Book Description:
Middlemarch by George Eliot (the pen name of Mary Ann Evans) is a monumental work of English literature, widely regarded as one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. Set in a fictional provincial town in the years leading up to the 1832 Reform Act, the novel weaves together the lives of multiple characters whose personal ambitions, romantic entanglements, and moral struggles reflect the broader social and political changes of the time.
At the heart of the novel is Dorothea Brooke, an intelligent and idealistic young woman whose quest for purpose leads her into a misguided marriage. Alongside her story, the novel follows Tertius Lydgate, an ambitious doctor seeking scientific progress, and a host of other richly drawn characters navigating issues of class, gender, marriage, and reform.
With its sweeping scope, psychological depth, and profound social insight, Middlemarch explores the tensions between individual aspirations and societal expectations. It remains a masterwork of realism — a novel of great intellect, empathy, and narrative complexity.
