SILAS MARNER By George Eliot

Supplementary Notes

Context/Overview of the Victorian Age

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Novel 'Silas Marner'. George Eliot was a
Pseudonymous author of Silas Marner. This means that George Eliot wrote the book
under a pseudonym (false name). George Eliot's actual manes were Mary Ann later
called Mariana Evans but adopted the name George Eliot as a pseudonym in her
writings. This was because her milieu was mainly male-dominated and gaining
recognition as an artist despite being a woman was a major disadvantage. She wanted
her work to be taken seriously that is why she wrote under a male pseudonym. You can
read more on the author's biography to get the details on the status of women at the
time. It is important to know that Silas Marner falls under what we call Victorian literature
just like Charles Dickens' Great Expectations.

Victorian Age (1837-1901) – (Fashion Era)

Victorian Age was a period of great change – the times of inventions such as the steam
engines. It was a time of industrialization which brought about the development of the
textile industry, more industries, and wealth creation. Hence, England became known
as the 'workshop of the world.' Further, religious controversy (science and religion) and
call for improving the conditions of the working class were born. Industrialisation also
brought to the fore 'the woman question.' Prior to industrialization, career for women
was marriage (accepted reasoning) and the qualities needed were to be innocent,
virtuous, biddable, dutiful, and ignorant of intellectual opinion. Victorian women were
expected to be weak and helpless, fragile, and delicate. However, women were
incapable of making decisions beyond selecting the menu and teaching children at
home.

During the Victorian period, holding became common and the industry was flourishing
through weaving/looming and other industry-related activities. Extravagance and
superstition during this period were also common.

The Victorian literature concentrated on the themes that affected the masses and also
reflected the prevailing conditions of the time; isolation, alienation, personal trauma, and
human relationships – to do with the plight of the masses in an industrial society. The
Victorian literature also addressed issues of democracy, education of the masses,
industrialization, and growth of the enterprise and the emergency of the materialistic
philosophy, that is, Capitalism.
THE ASPECT OF ALIENATION

When we talk about alienation, we simply imply that alienation makes individuals feel
they do not belong. They are made to feel like outsiders such as the working class of
the Victorian Period.

Theorists on Alienation.

Saint Augustine

St. Augustine looked at alienation from a religious point of view. His concern was
humanity's relationship with God. He viewed humanity as being alienated from God
because of the sinful nature of humanity. Therefore, humanity can only have fellowship
restored with his God through belief in Jesus Christ.

Karl Marx

Karl Marx considers a worker as an alienated individual. He argues that as a result of

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud considers alienation as being caused by a split between the conscious
and the unconscious parts of the brain. – i.e. self-estrangement. Read more on
Sigmund Freud and his psychoanalytic theory.

Emile Durkheim

Emile Durkheim, a sociologist, argues that 'rootlessness' is the primary cause of

Jean-Paul –Sartre and other Existentialists

Jean-Paul Sartre and other Existentialists viewed the human condition as alienated and
that in this alienation – a condition in which the human person has no control over their
destiny – an amount of self-estrangement. Read more of Existentialism philosophy to
understand Jean-Paul Sartre's argument on individual alienation.

Note: that the above theorists' arguments are evident in George Eliot's Silas Marner. Try
to figure out these theoretical arguments from the novel as you read.
THE IDEA OF THE JOURNEY

It is important to understand the idea of the journey because it applies to Silas Marner
and Great Expectations. The journey ideology originates from Greek mythology about
heroes. You should be aware of Odysseus and his travelling - 20 years of journeying
while Moses in the book of Genesis travelled 40 years in the wilderness not to overlook
King Arthur's quest for the Holy Grail. A journey will imply movement; from one place to
another. It may be the form of a trip or a process of development, movement, movement
from innocence to awareness, literary, a long and difficult process of change in life,
could include a spiritual journey. You can read my book titled "Journeys in the selected
novels of Oyono, Ngugi, and George Eliot." It can be accessed in the University library's
special Collection or you can google it and buy a copy.

THEMATIC APPROACH TO SILAS MARNER

George Eliot brings to the fore several pertinent aspects in Silas Marner. For the
moment, we will look at six thematic aspects and the rest is yours to research. The first
aspect is the theme of innocence and the loss of it.

The theme of Innocence and the loss of it.

