Middlemarch by George Eliot:-

 Middlemarch by George Eliot:-

 

 

Middlemarch was first published in 1871 and 1872, as a serial novel in eight parts, which came out every two months. This was Eliot's most comprehensive and sweeping novel to date, and was intended as a study of provincial British life. Eliot worked on several different stories, starting with Lydgate and his trials as a young doctor; then she worked on Dorothea's story, writing the first ten chapters as they appear in the finished book with only this character and her world in mind. Eliot then decided to build a world around these two characters, and create a more sweeping portrait of an entire town and its various inhabitants; Lydgate and Dorothea acted essentially as the core of the novel, as two somewhat similar figures who were the soul of the novel. Both are alike in their unhappy marriages, their social aspirations, and the way in which they react to societal pressure.

Major theme of the novel :-

Responsibility

This is a major theme of Fred's story, and he must becomes responsible for his finances and his choices. Will does too, to a certain extent. Both men must learn how to rely on themselves, not infringe upon others, and how to become independent in many ways.

Stubbornness

A big issue of character. Rosamond is extremely stubborn, meaning that if things aren't done her way, she will go behind other people's backs to do things the way she thinks they should be done. Societal stubbornness is responsible for Lydgate's failure with his medical practice; people want what they want, for whatever reasons, which means that they are blind to things that might be best for them.

Prejudice

A theme that Lydgate and Will Ladislaw cannot seem to beat. People in Middlemarch dislike anyone who is not from Middlemarch, or anyone whose reputation seems questionable. Will and Lydgate are both good people, but it is initial prejudice, sometimes based on invalid or circumstantial reasons, that means that they are never liked or accepted in Middlemarch.

Conformity

An issue that is related to societal expectation, but is somewhat different. People are supposed to conform to certain social ideals and norms‹Dorothea is supposed to be a proper wife and then a proper widow, and follow society's set guidelines about how to fill each position. Will fits no position that society tries to group him into, so he is disliked; he refuses to be conventional or proper, or to fit into that society and its ideas of how someone like Will should act.

Love

Love keeps people together, or the lack or it lets them drift apart. Those who are truly in love‹like Will and Dorothea, Mary and Fred‹are bound together by it, and are very alike in temperament and outlook. Those who lack it‹like Lydgate and Rosamond, Casaubon and Dorothea‹are ill-suited to each other in marriage, and are very disappointed by their unions.

Unity of Middlemarch

The decisions made by every person in Middlemarch seem to have a direct effect on at least one other person. Mary's decision to marry Fred means that Farebrother is without a wife. Dorothea's decision to choose Casaubon leads Sir James to choose Celia. Bulstrode's dirty dealings with regard to Raffles mean disgrace to both Lydgate and Will Ladislaw. Everyone in Middlemarch is intimately connected, and it seems that no one can move around without disturbing someone else.