‘Silas Marner’ – George Eliot

Overview

Silas Marner is ex-communicated from Lantern Yard, a tight religious community after being framed for theft by his so-called best friend William. In exile, he settles in Raveloe and works as a weaver for 15 years. He hoards the money he saves and never quite finds his place there.

Silas’ fortune is stolen and he’s bereft. Then a strange child appears in his living room. Once he realises that her ringlets are those of a child’s, and not his fortune mysteriously reappeared, Silas takes Eppie in and raises her as his daughter.

Discussion

Isolation

The dislocation Silas suffers at leaving Lantern Yard for Raveloe is signified by the latter being composed of neglected orchards and an unattended church.

What comes out well is that isolation manifests the inability to carry one form of living to another. A good example of this is the intrigue Silas creates in Raveloe when he treats a case of ‘dropsy’ with medicinal herbs.

He was known for medicinal healing, but in a new community he’s looked on hopefully as the replacement ‘Wise Woman of Tarley’ and is overwhelmed with requests for help. But the offer of money for something natural to him doesn’t sit well and instead of managing to create unity between his former and current lives, he hides away instead.

Injustice

There’s nothing better in a story to see injustices righted and the plotting of three featured in Silas Marner each receive a different treatment.

The first, the framing for theft by Silas’ best friend, causes the rest of the story. The second, the theft of Silas’ fortune by Dunstan Cass causes Silas to have to ask for help and become a tad more involved in Raveloe community. The final is the death of Eppie’s mother on her way to confront her husband, Godfrey Cass in Raveloe. This leads Eppie to wander in to Silas’ home where he takes her on as his own child.

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Godfrey Cass recognises Eppie as his child, but never claims her. As life goes by, his second wife does not want to adopt and they don’t have children of their own. He regrets the absence of children,

‘Dissatisfaction seated musingly on a childless hearth, thinks with envy of the father whose return is greeted by young voices…’

Godfrey and his wife eventually tell Silas and Eppie and ask Eppie to live with them as their daughter, but Eppie chooses to stay with Silas,

‘…Marner was in the right in what he said about a man’s turning away a blessing from his door: it falls to someone else. I wanted to pass for childless once, Nancy – I shall pass for childless now against my wish.’

Godfrey Cass to Nancy Cass

The consequence of a selfish decision led to a lifetime regret.

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Dunstan Cass vanishes from the novel after the theft but no one knows that he took the money. Much later on, the water drains from the pit and Dunstan’s body is discovered, Silas’ money still in his possession.

The good thing about having locked away Dunstan’s body meant that the fortune could not be traced too soon, which meant there was nothing to distract Silas from raising Eppie.

The satisfaction of discovering the culprit and the money, by the point in the novel that Silas has a more balanced sense of priorities makes the theft worth it.

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Finally, Silas’ exile from Lantern Yard is based on a lie. With the revelatory aspects of the other lies coming to light towards the end, the same is to be expected of William’s hand in Silas’ ‘crime’.

Silas travels with Eppie to where Lantern Yard had been, but on arrival the old community has been replaced with industry, taking with it his chance for redemption.

‘It’s the will o’ Them above as a many things should be dark to us…You were hard done by that once…and it seems you’ll never know the rights of it; but that doesn’t hinder there being a rights…for it’s all dark to you and me.’

Dolly Winthrop to Silas Marner, p.204

Metamorphosis

There was a simplicity to the chain of events in this novel: ex-communication led to isolation which led to the worship of money; the latter disappearing and Eppie appearing to replace its place put into perspective how empty life would have stayed had Eppie not arrived.

‘…he had himself come to appropriate the forms of custom…which were the mould of Raveloe life…he recovered a consciousness of unity between his past and present.’

The novel is sparingly written but communicates a lot – parental love, the dislocation of exile and challenges of starting afresh.

Rating

A lot is said in just over 200 pages and this is a good classic novel for observing the same wheels of society that we still see now.

Journal Summary

London, March 2020