[In Progress] Tackling Tough Ones: George Eliot's "Middlemarch" | Ryan Ranch

Course Description:

George Eliot is the non de plume of female Victorian writer, Mary Ann Evans. Eliot wished to be deemed male so that publishers would grant her a wider range of subject matter than what female writers were permitted. The wide-ranging, "Middlemarch," is a comprehensive tale (over 800 pages long), both tragic and comedic, of multiple 19th-century marriages. It raises questions of love, obligation, morality, compromise, bitterness, resentment, and destiny. Eliot explores social class expectations, changing work environments, and educational possibilities—all relevant to the Victorian Era in England. When the book was published, "The Times" newspaper labeled it "perfect"; now, almost 150 years later, we'll decide anew how perfect it is.