Week 9 to 12: Major Aspects of The Mill on the Floss
The Effect of an Society on an Individual
The organization has never been portrayed as a complete determinant of Eliot's main characters - for example, Maggie's plight comes from her inner competition, not from her public shame. However, Eliot remains concerned about social - social and economic performance - and traces their encounters, and their effect on the characters, as part of his mind. Mill on the Floss sets the scene for cities and land grabs - St. Ogg's, Basset, Garum First, Dorlcote Mill — and defines the tone of each community (such as the prohibition of Basset people). This novel traces the growth of a particular St. ogg's, which emphasizes new economic capabilities such as financial entrepreneurship or innovation such as engine optimization. A large number of characters aim to portray different lines in society - such as the Dodsons, or Dead Visitors - in their common values, economic standing and social circles. In the first part of this novel, Eliot discusses how these social celebrations have had in the construction of Maggie and Tom. Toward the end of the novel, the detailed background of the St. Paul community Ogg we work differently when Maggie seems simple and sincere.
The ending of "The Mill on the Floss" is the novel's greatest controversy. It is viewed as critical criticism as suspected to be irrational, unnatural and slow. Lytton observes that "the end is prepared for the weak". For Henry James, the ending is 'flawed and shocking'. Bennet's observation that 'the end reflects the celebrity's desire to bring about poetic justice'. Eliot 'cut the knot he couldn't intervene'. Overwhelmed, critics suspect that the end seems tense and predictable and does not come from events.
Ending of the novel:
The ending may have some features; however it can be protected and described at the following levels.
First, the end can be adjusted at the measurement level. This novel is, in fact, written in retrospect. In 1850's, Eliot introduced the simple and pure life of the 1830's, which was no longer relevant to Eliot's years. Over the course of two decades, its purity has been severely affected by urbanization and materialism. Tulliver represents that pure life of the 1830's. With the overthrow of Tullivers, he has shown the death of the epoch and introduced the material age of Wakem as the representative of this materialistic era.
At the symbolic level, the end also means that inconsistencies in one's personality are fatal. Maggie was torn between two extremes - a misconduct and a feeling of duty. Maggie should have been given a moral choice. But the conflict in his mind was too strong for him to go the other way. Her compulsion led her to marry Stephen but her sense of self-worth asked her to be loyal to Philip and Lucy. If he married Philip, he would be unfaithful to his family. So he had to pay for a state-of-the-art firearm on death.
The end is permissible on a symbolic level, too, where the River Floss stands as the cause for the feeding and destruction of the Tullivers. Some critics reckon that even though he drowned in Floss, Maggie might have been killed in some other way. But it would not be reliable enough. If Tom had killed Maggie, it would have been clever and controversial in the context of the novel i.e. emotional self-control. If Maggie had committed suicide, she would have been reduced to a foolish little girl who disliked Eliot. Dying naturally would be a little art. Eliot also wanted to reunite the brother and sister before death which would not have been possible under normal circumstances. He also wanted to show that Floss, who gave birth to all misery, had himself put an end to all suffering
Art of characterization:
Success in proving the average size of a novelist, and George Eliot is the greatest of these. Among the best that distinguishes the works of George Eliot, is his singular power. He brings before us a variety of characters who not only keep an important stamp of truth, but each one given their right to speak and their way, as well as their level of behavior. David Cecil says, "It is a form of therapy in which George Eliot's active intelligence gives him a tangible benefit over ordinary Victorian."
Letters From 'Humility and Strong Life'
George Eliot, like many other women writers, relied heavily on what he had. She kept getting closer to what she knew about intimacy - the experience of her virginity. It is because of this and his life in the English Middle East that he returns often for his belongings. Although in his later writings, George Eliot draws on high-level characters, he gains his power and recognition when exposed by what Timesworth calls, characters from "humble and difficult lives." Wordworth touched him deeply. He emphasizes Wellworth's interest in the life of civilization and uses the language spoken by the humble genitals to make his portrayal of the character more human.
Characters:
Maggie Tulliver - The protagonist of The Mill on Floss. The novel follows Maggie as she grows up from a filthy, intelligent child into a mysterious young woman. Maggie is very close to her brother Tom, and wants - and always feels rejected - his approval and acceptance.
Tom Tulliver - eldest son of Tullivers. Tom has his own clear vision of responsibility, justice, and justice, and these values affect his action more than emotion. Tom really likes Maggie, but she doesn't like his way of doing what he wants, thinking he knows better than Tom does..
