Silas Marner - George Eliot. Eliot's presentation of the divide between rich and poor, and to what extent this is an influential factor in the novel.

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                                                                    Phillip Nicholls

Silas Marner – George Eliot

Eliot’s presentation of the divide between rich and poor, and to what extent this is an influential factor in the novel. 

In “Silas Marner” George Eliot depicts life in the village of Raveloe with the main character, Silas Marner as the focus of the story. The novel was set in Victorian England and highlights much of the social and domestic activities prevalent at the time.

At that time the country was going through one of its largest changes. Industry and commerce were now playing a major role in Britain’s economy whereas prior to this, the wealth was concentrated on the land and agriculture. Both of these types of wealth however, relied heavily on poorly paid workers being the driving the driving force of this success.

Raveloe being a small village is typical of a more conservative community. Squire Cass, owner of a large estate and head of the social hierarchy of the area, accumulates his wealth from the land and property and from the long line of landed gentry that he succeeds. The only other family that rivals this kind of standing within the community are the Lammeters. They too are descendants of wealthy landowners and are equal to the Cass’ in status. Below the Cass family are the middle classes such as the doctors and magistrates of the village. The Kimble’s social credibility made them “suitable” friends for the Cass family.

The third tiers in this structure were the peasants and workers; the labourers of the village. They had skilled jobs and worked hard to live in any comfort. They respected and looked up to those with money and status and in return they were looked down on. Silas Marner fell in to this category and was influenced by the pressure of acting within the constraints of his role in society. This is an important aspect of the novel and Marner is vital in Eliot’s presentation of the class divide in the village of Ravaloe.

        In her creation of Raveloe, Eliot explores the almost natural separation of the classes in Victorian Britain. The typical unwritten laws of how both sides conducted themselves are depicted within the main storyline. In chapter eleven at the grand New Year’s Eve party at the Red House, the estate of the Cass family, it is said, “…Mr Macey and a few other privileged villagers who were allowed to be spectators on these great occasions were seated on benches placed by the door and great was the admiration…when the couples had formed…for the dance.” Here it is clearly evident that there was not only separation of the classes but that there was a mutual and unchallenged system in place whereby villagers were only good enough to sit on benches by the door and in return, the villagers were privileged and still even admired the splendour of the upper classes who danced before them.

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This kind of formal segregation within the Raveloe community is also seen in the local pub the Rainbow. In the beginning of Chapter six it says: “…the more important customers who drank spirits and sat nearest to the fire…”. This shows that people such as the middle classes naturally had unlimited access to the pubs fire. This would mean that in this kind of community social standing guarantees a better position in public places. The text then goes on describe their activities in relation to the workers and peasants of the village. “(The important customers)…stared at each other as if ...

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