Freedom and Bondage: An Interpretation of the Concept of Freedom in Middlemarch

Abstract

George Eliot, a renowned female writer and philosopher of the Victorian era, significantly embodied her philosophical ideas within her novels. The characters in Middlemarch relentlessly pursue freedom amidst the constraints of human nature, legal frameworks, and personal desires. This paper posits a remarkable resonance between George Eliot’s concept of freedom in Middlemarch and Baruch de Spinoza’s interpretation of freedom in his philosophical work, Ethica. However, Eliot’s creation of Middlemarch was not intended to serve as a vehicle for Spinoza’s view of freedom. Spinoza’s concept of freedom provided solid theoretical support for Eliot’s literary creation, and based on this, Eliot deepened the concept of freedom within Middlemarch, demonstrating her profound understanding and development of Spinoza’s ideas. Furthermore, this paper also reveals the complex societal issues and sharp human contradictions highlighted in the characters’ pursuits of freedom in Middlemarch. By analyzing Eliot’s thoughts on freedom and examining the influence of Spinoza’s view of freedom on her creation, this paper aims to open up a new path to help readers gain a more comprehensive grasp of Eliot’s philosophical ideas and the implications embedded within her literary oeuvre.