Mansfield Park
Tom Bertram
The eldest son
The fun-loving heir to Mansfield Park, who spends freely and thinks little. A serious illness finally makes him grow up.
Tom Bertram is the eldest Bertram son and the heir, good-humored, extravagant and careless. He sails to Antigua with his father, then comes home with his friend Mr. Yates and a head full of private theatricals. He is friendly to Fanny, but he does not think about her.
He is the cause of the Lovers' Vows scheme, which he pushes through while his father is away, saying a theater of their own would be brilliant.
“Lovers' Vows! It is perfect—lively, dramatic, and every part is capital!”
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Tom has Sir Thomas's study torn up for a greenroom and presses Fanny to take a part. When Sir Thomas returns, Tom stammers that it was only harmless amusement.
Later he falls gravely ill with a fever, and Mansfield is plunged into worry. He recovers humbled, tells Edmund he has been foolish and thoughtless, and resolves to become a responsible son. He thanks Fanny for her care.
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