The Vicar of Wakefield

Oliver Goldsmith, 1766

Irish writers

A clergyman recounts his family's hopes and misfortunes with a mixture of pride and good intentions.

Read the book Contents

Length: 32 chapters
Reading time: About 4 hr 23 min
Words: 62,658

About the book

The vicar introduces himself through his marriage, his household and his confidence in the value of family life. His account soon brings spiritual principles into contact with financial arrangements and the uncertainties of worldly judgement.

Goldsmith lets the narrator's self-portrait carry both warmth and comedy. Readers can appreciate his good intentions while noticing the satisfaction he takes in describing them. The family's experiences give practical form to questions about virtue, social ambition and the difficulty of remaining wise when affection and pride are closely involved.

On these lists

Irish writers

This edition

Text from Standard Ebooks, who proofread and typeset it and dedicate their edition to the public domain. Oliver Goldsmith died more than 70 years ago, so the work is out of copyright in the UK. Includes the original advertisement.