Compare chapter 5 of Silas Marner, inwhich Silas finds his gold missing, with chapter 12, when Eppie arrives

remain home alone while the rest of the villagers gather at ‘Mrs Osgood’s birthday dance’ at the Rainbow. Marner’s overwhelming obsession with gold makes him blind to the other problems in his life, which are made more serious by his dependence on the gold, for example ‘the light of his faith’ has been ‘completely put out’, as Marner believes he no longer needs religion, now that he worships gold instead. Even though Marner has fallen into this materialistic lifestyle because he lacks the emotional substance he needs, the more he relies on his gold, the more it gathers ‘his power of loving into a hard isolation like it’s own’, making it more difficult for him to re-enter into society. This demonstrates to the reader how material objects can never lead to a fulfilled life, but instead catalyse one’s descent into spiritual and emotional desolation. Eliot symbolises the importance of community with Marner’s decision to ‘turn to the great people of the village’ when his gold is stolen. This represents how no human can ever be entirely alone and independent from others, as the famous quote says: ‘no man is an island’. The dangers of isolation are raised when Eliot presents the question of what thief would travel  ‘into the stone pits in a night like this?’ This suggests that perhaps the crime would not have happened if Marner was more integrated into the community. Marner himself is presented as a victim of (rather unfortunate) circumstances and quite a passive protagonist. He reflects the psychologically believable style of Eliot’s characters, as his personality ‘calls forth tolerant judgement, pity and sympathy’.         However, in chapter 12, while the important moral message of greed and the destructive power of money is still present, there is another more important and prominent message. That is that the influence of love and human contact and how both can be a powerful redemptive force. Prior to Eppie’s arrival, Marner remains attached and obsessed with his money, living a life of ‘yearning and unrest’. In addition to this, his devotion to gold has left Marner ‘listening and gazing not with hope’, an empty, emotionless being. Eliot further demonstrates the destructive nature of money and wealth by suggesting that Marner’s attachment to gold is similar to a drug-addict’s reliance on their substance of choice. Molly’s reliance on ‘the demon Opium’ could signify how Marner is destined for a similar fate, if he does not relinquish his devotion and loyalty to gold. Eliot presents the redemptive force of human contact through Marner’s reaction to Eppie. He refers to Eppie as a ‘marvel’ she also and triggers sentimental memories in Marner’s mind. Eppie reminds him of his ‘little sister whom he carried’. This illustrates how children and childhood memories can evoke and idyllic, emotional state in even the most detached, hardened adult. This again corresponds with Eliot’s own beliefs, in particular her philosophy surrounding children, based on Wordsworth’s epigraph: “A child, more than all other gifts That earth can offer to declining man, Brings hope with it, and forward-looking thoughts.”