole a lot of women’s hearts as well as their virginities. He was fond of a hunter by the name of Black George Seagrim, whose daughter, Molly, was in love with Tom. However, when Molly became pregnant, Tom was unable to marry her because Allworthy forbade it. When Tom realized there was no certainty that Molly’s unborn child was indeed Tom’s, he felt relieved. Sophia, meanwhile, had moved back home to live with her grandfather, but right after her arrival, she felt attracted to Tom. Sophia couldn’t help but fall in love with Tom Jones, despite the fact that he was viewed as a “bastard” by the majority of the neighborhood. Aunt Western, however, attempted to separate Sophia from Tom as soon as she returned. She persuaded Western to arrange Sophia’s marriage to William Blifil, Squire Allworthy’s legitimate nephew. Love marriage was a fairy tale at the time, and women were obliged to accept the spouse chosen for them by their parents. But Sophia voiced her disapproval, saying that she didn’t want to marry Blifil and that she wouldn’t be able to love and raise his children. She begged her grandfather to let her marry Tom Jones, but Western wouldn’t allow that at any cost as he was a low-born foundling of Allworthy. Although Tom gave up on Sophia, Sophia wanted to see it through. She left her home in an effort to find her beloved, but over time she only learned about Tom Jones’s numerous liaisons with other women. Tom left Sophia behind and moved to London, but Sophia pursued him and eventually arrived there. On the way, Tom had drawn closer to a beautiful woman, Jenny Waters, who was also having affairs with Mr. Fitzpatrick. Sophia sought refuge at that inn with her attendant, Honor, but her heart sank when she learned Tom was there with a lady. She didn’t give up hope, believing Tom hadn’t meant to hurt her, which was true because Tom had no clue Sophia had come to find him. Partridge subsequently told him about it.
How Did Lady Bellaston Take Revenge On Tom?
Tom looked all around London for Sophia and discovered that she had gone to her aunt Harriet’s home. Aunt Harriet, who was revealed to be the lawfully wedded wife of Fitzpatrick, was a devout and honorable woman who desired the best for her niece. But because her husband was an alcoholic pervert, she couldn’t just let Sophia reside in her house. Sophia decided to live with her other aunt, Lady Bellaston, who was an ice queen and an explorer beyond the wildest dreams of young men, but she wasn’t exactly a free-thinking lady as it seemed. She constantly judged Sophia based on her color and pushed her to conform to the white ladies, which Sophia found embarrassing. Bellaston sought to cut Sophia’s wings of freedom by arranging her marriage to Blifil. She also caught Tom’s attention, which might have been another revolting excuse for Sophia to remain apart from him, but that didn’t happen. Tom had repeatedly visited London in search of Sophia while she was there. But one day, at a party, Tom stumbled across Bellaston, who informed him that there was no hope of ever finding Sophia since she had given up on him and called him a monster. Tom was devastated by this, but he was a lover boy who, in a difficult situation, wanted to be close to other women and find solace in their embrace. Tom turned his focus to Bellaston, and the two of them drew closer. Tom didn’t understand Bellaston had lied to him until one day; he found Sophia inside her house. He attempted to cut off connections with Bellaston, which she perceived as an insult. Despite her and Tom’s growing distance, she prevented Sophia from reuniting with him. She pushed Squire Western to set up Sophia and Blifil’s wedding as quickly as possible, but Sophia rebelliously stated that she didn’t want to get married to anybody. She begged her grandpa to set her free, but he agreed on the condition that Sophia wouldn’t be able to marry whomever she liked until her grandfather gave the order.
Elsewhere, Tom was compelled by an acquaintance to pretend to want to marry Bellaston in a letter in order to get her attention since he needed to speak to her in order to find Sophia. Tom sent his letter to Bellaston with much reluctance. Tom had different plans, which Lady Bellaston quickly knew, so she went up to him. She became even more incensed when Tom apologized for the letter and revealed that he had been compelled to write it. Tom anticipated that Bellaston would hurt him by destroying Sophia’s feelings for him. And indeed, that is what took place. She invited everyone, including Sophia and Tom, to her gallery show solely to embarrass Tom in public. She told Sophia everything that had happened between her and Tom, handing her the letter that Tom had lately sent. Sophia was upset and angry with Tom, so she refused to speak with him and left the gallery. Meanwhile, seeing Harriet chatting with Tom regarding Sophia, Fitzpatrick gets angry and gets into a brawl with Tom. However, during the brawl, Tom accidentally stabs Fitzpatrick, inflicting him serious harm. As a consequence, Tom ends up behind bars.
‘Tom Jones’ Ending Explained: How Did Tom And Sophia Reunite?
While Tom was incarcerated, Jenny Waters came to visit him. She wanted to help Tom out since she saw how poor he was. Partridge addressed her as Jenny Jones as she exited the facility, implying that Jenny Waters, who had once slept with Tom, was, in fact, his mother. Patridge told Tom about that, which caused Tom to lose his mind. Since he had been in bed with his own mother, he started to hate himself. But Jenny Waters subsequently disclosed that there was a twist. She went directly to Allworthy to reveal the terrible secret that she had kept hidden from everyone. This revelation could only help Tom get out of prison. She informed Allworthy that, although she had been instructed to place the infant in Allworthy’s room, she was not Tom’s mother.
Tom’s biological mother was none other than his aunt Bridget, which meant that William Blifil, who saw Tom as his archenemy, was actually his brother. Blifil couldn’t bear the news since he had always had his sights set on Sophia, and his family had supported his decision, but now that Sophia’s true love, Tom, turned out to be one of his family, Sophia would soon marry him. That’s exactly what happened. Bridget embraced Tom as her firstborn, who may be her illegitimate kid; consequently, Tom Jones quickly rose from a low-born bastard to an affluent and upper-class man, which was enough for Sophia’s family to allow him to marry her. Sophia, however, had had enough. She had seen Tom have little control over his desires, so she wanted to look into his behavior for a year before they were married. This should have been a brilliant move on the part of a lady of that era, but it didn’t exactly happen. Squire Western, who was in charge of Sophia’s fate, gave Sophia the order to marry Tom as soon as possible, and Sophia ultimately complied. The love story had a happy ending, more like a happily ever after, but we’re not sure if Tom would finally become a dedicated husband to his legal wife Sophia or someone like Fitzpatrick, who would maintain several adulterous romances alongside Sophia.
Final Words
In my highly personal viewpoint, Tom Jones just isn’t a show I can bring myself to genuinely like. There are many things to admire about this film, including the charming, dreamlike aesthetics of the 18th century, the witty, sarcastic dialogues that always seem to have a deeper meaning, and the chemistry between Bellaston and Tom. Yes, I was forced to admit that Tom and Bellaston had more chemistry than he had with Sophia. Sophia nearly had the impression of being Tom’s friend rather than his girlfriend, which was uninteresting at all. The actors that played Sophia and Jones gave really mediocre performances that made it difficult for us to empathize with them, and the ending surprise didn’t work as usual. Although Tom Jones on PBS isn’t the sort of show that everyone would adore, if it helps you pass the time, it’s absolutely OK to choose such easygoing, mundane love stories presented in the most stereotypical way.
