<p>A foundling of mysterious parentage Tom Jones is brought up by the benevolent and wealthy Squire Allworthy as his own son. As a young man Tom falls in love with the beautiful and unattainable Sophia Western a neighbor’s daughter whose marriage has already been arranged. When Tom’s sexual misadventures around the countryside get him banished he sets out to make his fortune and find his true identity. Against the vivid background of eighteenth-century London Tom encounters passion corruption danger and intrigue before finally claiming his fortune legitimacy and true love. Fielding’s bawdy colorful high-spirited novel painted human vices and virtues with unprecedented honesty and good humor making <em>Tom Jones</em> as fresh and entertaining today as it was two hundred years ago.</p>