Toward the beginning of this short work, the narrator, Jack Wilton, an upper-class soldier in the army of England's Henry VIII fighting against the French, encourages a friend of his that the king wants some Englishman to pretend to turn traitor, go to the French, and convince them to attack at a certain time and place – they will find the English waiting for them and go down to ignominious defeat. The man who does this, says Wilton, will be rewarded beyond all comprehension. This friend eagerly does as Wilton suggests, whereupon – since he's no spy – the French immediately realize the trick that's being played on them and send the man back to the English with a few dozen whip strokes.
Clearly, Wilton is more interested in playing tricks on people than in battle or glory. Indeed, his tricks are so successful that at the active war's conclusion, he decides he'd be better off traveling through Europe than returning to England and presumably meeting up with his victims again. So off he goes, where the title of this piece comes to fruition, at least in part.
By modern standards, "The Unfortunate Traveller" is more a series of episodes than a sustained narrative, although certain characters do reappear in several of the vignettes. In addition, certain themes also reoccur – Wilton and some of his companions fall afoul of religious hypocrites a few times, and he himself comes close to execution at least once. He also has an unfortunate habit of associating with pimps, prostitutes, and other such lowlifes. Even his traveling companion the Earl of Surrey can't present himself as who he truly is, but asks Wilton to switch places with him, presenting himself as the servant and Wilton as the Earl. Pretty soon Wilton races off with a romantic partner and a good part of the Earl's cash, which the Earl probably should have anticipated, right?
Finally, at the story's close, Wilton witnesses the torture and execution of a murderer, who informs the crowd that's gathered of why he's about to die. Turns out that he killed a man who murdered his brother, and he is not one bit sorry. This has such an impact on Wilton and his lady that they repent on the spot, marry, and return to the English army.
Reading this summary, you might be excused for assuming that the story is highly melodramatic, but it's not. The author, Thomas Nashe, was well known as a humorist, and that's certainly the case here. It's not entirely clear why Wilton begins by playing tricks on his associates, for instance – not all of those tricks do him any good personally – but he seems to find them amusing, at least, and expects the reader to laugh too. Wilton is less amused by some of the things that happen to him on his travels – unlike other fictional travelers, he's not just a rogue – but many of his adventures are so outlandish, even if they're dangerous, that you still have to chuckle.
I must admit, by the way, that some of Nashe's language can be difficult to understand. It's pretty fancy and uses a good many witty constructions that today's reader might be unaccustomed to, and it's not surprising that a lot of the 500-year-old vocabulary is tricky too. So although it's a short piece, it can take longer to read than you might think. Still, you give it the time that it needs and it can be a lot of fun. Especially as you come to realize that Jack Wilton is not as impressed with people as they seem to think he should be – he believes in a lot of the classic virtues, and when he meets people who pretend to virtuous and aren't, he is not fooled. Now, that's an impressive characteristic even today.
Benshlomo says, Better a frank villain than a mendacious saint.
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