Review of Middlemarch by George Eliot

I am not going to sugar coat this review. This book was an absolute masterpiece. It also took me most of the Summer to read. But it was worth every moment. Allow me to influence you to overcome the intimidating nature of this hefty tome and read Middlemarch by George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans) as soon as possible.

Let me start with one of Middlemarch's most iconic quotes:

"For the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs."

I found myself frequently at a loss to truly describe what Middlemarch was all about. Ultimately, I landed on "slice of life." (For any anime fans out there, you get it.)

Middlemarch is the story of a place and the people living in it. It is about unhistoric people, living everyday lives, falling in and out of love, hurting and helping one another, and ultimately doing their best in a cruel and confusing world.

Does that sound boring? If so, keep reading. While my description might be apt, it is by no means encompassing.

Middlemarch primarily follows the lives of two individuals: Dorothea Brooke and Tertius Lydgate. It also follows the lives of their lovers, their families, their lovers' families, and various friends and neighbors. But for now lets focus on Dorothea and Lydgate.

Dorothea is an idealistic, kind, and naive young woman who finds herself wearily trying to be the perfect wife in a loveless marriage to a much older man. Lydgate is an ambitious, young doctor with modern ideas for how to improve healthcare in Middlemarch, but is wildly unprepared for the politics of a small provincial town.

The book starts with Dorothea, and we are also introduced to her sister, Celia, their uncle and guardian, Mr. Brooke, Sir James Chettam, and Mr. Causubon. We follow the lives of these individuals through the story of Dorothea, as they each navigate life and love in their own way, and towards the end of this section we meet Will Ladislaw, who falls helplessly in love with a married woman.

The next section follows the young doctor, Tertius Lydgate, as he comes into the neighborhood of Middlemarch and begins to learn the relationships, politics, class, and gossip that rule the town. Through him we are introduced to more colorful characters: Rosamund Vincy, and her family, including the wayward Fred and the woman he loves, Mary Garth, her family, the suspicious Mr. Bulstrode, the conniving Peter Featherstone, and various other town folk.

The following "sections" of the book alternate between these two primary characters, with occasional chapters from a side character's perspective-- most notably, Fred Vincy, Rosamund, Bulstrode, Mary Garth, or Will Ladislaw. We get to follow along as the town grapples with its feelings about the "reform bill." We watch as old men die, and young lovers marry; as dreams are achieved and dashed; and how a small town can weave individual lives together inextricably. We also experience the exquisite (and sometimes petulant) yearning of Will Ladislaw.

There are a lot of names and characters to keep up with in this book, but George Eliot (hereafter referred to by her real name, Mary Ann Evans) manages to introduce you to new characters at a calculated pace so as not to overwhelm the reader. This might be because this story was originally published as a serial. Small portions of the novel were published weekly.

Throughout the Summer I read Middlemarch, I found myself often wondering why Evans' novels are still published under her pseudonym, and discovered some interesting things!

Aside from the obvious point that female novelists were generally not taken as seriously in society as male novelists and, therefore, frequently published under male names or no name at all (Austen's "a lady," for example), Mary Ann Evans did not want to be famous. According to a blog from the National Library of Scotland, she is quoted as saying: “Whatever may be the success of my stories, I shall be resolute in preserving my incognito, having observed that a nom de plume secures all the advantages without the disagreeables of reputation." Additionally, she was living with a man, unmarried, at the time which would have reflected badly on both herself and also her publisher if she had become famous.

Say what you will about why her works continue to be published under George Eliot, it is interesting to consider how little has changed over the many years. Female novelists continue to be seen as less serious than male novelists, the romance and romantasy genre proving this over and over. And a woman's reputation is still judged more harshly than a man's. I cannot help but believe that Mary Ann Evans' partner would not have received the same scrutiny that she would have, should their relationship have been made public.

While in the 21st century women do have far more rights than Mary Ann Evans did, we are still fighting for rights that we don't have, or fighting to keep the ones we do have.

I hope that, as women in modern society, we continue to push against patriarchal oppression. I also hope that we continue to uplift each other, and look back at the incredible women who came before us and paved the way for where we are today. And one way we can do all of that is to read. Read the early feminists, and read the current ones. Read anything you can get your hands on. And definitely read Middlemarch.

Middlemarch is a masterpiece.

• It is a sweeping love story.

• It is a discussion on class, that is still relevant today.

• It is at once gut-wrenchingly sad, and groundedly happy.

• Every character, major and minor, is treated with a gentle hand. No one is "the villain" and no one is "the hero." They all have their flaws and Each character reads like a real human person, one you might actually meet if you time-traveled back to 1800's provincial England.

So, in conclusion, read Middlemarch. It is long, but it is worth it. And don't be afraid to do research for a better understanding of the context (the "reform bill," for example). Perhaps the commitment of reading this long book, written in an older English, is daunting, but I encourage you to push through the intimidation. You won't regret it.

Now let me leave you with one final quote from Middlemarch:

"I believe that people are almost always better than their neighbors think they are."