Middlemarch read

I enjoy words spelled identically, but pronounced differently like read (red) and read (reed).

I've been avoiding the blog as I've been fervently reading Middlemarch to the end. Eliot's broad spectrum of characters is only outstripped by the depth of each individual portrayal. The plot is gripping and yet bordering inconsequential. Because of its size, large cast, and time period I keep wanting to draw comparisons to War and Peace. I imagine Eliot saying, your Russian strife is all fine and good, but look what I can do with a little Victorian intrigue. It would be fantastic since they were published so closely together. I don't want to give the impression the story lines of Middlemarch are insubstantial, but the political aspects of the novel are handled quite lightly although undeniably present.

All this is doing is forcing me to actually take another look at War and Peace. Ugh. I think I'd rather not... but I'll follow a laugh just about anywhere. I'm intrigued by Eliot's depiction of kind and slightly doddering Mr. Brooke running for office. I once saw a Monty Python add describing "upper class nitwittery". As a result my mind turned to Monty Python often when Mr. Brooke spoke.

I recommend this book to anyone who is amused by scandals centered around questionable lineage, religious hypocrisy, bird's eye views into the minds of participants in strained marriages, and passionate idealism. (Dorothea ranks on my short list of all time favorite characters). I had been tipped off to the very element I enjoyed most about the book so I looked for it. Eliot treats all of her characters with care while making true to form individuals. The foibles of human nature aren't lamented but expressed and evenly so. The book is full of great quotes, but a rather popular one is, "People are almost always better than their neighbours think they are." That is the overarching sentiment of the book consistently displayed.