Philip Wakem - The sensitive and intelligent son of Lawyer Wakem. Philip had been sworn in since his birth. In a small stump and with a yellow face, Philip is often described as "a woman." Philip’s love for art, music and knowledge goes the other way in dealing with the intense grief he feels about his own futility. Philip first meets Maggie when he is at school with Tom.
Stephen Guest - Stephen Guest falls in love with Lucy Deane when we meet him but he never proposed marriage. He is the son of a great partner of Guest & Co., where both Tom and Mr. Deane work. Stephen is handsome and confident. Though she cares about Lucy, and about the life she will have together, she falls in love with Maggie, drawn to her completely different qualities.
Feminist strands in the novel:
The Mill on the Floss is a feminist novel in the sense that it portrays the difficulties of Maggie's arrival, and that the difficulties are exemplified by the narrow perspectives of her society on women. Especially during Maggie's childhood, we often encounter elderly characters who ignore or undermine Maggie's obvious intelligence because she is a girl. Even Tom is shown to be taking part in this injury - viewing it as his privilege to keep Maggie in his place, and take care of her. In such cases as Mr. Stelling proclaiming feminine genius for being immortal, it is intended that we become angry at this pronunciation and know automatically that pronunciation is wrong. Of note, that misconceptions of society about women's disrespect seem to have a negative impact on men — it's Tom who has the same problem as Maggie, with his education. The plot of the novel itself portrays Maggie as depressed and unable to move outside her family circle. We are less exposed to the chapters he reads for himself, teaches, and is made to focus, instead, on scenes with Maggie and her family and friends, where Maggie's submission, or disobedience, is her will to take it out. Paragraphs on the hypocritical behavior of St. Ogg does not seem to be related to women - the town ladies are portrayed as too active and too hot for men - however, this brutal reality does not change the essence of feminine novelism.
Imagery in novel:
On a symbolic level, Floss is often associated with Maggie, and the river, with its depth and potential flooding, symbolizes Maggie's deep and mysterious feelings. The river path, which is off the map, is also used to symbolize the unseen path of Maggie's fate.
Significance of river in mill of the floss:
The River is represented by various authors in different ways around the world. George Eliot is one of the great English writers at The Mill on The Floss who plays the river analogy and creates a beautiful character Maggie. Nirupama Borgohain, a renowned scholar of Assam, on the Timeless River (Sei Nadi Niravadhi) uses a river metaphor that is closely related to the novel's motive. George Eliot's novel is about the community on the banks of the Floss River in England while Borgohain is about health and the people who live along the coast of Pagladia in western Assam. Both masterpieces address the same human problem and the evolution of humanity and compassion go back to two different cultures and places.
Child psychology in the mill of floss:
George Eliot has done an excellent job in child psychology at The Mill on the Floss. She has portrayed the psychology of a troubled girl (Maggie) in a very attractive and beautiful way. Maggie doesn't get the attention of her parents and she wants love. His quest for love creates problems in his daily life. Maggie's character as a child is a great example of a child suffering alone.
Maggie's character is compared to Tom's character who is loved by his parents and is given a very special significance because he is a man and their only heir though he is wiser than Maggie. We will be discussing the characters of Maggie and Tom to gain a higher understanding of children's psychology.
Autobiographical Elements:
George Eliot's memories of places and places of people are widely distributed in the development of novels. The "Mill on the Floss" is an autobiographical novel and the genius has put much more into this novel than any other novel. "Corn on the floss" is the spiritual autobiography of Barry Ann Evans and the history of Maggie Tulliver is the history of Larry Evans and W.R. Nicoll until he says,
"As long as George Eliot reads, wise readers will turn to" The Mill on the Floss "as he moves, trusting and an authoritative account of his difficult character."
Maggie's illegal battles have been passed down to her mythology.
Importance of Autobiography:
Mentally everyone wants to live a smooth life. But those who are traumatized after a health crisis actually want to have some problem with shedding some tears. These tears can be of different types. It can be the most salty water from the eyes or it can be the use of the most salty ink on the pages. George Eliot does not let the dew fall on his eyes because she does not want to be ridiculed. She uses another way of removing the ongoing mental burden. For this purpose, she creates some characters in their novels which is a real project of George Eliot’s life.