Silas Marner declares his innocence when he is betrayed by his bosom friend, William
Dane who accuses him of stealing the church money. When quizzed, Silas Marner
says, 'I am innocent and God will clear me' but his innocence is subjected to casting of
lots. Unfortunately, he is found guilty of the offense he did not commit. This leads to his
disfellowship from the church. As if that is not enough, his paramour, Sara, dumps him.
Silas has not only lost his innocence and his lover but also faith in humanity and in God
whom he accuses of being unfair. He says, ' I now know there is no just God who
governs the world righteously but a God of lies who bears witness against the innocent.'
Silas believes that God has abandoned him when He does not come to his rescue when
lots are cast. Having lost his innocence and subsequent excommunication from the
church, Silas leaves Lantern Yard in despair. In anguish, he undertakes a journey like a
journey in the mind which makes him ask many questions, 'what have I done to deserve
such a fate?'

The Theme of Alienation/Solitude

In his despair, Silas Marner leaves Lantern Yard symbolically this journey into the
darkness (nocturnal) from the solar regime. This disjuncture which is schismatic - this
applies according to Northrop Frye's Archetype where we have first the cosmic vision.
We talk of communal fellowship. In the tragic vision of the universe, we find the
individual cut off from the community (alienation of the individual). We are talking about
solitude here in which this journey can be likened to the process of individuation
because the journey is into the dark and undertaken in anguish. This becomes like a
journey in the tunnel (labyrinth). Silas has grasped a labyrinthian thread and he is like
drawing the mandala. In mythology, we look at it as a hero who journeys in darkness
because he does not know where to. There is a thread from one point of the labyrinth
which is called the "The thread of Ariane". still in mythology, if the hero is lost in this
tunnel he is likely to be devoured. A mythological beast in the family of cyclops which is
seen in the tunnel is half man and half bull. This is Minotaur. This is the summation of
the belly of the forces which is going to devour the individual. We can see how complex,
how anguished this character is who is in a labyrinthian journey. When we picture Silas
Marner in his lonely journey with his belongings, the picture of Pilgrim's Progress comes
to our mind. (read more on pilgrim's progress).

The farther Silas Marner travels away from Lantern Yard, the more alienated he
becomes. And his arrival at the periphery of Raveloe's emphasises the alienation of our
unfortunate hero. Once again we refer to Northrop Frye where there is no social
intercourse with other members. Silas' prolonged estrangement from the fellow man
further emphasises the alienation of our unfortunate hero. Like Adam and Eve lost the
fellowship with God, so does Silas Marner and this is evident in his final blasphemous
words before departure from Lantern Yard, " I now know there is no just God who
governs the world righteously except a god of lies who bears witness against the
innocent." Initially, there is a lot of suspicion from the peasants of Raveloe over this
new arrival of the origins who they don't know. This is typical of rural life as opposed to
the urban setting (anonymity). Some of his characteristics enhance this suspicion from
the people of Raveloe. There is going to be a turning point in the life of Silas Marner. So
far his only contact is weaving.

The Theme of Toil and Reward

Silas Marner spends his time in the cottage working in isolation like automation. He is
robotic and out of the toil, he is adequately rewarded. He, however, earns a frugal life
( living on a barest minimal). In utter solitude, his only pleasure comes in the evenings
when he is counting the money he has accumulated. In other words, we see the birth of
concupiscence (love for the money). This is linked up with the theft of the treasure
which reminds us of a certain character in Morrie's play who created a miser called
Harpagon. Further, we are also reminded of the hidden treasure in the Bible which
teaches us to store our wealth in heaven where there are no moths and thieves. Silas
perhaps cannot pay attention to such scripture since he has lost faith in God and
humanity. Hence his deriving pleasure from counting his money. All these are avatars
(a variant of something). We can argue that Shylock Silas is a product of avarice
(deriving joy out of seeing their accounts swelling). in this avarice, we see a transfer of
Silas Marner's love from humanity to pecuniary gain. Instead of his heart going for his
fellow man, he goes for counting his money with delight in his heart that ignites his face
with happiness. Equally, we see a transfer of Silas's love from God to gold.

The theme of Toil and Reward is also seen through the Squire Cass in Raveloe who
has toiled and the result is the Red House. The Squire Cass is an epitome of the landed
gentry. But Dunstan and Godfrey Cass succumb to the life of debauchery and sowing
wild oats (changing women every so often) using the money their father has toiled so
hard to get.

