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George Eliot Research Paper

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George Eliot, pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans, was born on November 22, 1819 in Chilvers Coton, Warwickshire, England to an estate agent, Robert Evans, and Christina Pearson. Eliot was an English novelist, journalist, translator and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. Her father believed that because she did not have physical beauty, she would not get married; therefore, he put more money into her education. She and her sister attended Mrs. Wallington’s School at Nuneaton from 1828 to 1832, where she became influenced by Maria Lewis, the principal governess, who taught her to accept the idea of God and religion. While she was in school, she learned French and Italian, but when her mother died, she had to move back in with her father. After her brother got married, he took over the family house, so Eliot and her father moved to Coventry.
When she read Charles Hennell’s book An Inquiry Concerning the Origin of Christianity, she began to doubt her religion. This novel deconstructs the Bible and demonstrates that all of the miracles could be explained. Books about the relationship between the Bible and science interested her, which made her believe that she was free to …show more content…

She used a male pen name because women were often discriminated during that time period. Also, female novelists were only seen as romantic authors, and Eliot wanted her work to be taken seriously. She also had a desire to shield her private life from public scrutiny, and to prevent scandals attending her relationship with the married George Henry Lewes. Her first complete novel, Adam Bede, was published in 1859, and was an instant success. People were eager to find out who this mystery author was, until she revealed that it was her. The revelations about Eliot's private life surprised and shocked many of her admiring readers, but this did not affect her popularity as a

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