ABSTRACT
In Jonathan Wild, Fielding thoroughly capitalizes on the comic possibilities of domestic strife. One way in which Fielding achieved this was by laying emphasis on the conflictive nature of Wild's romantic interactions and his general incompetence as a lover and husband. Of all of Wild's failings, however, the most humiliating are those related to his love conquests. While on the stage, the inappropriate fainting would be a comical moment, in Jonathan Wild, the Heartfree storyline is so solemn that it is uncertain whether the passage invites compassion or laughter. Throughout, there is a reluctance to make the story of the Heartfrees genuinely and openly funny. In Jonathan Wild, it is the thug's "wonderful Effort of Greatness", that is, to destroy the Heartfrees, which sets up a chain reaction that eventually results in his demise. In Fielding's version of the Wild story, the criminal's worst deed, deserving of the ultimate retribution, is his malicious attempt at ruining a virtuous family.