The Theme of Plunder

The theme of plunder is seen by the Cass brothers who reap where they did not sow.
They want to sell the horse Wildfire. This horse when it is killed in an accident, it ushers
in the plot. Dunstan steals the treasure. This thing becomes a companion to Silas
Marner. Ironically, the robbery temporarily draws Silas to the Raveloe community to find
out who the robber would be. This is a crucial moment of suspense in the plot because
this money has gone into the abyss of no return and yet in the end this money is found
and we rejoice. This money has been kept waiting for the arrival of Eppie until her
marriage Aaron.

The Theme of Redemptive female figure

Here we can ask you how many females you can associate with redemption. In Silas
Marner, the refusal of Eppie to stay with her biological father influences the life of
Godfrey. Eppie, like the Masarwa in Bessie's Maru, through her journey helps in the
rehabilitation of society. Eppie rehabilitates Silas because her arrival opens Silas to the
community of Raveloe. Further, Silas who had turned his back upon his creator, God,
we now see him attend church services. The God he had called the God of lies is also
rehabilitated in the minds of Silas. On the other side, Nancy Lammeter plays a
redemptive role as well in the Cass family. She redeems Godfrey who had surrendered
to the life debauchery - that is, drunkenness, general immorality, sowing wild oats -
meaning changing women every so often - this is due to the absence of the mother
(mother figure). Here we can ask ourselves, 'how much influence does a mother figure
has on the upbringing of children?'

The Theme of Homo Humus

This refers to the loss of one individual facilitates the upbringing of the abandoned child.
Therefore, death and the abandoned child can be discussed under the theme of Homo
Humus. For instance, in Maru, the abandoned child comes to serve the whole Marsarwa
tribe. She is dehumus (man borne out of the humus). Even the independence struggle
is an example of Homo Humus. In the case of Silas Marner, what role is she (Molly's
child) going to play in that society? The idea of an abandoned child is the theme of the
journey. Someone had undertaken the journey for something to happen. On this
journey, Molly and the child (Eppie) separate, that is, the journey is schismatic but on
this journey, the child is integrated into Silas. We can see here that the journey in
literature can schismatic or integrative. The idea of the abandoned child can be
exemplified by the Roman Twins, the best example of nature fending for the life of the
abandoned child. The story of Oedipus is well known to us as well as the story of
Hermes. The abandoned child becomes a queen from the Cinderella myth. In Maru, the
downtrodden Cinderella woman marries a prince Maru. Molly, on her journey to the Red
House, becomes a victim of rigor mortis (stiffness) and opium.

The Theme of the Journey

As indicated in the preamble of this document, the idea of the journey originates from
the Greek mythology and it implies movement from place to place or maybe a form of a
trip or a process of development, movement from innocence to awareness, a literary
long and difficult process of change in life. It could include a spiritual journey. The theme
of the journey is very important to Silas Marner as it brings about transformation. In the
novel, the journey is undertaken at three levels namely physical, mental, and spiritual.
Silas Marner undertakes the three journeys and they have an impact on how he views
the world. At the end of all his three journeys, he is completely rehabilitated as he has
gained a positive image, self-esteem and become a new dynamic individual while Molly
dies in the process of undertaking her journey to the Red house. However, Molly's
journey to the Red House to dump the child (Eppie) at her father's home is crucial as
Eppie's going into Silas Marner's cottage upon being abandoned by her mother Molly
marks the genesis of Silas's psychological healing. After the loss of his money, Silas
undergoes psychological torment and hopelessness. Silas's crisis is redeemed by the
love Eppie gives him. Dunstan's journey to selling Wildfire is equally significant in the
sense that his stealing of Silas Marner's gold ends the weaver's years of loneliness.
This theft draws Silas to Raveloe's community for the first time in 15 years as he goes to
find the person who has stolen his money. (read more on the significance of Silas
Marner's journeys in Mr. Lubbungu's book titled "Journeys in the selected novels of
Oyono, Ngugi, and George Eliot.").

NOTE

The themes brought out in these notes are not exhaustive. Therefore, you have to
identify more thematic areas in the novel.

You can also consult the following sources to consolidate your understanding of Silas
Marner:
 1. Bennet, Joan, George Eliot. Cambridge: The University Press, 1962. Pp. 132-
138
2. Hardy, Barbara, The Novels of George Eliot. London: The Athlone Press, 1959,
1963.

Brain Teaser

How does the Novel Silas Marner bring to the fore the weltanschauung of the period
under review?

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THE END!!!!!!!

Dr. Lubbungu 2020