Parson Adams Discovered in a Suspicious Situation with Mrs. Slipslop, from "The Adventures of Joseph Andrews, and his friend Mr. Abraham Adams"
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Sheet: 4 7/16 × 6 1/8 in. (11.2 × 15.6 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959
Accession Number
59.533.561(8)
Tags
Art Historical Context
This 1792 etching captures a humorous and risqué moment from Henry Fielding’s 1742 novel *The Adventures of Joseph Andrews*. The scene shows Parson Adams, the kindly but absent-minded clergyman, caught in an awkward bedroom encounter with the flirtatious Mrs. Slipslop. The title’s playful exaggeration highlights the novel’s gentle satire on social pretensions, clerical dignity, and misunderstandings that arise from innocent intentions. Created as an etching—a medium well suited to sharp lines and quick distribution— the print reflects the lively tradition of British satirical illustration in ...
About the Artist
Henry Fielding|Thomas Rowlandson|James Sibbald (British|British) · 1707 |1757 –1754 |1827
British, 1707–1754|British, London 1757–1827 London