The Adventures of Philip on his Way Through the World: Shewing Who Robbed Him, Who Helped Him, and Who Passed Him By

The Adventures of Philip

by William Makepeace Thackeray

The Adventures of Philip on his Way Through the World: Shewing Who Robbed Him, Who Helped Him, and Who Passed Him By (1861-62) is a novel by William Makepeace Thackeray. It was the last novel Thackeray completed, and harks back to several of his previous ones, involving as it does characters from A Shabby Genteel Story and being, like The Newcomes, narrated by the title character of his Pendennis. In recent years it has not found as much favour from either readers or critics as Thackeray's early novels.

Philip Firmin, son of Dr. Brand Firmin and of Lord Ringwood's wealthy niece, has been left a fortune at the death of his mother. He discovers that his father is being blackmailed by Tufton Hunt, a clergyman who once performed a sham marriage ceremony between Brandon and Caroline Gann (as related in A Shabby Genteel Story). Hunt now claims that the marriage was in fact valid, and urges Caroline to assert her rights and disinherit Philip by proving him illegitimate. Caroline, who is now working as a nurse and in this capacity has brought Philip through a serious illness, refuses to do this. Dr Firmin loses Philip's money and his own through unwise speculation and flees to America, and Philip's fiancée Agnes Twysden renounces him in favour of a wealthier rival. Philip now meets General Baynes, one of the trustees of his lost fortune, and falls in love with the General's daughter Charlotte. He marries her, in the teeth of her mother's opposition, and struggles to support her by becoming a journalist. His troubles are ended when the lost will of his great-uncle, Lord Ringwood, is discovered, and he is found to be the heir to the old man's riches.

Genres: Fiction, Novels, Classics, British Literature

797 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1862

About the author

William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist, satirist, and journalist, best known for his keen social commentary and his novel Vanity Fair (1847–1848). His works often explored themes of ambition, hypocrisy, and the moral failings of British society, making him one of the most significant literary figures of the Victorian era.
Born in Calcutta, British India, he was sent to England for his education after his father’s death. He attended Charterhouse School, where he developed a distaste for the rigid school system, and later enrolled at Trinity College, Cambridge. However, he left without earning a degree, instead traveling in Europe and pursuing artistic ambitions.
After losing much of his inheritance due to bad investments, Thackeray turned to writing for a living. He contributed satirical sketches, essays, and stories to periodicals such as Fraser’s Magazine and Punch, gradually building a reputation for his sharp wit and keen observational skills. His breakthrough came with Vanity Fair, a panoramic satire of English society that introduced the enduring character of Becky Sharp, a resourceful and amoral social climber.
Thackeray’s later novels, including Pendennis (1848–1850), The History of Henry Esmond (1852), and The Newcomes (1853–1855), continued to explore the lives of the English upper and middle classes, often focusing on the contrast between personal virtue and social ambition. His historical novel Henry Esmond was particularly praised for its detailed 18th-century setting and complex characterization.
In addition to his fiction, Thackeray was a noted public speaker and essayist, delivering lectures on the English humorists of the 18th century and on The Four Georges, a critical look at the British monarchy.
Despite his literary success, he lived with personal struggles, including the mental illness of his wife, Isabella, which deeply affected him. He remained devoted to his two daughters and was known for his kindness and generosity among his friends and colleagues.
His works remain widely read, appreciated for their incisive humor, rich characterizations, and unflinching critique of social pretensions.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one’s reputation as Thackeray at the end of his rope definitely is merited. Philip as a story is a lot like The History of Pendennis and especially The Newcomes in the way it’s told and who the hero is, but while Pendennis has all the nuance and introspection of an author stand-in, and The Newcomes has the fascinating Colonel, the marriage market stuff, and a more interesting friend-of-Pendennis for Pen to write about, Philip doesn't really do much of anything.

Without that material, Thackeray is forced to take a deep breath and adopt the “Ah well! Who would give up that time, though it were… and I hope none of us would fail to admit that...” summing-up tone much too often, and too frequently on the same topics. Probably every third page contains an “Ah yes but” followed by gentle remonstrations about overly cynical men and their sometimes-irrational wives.

Of course I still love Pendennis as narrator, even though—because so little happens to Philip otherwise—he and Laura might be in here too much. Folding in the unfinished A Shabby Genteel Story is also an inspired touch, and gives Philip’s narrative what little incident it possesses. The Pendennis books are not a perfect funnel—I think The Newcomes is better than Pendennis, although I have fonder memories of the latter—but if you have gotten all the way through them to Philip you might just like these characters and this writer enough to persist. No one else (especially the unwitting reader of Vanity Fair and little else looking to complete the similarly caustic A Shabby Genteel Story) need apply.

[Robert burke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thackeray uses Arthur Pendennis as the narrator in The Adventures of Philip, he also managed to have a cameo of Clive Newcomes. Thackeray doesn't just tell a story, he talks to the reader and makes one remember their own lost love, the feelings of being young, the joys and pain of life and of growing older.
So what is The Adventures of Philip on His Way Through the World about? Let's have William Thackeray tell you in his own words; 'He is not going to perish in the last chapter of these memoirs, to die of consumption with his love weeping by his bedside, or to blow out his brains out of despair, because she has been married to his rival or killed out of a gig, or otherwise done for in the last chapter but one. So my dear miss, if you want a pulmonary romance, the present won't suit you. So young gentleman, if you are for melancholy, despair, and sardonic satire, please to call at some other shop.'

[Nicola Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed everything about this book except the racist treatment of one of the characters. I usually overlook this in books of this period, as attitudes were, of course, different; but it particularly stood out in this book. Other than that, the story was entertaining and the characters interesting.

[Longhare Content · Rating 2 out of 5]

Love Thackeray, but this was not one of his better efforts.