Reading the reviews for Middlemarch, the Saturday Review stood out as an interesting take on a certain aspect of Middlemarch that I didn't even think of while reading. The Saturday Review brought up the idea of selfishness as a key aspect to each and every character in the novel. Thinking back about each character each one's goal has something to do with their own motives. Dorothea marries Casaubon only to learn and grow her intellect through the many books and conversations with Casaubon. Casaubon uses Dorothea as a secretary while Will uses others to get jobs. Each character's goals are somewhat noble in the end, but the means to get there are pointed out by the Saturday Review as selfish. this is an interesting concept that I don't think Eliot even thought about as she was writing her characters.
Something else this review pointed out was an interesting take on Casaubon's character. the review claims that, "Mr. Casaubon represents learning as opposed to science" (Saturday Review 575), something that seems contradictory to his persistence on writing his book. He doesn't really display his characteristics as something who is learning a whole lot because if he did then He'd probably figure out his book's information has been published by Germans already. Casaubon instead seems to predisposed to watching Dorothea and maintaining his jealousy towards Will Ladislaw, if anything his preoccupation should be towards reputation and false pretenses. If Casaubon ever learned he would have figured out the whole Will and Dorothea dilemma in an adult manner instead of pent up jealousy till he dies. I think Dorothea represents a better archetype for learning as she actually does so as she learns how to really live a life of her choosing.
One thing I don't quite understand is how the Review makes it seem like if girls imitated Dorothea, then the world would be "a less comfortable world without being a better one" Saturday Review 574). this notion doesn't really make sense to me in what the reviewer is trying to say. How would the world be a less comfortable one? Would the girls stop marrying for love and turn into Dorothea-like characters who aren't individuals? I'm not really getting the full gist of this sentence.
Ryan, awesome questions! I had to re-read and really think about that passage too. Dorothea's character seems like a lighthouse that sheds light little by little on different but all parts of something. I think it is characters like Dorothea that "we" need to be there to help us think about ourselves and others. I think Dorothea represents the complexity of life as a whole and the strength of an individual to remain loyal to herself despite what others seem to do and want.
ReplyDeleteDorothea is the person who gives horse riding because others can't afford horse. She won't enjoy art because art is for the rich. Just because she goes without from her sense of duty towards the suffering, does not mean she has done anything positive for them. So I believe the Saturday Review is saying that acting like Dorothea in giving up certain things would do nothing to help the suffering, just make that person less comfortable for no good reason.
ReplyDeleteRyan, I like how you talked about each characters selfishness. Although selfishness is not a particularly amiable quality, we all have it within us. Like I talked about a little in my blog, I think this makes the characters more relatable for readers.
ReplyDeleteWith that question at the end: Would the girls stop marrying for love and turn into Dorothea-like characters who aren't individuals? Does that really make sense? Wouldn't we say that Dorothea actually did end up marrying for love in the end? Also, in talking about the selfish aspect, I found it interesting that Rosamond wasn't mentioned right away. I think she's one of the more selfish characters considering she married Lydgate hoping he would be the ticket out of Middlemarch.
ReplyDeleteI found the quotation about science to be a curious one as well. I wonder if the critic might have been saying that Casaubon lacks the (scientific) methodology that would help him organize and finally write his key to mythology.
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