Containing a Better Reason Still for the Before Mentioned Opinions
- There is actually another reason that Mr. Thwackum and Mr. Square so clearly treat Master Blifil better than Tom.
- Both of them want to marry Bridget (you know, the now-widowed Mrs. Blifil).
- Since she must prefer her own son to Squire Allworthy's random ward, they try to suck up to her by putting down Tom.
- The two men absolutely hate each other, since both guess that the other wants to marry Bridget.
- Bridget refuses to accept either of their proposals (maybe because she is so fed up with marriage after Captain Blifil that she doesn't want to try it again.)
- But she becomes close enough to Mr. Square that people start to gossip about the two of them.
- She also starts to give out mixed signals about the whole Tom/Master Blifil comparison.
- Slowly, it becomes clear that she actually doesn't like her son all that much.
- But as Tom grows up and becomes more and more handsome and dashing, she seems fonder and fonder of him.
- In fact, by the time he's almost eighteen, the gossip puts Bridget and Tom together in some kind of affair. Yowza!