Hope Road

Middlemarch [George Eliot]

Middlemarch by George Eliot ****

 Note: This review was written as an academic summary and analysis for one of my classes. As such, it contains a few spoilers and a slightly different approach than most of my reviews.

George Eliot (pseudonym for Mary Ann Evans) penned a masterpiece when she wrote Middlemarch. This mid-19^th century tale of the lives and loves of a variety of British townspeople is skillfully and intricately woven. Perhaps its most compelling character is Dorothea, who is intense in her religious duty and in her deep emotional sensibility; two characteristics that interplay with turmoil as she faces marriage and remarriage. Her first husband, Mr. Casaubon, is an ancient and crusty scholar, who attempts to win her promise of eternal devotion even after his death. Both her marriage and widowhood are complicated by her deep connection to her husband’s cousin, the irresistible Mr. Ladislaw, whom she eventually marries at the expense of her late husband’s fortune.

Rosamond Vincy is a much shallower woman, who, in spite of her outward loveliness, has a soul that is priggish and bent on absolute self-service. She effectively ruins her husband, Dr. Lydgate, both financially and relationally. Mary Garth is perhaps the most admirable woman in the book; she is sensible, steadfast, and self-sacrificing. She will not allow herself to be swayed by romantic whimsy; yet she does retain a deep devotion to her first and only true love, Fred Vincy - an irresponsible but well-meaning young man who eventually, through Mary’s love, is able to make something of himself.

Numerous other characters people the fascinating landscape of Middlemarch - among them Mr. Bulstrode, a pious but tortured soul, whose transgressions and hypocrisy lead him to a wretched end; Mr. Farebrother, a kindly and faithful rector who helps everyone he can, even when it means giving up his own chance for happiness; Sir James Chettam, Dorothea’s suitor and then her sister Celia’s husband, and the strongest opponent to both of Dorothea’s marriages; Celia herself, who plays a significant role in the early chapters but then fades to not much more than a foil to Dorothea; and Mr. Featherstone, the cantankerous old bachelor who holds sway over his entire extended family by keeping them guessing as to the contents of his will - a will which eventually affects many other aspects of the story as well.

How Mary Ann Evans was able to create such a fascinating, intriguing, and moving story, I can only begin to guess. In spite of its dry-at-times (yet undeniably intelligent) political wrangling and references that are now unfamiliar to most readers, the book is filled with literary excellence, a masterful plotline, and vivid characterization. And moreover, it is enlivened, Austen-like, with pungent and poignant little insights into humanity. What is said of Dorothea at the end of the book can be said of the general events of the story itself - “Certainly those determining acts of her life were not ideally beautiful… But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts.”

Middlemarch is not an epic; it is not the most world-renowned novel ever written. It is a little religiously sardonic; some have called it humanistic. Yet in its faithful depiction of a set of very real characters and the choices and chances that defined their lives, it can contribute a little something to our understanding of ourselves and of the world. In that way, it is indeed not ideally beautiful; but without a doubt, it can be incalculably diffusive.

Recommended age level: 14+. I think a fourteen-year-old, or anyone, would find this a difficult read, but it’s worth it.