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Introduction/15
fictionmotifs.InChapter1,IanalysetheplotofTheMillonthe
FlossinthelightofaromanticformulaintroducedbyWalter
Scott,inwhichtwoheroines,onefair-hairedandtheotherdark-
haired,competefortheloveoftheprotagonist.InChapter2,
IstudyEliot’suseofthetwosuitorsformula,asexemplifiedin
JaneAusten’sPrideandPrejudiceandSenseandSensibility,inwhich
aheroinehastomakeachoicebetweentherightandthewrong
suitor.AmongEliot’snovels,thisformulaisutilizedinarelatively
simpleforminFelixHolt,theRadicalandthenre-deployed,with
muchmorecomplexity,inhernextnovel,Middlemarch.Finally,
inChapter3,IfocusonEliot’sindebtednesstosensationnovels
inherfinalandmostinnovativework,DanielDeronda.Inorder
toensurecoherence,IdecidedonthefournovelsbyEliotthat
aresetduringherownlifetime,andnotonthosethataresetin
thepast.IwillalsobrieflydiscussEliot’sliterarydebut,HTheSad
FortunesoftheReverendAmosBarton”andoccasionallyrefer
toAdamBede,SilasMarner,andRomola.Myfocus,however,ison
TheMillontheFloss,FelixHolt,MiddlemarchandDanielDeronda,
which,asIwouldliketocontend,representsubsequentstagesin
Eliot’sengagementwithpopulartropes.
Inthecourseofhercareer,GeorgeEliotexperimentedmore
andmorefreelywithpopularfictionformulas.Fromafairly
traditionaldeploymentofScottianandAustenianformulasin
herearlynovels,shemovedontoplayinginamoreinvolvedand
oftensubversivewaywiththeseconventionsinMiddlemarchand
DanielDeronda.Mostinterestingly,hernotesforhernextnovel,
summarizedabove,containawealthofsensationalmotifsthat
clearlysuggestshemeanttocontinuetheseexperimentsinfurther
work.
Inthismonograph,IstudyGeorgeEliot’snovelsinthecontext
oftheliteraryproductionofhertime.Indoingso,Iadheretothe
NewHistoricistpreceptthatHtextsareimaginativespacesthatnot
onlyreflectsocialrealitybutactivelyshapeit”(Montrose1988:8).
InstudyingcontemporaryreviewsofEliot’snovels,andalso
herreactionstothereviewsinhercorrespondenceanddiaries,
ItrytoreconstructthedynamicthatshapedEliot’swriting.Her
novelswerewritteninaspecificculturalandliterarycontext,
and,asanastuteliterarycriticandreviewer,shewasveryaware
