Give a critical appreciation of the essay Mr. Will Wimble by Addison.

The essay Mr. Will Wimble is most popular essay of Addison.

Ans.

In this essay, Addison, whose chief aim was the reform of society, has ironically portrayed the life and character of Mr. Will Wimble, a gifted and talented young man. His whole life has been wasted because of the shame an i pride of his aristocratic family. According to the social conventions of those days, the title and the whole property was inherited by the eldest son and the young ones were completely deprived of everything. This had become the cause of ruin and destruction of a number of talented young men who could otherwise serve their society and country by their constructive works. But it was considered below the dignity of their family and so they were not allowed to do anything. The result was that, as Addison says, “So good an heart, and such busy hands,

It is believed that one Mr. Thomas, a younger son of Yorkshire baronet was the original of Will Wimble. Will is a very cultured man, a noble heart, and industrious but his industry is directed towards trifles because he is not allowed to do anything worthwhile. He belonged to an aristocratic Wimble family and, being younger, did not get anything in inheritance nor was he per mitted to do any work because it was below the dignity of his family. So he was compelled to work as a manager of his brother’s hunting “he generally lives with his elder brother as superintendent of his game.” He spends his time in idle and trivial works like ne fish rods, garters for ladies and nets for his friends. Though he remains quite busy but his mind has not been diverted to proper channels to profit himself, his country and the world at large. He is well suited for trade and commerce but he has not been allowed to take any. The writer asks, “What good to his country, or himself, might not a trader or merchant have done with such useful, though ordinary qualifications ?” He does only those things which are of no profit. In fact, these aristocratic families “had rather see their children starve like gentlemen, than thrive in a trade or profession that is beneath their quality.”

Will Wimble was good natured and all the country people loved him but his life was a tragic waste of precious and noble talents in the younger members of the aristocracy. He was very good friend of men like Sir Roger who loved and honoured him. He was a very good hunter and narrated his hunting adventures to the author who was always eager to meet such people and listened to him delightfully. Will was so intelligent that if he had been tried in trade and commerce, he would have done some useful services to himself and to his country, in fact Will Wimble is a representative character of all those younger sons who lead a miserable life. They are deprived of everything in their family and live like beggars, “This humour fills several parts of Europe with pride and beggary.”