preview

The Real World: Reality in Middlemarch Essay

Decent Essays

What makes Middlemarch such a realistic novel is the situations and the characters in the novel are applicable to everyday life. Although the novel is fictitious, many of the characters are not overly inflated into superfluous unrealistic personalities; rather, they are relatable descriptions of everyday people. The situations may sometimes be dramatic, but no more so than in real life. The settings and the surroundings in the town of Middlemarch are also appropriate with those of reality. The aspects of reality and realism throughout Middlemarch provide a much stronger connection and relationship with the reader.

The impression given by the community in Middlemarch is similar to that of a small tight-knit community almost anywhere. In …show more content…

The use of "meanwhile" throughout the novel is interesting because the events are not necessarily sequential; things are going on at the same time, or one character will mention someone else and the novel will pan over to what is happening with them. It is as though the reader is walking through Middlemarch themselves and peering in the windows of the residents. "Meanwhile, in his conversation with Raffles, he had learned something momentous, something which entered actively into the struggle of his longings and terrors." (488). Here the reader is initially being told about Mr Bulstrode, but then Raffles' name is slipped into the section and the reader is passed onto finding more out about what is going on with John Raffles.

Other elements of reality in Middlemarch are the ways that wealth and poverty are depicted. There does not seem to be as extreme of divisions between the wealthy and the poor as in Wuthering Heights. There are a lot more working class individuals, even many of the wealthier people are still hard workers and land owners. In Emma, the wealthy do very little to earn their money except belong to the right family and inherit wealth through family association, whereas the elite of Middlemarch deserve and earn their money. "In brief, Lydgate was what is called a successful man." (637). Upon Lydgate's death his family was left with a large insurance payment. He was a

Get Access