To make Pamela's moral purity even clearer, Richardson causes tears to
appear in Mrs. Jervis's eyes as she hears Pamela's virtuous
protestations. Though the reader originally watches Pamela pull off her
stays and "stockens," these details are now omitted (Letter XXV). Mr.
B's clothing loses some of its extravagance, his dressing gown no longer
being silver (Letter XXV) and his waistcoat no longer trimmed in gold
(Letter XXVII). Moreover, Mr. B exercises a bit more restraint (or at
least Pamela's descriptions seem a bit less ambiguous): while in the
first edition he comes to Pamela's bed, in the later version he simply
approaches her "bed-side" (Letter XV). For the fourteenth edition,
Richardson omits the "obscene ... double Entendre" in which Mr. B wishes
he could have Pamela "as Quick another Way" (Letter XXVII). In an almost
passive fashion, Mr. B releases Pamela from his clutches, "loosing his
arms with an air," while in the original version he obviously keeps a
passionate hold on her (Saturday Morning [37th day of confinement]).
During Mr. B's last attempt at rape, Pamela no longer offers up her
prayers "all undrest" (though she does have her underclothes in her
hand), and Mr. B no longer approaches her bed breathing "all quick and
short." Once the attempted rape is over and Pamela awakens from her
faint, she (in the revised version) does not speculate concerning "the
Liberties taken with her in her deplorable State" (Tuesday Night [40th
day of confinement]). Finally, Pamela is now less brazen when led by Mr.
B into the alcove where he proclaims his love. She now prudently
considers that she can safely go there for two reasons: the alcove has
"a passage through it" and Mr. B had already led her there "once without
stopping" (Wednesday Morning [41st day of confinement]).[9]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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