A founder of the English novel along with Samuel Richardson and the creator of the novel of Realism, Henry Fielding (1707-1754) was one of the greatest novelists of the eighteenth century. His first play, Love in Several Masques, was produced in February 1728. He wrote and produced a number of plays ranging from comedies to dramatic satires. Critiquing the political ideologies and the unfair treatment of writers by theatres and publishing houses, Fielding’s plays were influential and critically received. He began writing novels at thirty-three. His greatest novel, Tom Jones, was published in February 1749. It is the first few English novels and is counted among the ten best novels of the world.