Summary:
The
first two letters I looked at in the background to George Eliot and Middlemarch titled “From The Natural History of German Life” and “From Amos Barton Chapter V” shared a common sentiment. They both
praised the ideas of a truthful portrayal of human life. The first article
focused on the idea that an artist is capable of creating an “extension of our
sympathies,” and how through art we are able to relate to our “fellow man”
(520). In addition, the articles stress that the importance of knowing people
is crucial; knowing people’s habits and ideas connects us. The second article
takes this idea further and describes the importance of even the plainest
character. The article says, “Yet these commonplace people—many of them—bear a
conscious, and have felt the sublime prompting to do the painful right; they
have their unspoken sorrows, and their sacred joys, their hearts have perhaps
gone out towards their first-born, and they have mourned over the irreclaimable
dead” (522). This idea of sharing universal human experience resonates through
the two articles. In a similar direction the other letter I examined was one
written by Eliot to Charles Bray. She expresses the sadness it causes her to
see others ignore human realities. She understands that people want to see the
‘lovely,’ but she believes unless art can “enlarge men’s sympathies, it does
nothing morally”(526).
Analysis:
One
of the first things I found interesting was the connection these letters had to
Mary Barton by Susan Gaskell, for she
was also praised for her attention to truth. I think Eliot was successful in
detailing human traits and morals. This attention to detail has made her work
relatable to readers. If we focused only on the flowery aspects of life and
ignored the realities of life, society could not progress. The idea of
extending or sympathies I think is very important. When you can feel the same
sorrows as the characters Eliot writes about, a special bond is created. The
common human experiences such as love, death, sorrow, hardship, happiness, and
illness connect people. Not everyone is a hero or obtains some characteristic
that makes them special; the common man is often plain.
Katie,
ReplyDeleteI really like that you focused on the importance of common characteristics and very human experiences, (love, death, sorrow, happiness, etc.) that help us form a deeper connection to the characters, and therefore the novel in which they are portrayed. When we can sympathize with characters such as Dorothea, whose expectations for her marriage are let down, we can really put ourselves in her shoes and form a better understanding of the novel.
I agree that it is interesting to read this novel after having just finished the novel by Glaskell. Like Marcy says, they both focus on accurate snapshots of Victorian life. It is interesting that I feel like Elliot does so for effect and narrations while Gaskell does it for reform. I agree that those modes of emotion (sadness, happiness, illness, etc.) are effective in tying humans together, making the novels relevant and in the hands of us, as students today. Elliot really commits to exploring the social and psychological elements of her characters.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed that even though the book is a reflection of the era George Eliot was a part of you discussed that it was more than just that. You described it as a portrayal of human life, going beyond the boundaries of just history and I agree and enjoyed that about your blog. Your references are also very well done, so you certainly have my thumbs up since personally I am terrible in incorporating quotes very prominently. I agreed with your analysis and I believe your most powerful quote was this: "If we focused only on the flowery aspects of life and ignored the realities of life, society could not progress." that could not have been better stated.
ReplyDeleteYour blog really makes me think about Mary Barton as the first novel of an author who's part of the canon of Victorian literature but not often read outside the context of the classroom. Middlemarch, on the other hand, is one of the last and most mature novels of an author who's still ranked as the best or second best (after Dickens) for this time period. Given this, the depth of the truth that each author achieves is quite different. There are moments of depth in Mary Barton, but much of the novel is focused on events; in Middlemarch, on the other hand, the moments of depth stretch out into entire chapters. Both authors have at least one similar goal in mind, but there's quite a difference in the maturity of their writing as relates to realism.
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