Middlemarch

Middlemarch is a novel by George Eliot, the pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans, first published in serial form in 1871–1872 and in book form in 1872.

Middlemarch is a novel by George Eliot, the pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans, first published in serial form in 1871–1872 and in book form in 1872. Set in a fictional English Midlands town in the early 1830s, it is a realist study of provincial society and is widely regarded as Eliot’s masterpiece. The novel follows interwoven lives and social groups across classes, with two central plotlines focusing on Dorothea Brooke and Tertius Lydgate.

Publication history

Middlemarch was first published in eight parts between 1871 and 1872 and later appeared in four volumes in 1872. It was originally developed from separate stories that Eliot later combined.

Setting and plot

The novel is set in the fictional town of Middlemarch in the English Midlands during the early 1830s. Its narrative tracks multiple interconnected characters against the background of political reform and social change.

Themes

Middlemarch examines provincial life, marriage, ambition, morality, social ambition, religion, and the pressures of change. It is often noted for its realist treatment of ordinary life and its broad social range.

Critical reception

The novel has long been regarded as one of the greatest English novels and as Eliot’s masterpiece. Later summaries and reference works consistently describe it as a landmark work of realist fiction.