Middlemarch, by George Eliot
Dorothea - idealist, naïve, selfish, romantic, neglected/unfulfilled
shows: “all this vast wreck of ambitious ideals, sensuous and spiritual, mixed confusedly with the signs of breathing forgetfulness and degradation, at first jarred her as with an electric shock, and then urged themselves on her with the ache belonging to a glut of confused ideas which check the flow of emotion.” p. 181
shows: “…Dorothea’s ideas and resolves seemed like melting ice floating and lost in the warm flood of which they had been but another form.” p. 186
tell: This is showing her idealistic ideals colliding with reality.
Mr. Casaubon - oblivious, misunderstood, dull, routine-stricken, unimaginative
shows: “ ‘Yes,’ said Mr. Casaubon, with that peculiar pitch of voice which makes the word half a negative.” P.187
tell: This tells that Mr. Casaubon says one thing, but means another; he’s not always entirely honest.
Will Ladislaw - charming, arrogant, questionable, unrestrained, competitive
shows: “Will Ladislaw’s smile was delightful, unless you were angry with him beforehand: it was a gush of inward light illuminating the transparent skin as well as the eyes, and playing about every curve and lines as if some Ariel were touching them with a new charm, and banishing for ever the traces of moodiness.” p. 192
tell: This tells the reader that he’s a man who is immediately charming upon meeting him. He has smile that radiates and will make people happy and feel up-lighted by being in his “smiley” company
In Eliot’s opinion (found in On Realism) what are some of the author’s most important responsibilities when designing characters for fiction?
Do you think she “practices what she preaches” in Middlemarch? Why or why not?
Yes, I think her characters feel very real to the reader. The conflict is realistic and complicated. Dorothea seems especially real to me because there are times in the story where I truly sympathize with her, even like her, and other times I really don’t like who she is. I think characters seems the most real when they are conflicted and have multiple qualities about them that are viewed as both positive and negative.
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