The Popularity of Sentimental Journey as an Illustrated Book
Because Sterne seems to have constructed the loose narrative around memorable scenes, nineteenth-century artists have visualised A Sentimental Journey as a series of vignettes featuring the narrator-protagonist, the Reverend Mr. Yorick, and the salient characters on his journey, in particular the Monk at Calais, the beautiful young lady, and his companion, the deserter La Fleur. Although neither of the dominating geniuses of illustration, Hablot Knight Browne and George Cruikshank, attempted to illustrate the novella, in the latter part of the eighteenth century it became one of the most frequently illustrated volumes of fiction, beginning in 1780 with such set pieces as the scenes between Yorick and Maria, and between Yorick and the Monk.
Favourite scenes (of pathos, eroticism, or social community) included Yorick and the grisette; the dead ass; the captive; and the grace. During the Regency, illustrated editions tended to highlight the erotic encounters and turn Yorick into a comically groping figure. The visual history of A Sentimental Journey (and other sentimental novels, such as The Man of Feeling) reminds us of the highly pictorial culture of sentimentalism, whose texts often draw attention to the inadequacy of language alone to convey the full emotional force of a scene. [Turner, p. 42]
London editions of the 1790s featured the copper-plate engravings of Thomas Stothard (1792) and M. Archer (1794), followed in 1795 by the polychrome aquatint illustrations, re-issued in 1797 as a separate portfolio of twelve full-page illustrations, by Richard Newton. The 1785 Wedgwood ceramic medallion of Poor Maria and her dog, Sylvio, was part of a late eighteenth century trend to commercialise images from the book. And even before the close of the eighteenth century Maria had inspired at least fifteen painters, in particular, Joseph Wright of Derby, who produced classical images of the sentimental heroine, Maria and her dog Sylvio (1777) and Maria (1781), both suggesting the common theme of Patience on a monument. Since the variety of scenes and the numerous chance encounters on Yorick's journey suggest the randomness of the lived life rather than the coherence of a plotted novel, the numerous illustrations in the Victorian editions help create a coherent reading of the story in two volumes, emphasizing the continuing character of the Reverend Mr. Yorick himself. of the one hundred wood engravings in the 1841 version published by Joseph Thomas, Finch Lane, Cornhill, for example, almost half (forty-eight) involve the protagonist. Moreover, at 169 pages the slender volume must have been one of the most highly illustrated of the period, with more than one illustration for every two pages. Although many of the woodcuts dropped into the letterpress are diminutive vignettes, most measure 5.5 cm in height by 8.1 cm wide, taking up about one-third of a page.
Related material:
Bibliography
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. By Mr. Yorick. London: T. Becket and P. A. De Hondt, 1768. 2 vols.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. By Mr. Yorick. London: J. Davies T. Smith, N. Taylor, and W. Thompson, 1784.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. By Mr. Yorick. Frontispiece. London: T. Osborne in St. Paul's Churchyard, 1784.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. By Mr. Yorick London: John Taylor, 1790.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by Thomas Stothard, engraved by Andrew Birrell. London: J. Good and E. & S. Harding, 1792.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by M. Archer, engraved by William Bromley. London: J. Creswick, 1794.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by Richard Newton. London: William Holland, 1795.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by Gérard René Le Villain. Paris: Ant. Aug. Renouard, 1802.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Works of Laurence Sterne In Four Volumes. Illustrated by Thomas Stothard. London: J. Johnson, 1803.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. With 16 illustrations by Austin. London: Vernor and Hood, 1804.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. 10 plates, artist unidentified. London: J. Cundee, 1803.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. The Works of Laurence Sterne in four volumes. Illustrated by Thomas Stothard. London: T. Becket; R. Baldwin; A. Strahan, 1808.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. 6 plates, artist unidentified. Philadelphia: Mathew Carey, 1810.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by William Marshall Craig, engraved by Scott. London: T. Hurst and C. Chapple, 1802.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Edinburgh: T. Maccleish, 1805.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. With two hand-coloured engraved plates by Thomas Rowlandson. London: Thomas Tegg, 1809.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated with one hundred engravings on wood, by Bastin and G. Nichols, from original designs by Jacque and Fussell. London: Joseph Thomas, 1841.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by Tony Johannot. London: Willoughby, 1857.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. With twelve full-page illustrations in photogravure, by the Goupil process, and numerous sketches throughout the text, from designs by Maurice Leloir. New York: J. W. Bouton, 1884.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. With 12 full-page illustrations in photogravure, by the Goupil process and 220 sketches from designs by Maurice Leloir. London: George Routledge, 1885.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by T. H. Robinson. London; Bliss Sands, 1897.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Illustrated by Everard Hopkins. with 12 tipped-in colour plates. London: Williams and Norgate, 1910.
Turner, Katherine. "Introduction" to Laurence Sterne's A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy. Peterborough, ON: Broadview, 2010. Pp. 11-46.
Last modified 12 October 2018