Character Analysis
Parson Adams
Adams is a very good man and yet a very human man; he has his head in the clouds and although his feet are on the ground, they are usually in puddles. Comic though he is, he is the firm pivot of the novel's moral influence. It is his belief in charitable action which distinguishes him as a parson from such hypocritical boors as Trulliber. Like Joseph and Fanny, he acts on his feelings, and it is because of this affinity that he is such a fine guardian and guide to the young pair.
The devious ways of the world wash off Adams as surely as the filth of the pigsty or the muck of the chamber pot, for he trusts his learning to books. This unchanging quality of innocence — will Adams never learn about money? — is part of Adams' worth as a character. Throughout the novel, he never develops, never changes, but we know what he stands for; he is ever active, ever charitable.