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22/Chapter1.Blondesvs.brunetes
theHmind-and-millinery,”theoracular,thewhiteneck-cloth,and
themodernantiquespecies.Herattackstartswithamock-recipe
foraHsillynovel”:
Takeawoman’shead,stuffitwithasmatteringofphilosophyand
literaturechoppedsmall,andwithfalsenotionsofsocietybaked
hard,letithangoveradeskafewhourseveryday,andserveuphot
infeebleEnglish,whennotrequired.(Eliot1992:305)
ThemainreasonsforEliot’svitrioliccondemnationofRankand
Beauty,Compensation,TheEnigmaandseveralotheranonymous
novelsof1855and1856aretheiraffectation,poorwritingstyle,
andescapism.Thearticleendswithapassionateappealto
abandonthedoublecriticalstandardforreviewingfiction.Eliot
maintainsthatwomenwritersofrealability,suchasHarriet
Martineau,CharlotteBrontëandMrsGaskellHhavebeentreated
ascavalierlyasiftheyhadbeenmen”(Eliot1992:319),butless
gifted,orplainlygraphomaniacauthoresses
areaccustomedtobetold,inthechoicestphraseologyofpuffery,that
theirpicturesoflifearebrilliant,theircharacterswell-drawn,theirstyle
fascinating,andtheirsentimentsloftyłByapeculiarthermometric
adjustment,whenawoman’stalentisatzero,journalisticapprobation
isattheboilingpitch;whensheattainsmediocrity,itisalreadyno
morethansummerheat;andifevershereachesexcellence,critical
enthusiasmdropstothefreezingpoint.(Eliot1992:319)
Inthechaptersthatfollow,IquotefromHSillyNovels”to
discussplotelementsorcharacterisationsthatsuggestEliot
wasexperimentingwithaspecifictropeorformulathatshe
hadderidedinthearticle.AsforthegeneraltenorofEliot’s
condemnationofHsillynovels,”sheobjectedtowhatmightbe
calledtheoversimplificationofreality,thefactthatthenovels
Htrytomakeoutthatthistangledwildernessoflifehasaplan
aseasytotraceasthatofaDutchgarden”(Eliot1992:121).Itis
temptingtoanalyseEliot’sownworksasaseriesofsuccessive
experimentsinmakingthenovel,asaliteraryform,moreHlife-
like”initsreflectionofthecomplexityofthehumanexperience.
Inthischapter,Iamprimarilyconcernedwiththepossibleimpactof
theromanticfictionconventionsdissectedinHSillyNovels”onThe
