2020 May: The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot

[Lesle, Appalachian Bibliophile]

The Mill on the Floss is a novel by George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans), first published in three volumes in 1860.

The title of this book has nothing to do with dentistry. The "Floss" is actually a river. And the "Mill" in question is actually Dorlcote Mill, the family home and business of the Tullivers, conveniently located on the river Floss. ... Or it does once you figure out that the Floss is a river. Haha!

Spanning a period of 10 to 15 years, the novel details the lives of Tom and Maggie Tulliver, siblings growing up at Dorlcote Mill on the River Floss. The mill is situated at the junction of the River Floss and the more minor River Ripple, near the village of St Ogg's in Lincolnshire, England. Both the river and the village are fictional. (579 pages)

(This is a little longer than a normal group read, if need be we can extend the timeframe.)

The story was adapted as a film, The Mill on the Floss, in 1937, and as a BBC series in 1978 starring Christopher Blake, Pippa Guard, Judy Cornwell, Ray Smith and Anton Lesser.

[Brian E]

The only visual version I have seen was the 1997 PBS Masterpiece production, starring Emily Watson as Maggie. I remember that having recently seen Ms. Watson's marvelous Oscar nominated performance in 1996's Breaking the Waves, I was really looking forward to seeing her as Maggie. I remember the TV movie as being just so-so. and thought it would have been better as a miniseries.

I will join the read in the 2nd half of the month. It will serve as my Kindle read between Lorna Doone and Evelina.

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

I will be starting sometime next week.

[Brian E]

In other George Eliot news, Jessica Chastain's company is developing a movie of the 2016 novel The Honeymoon: A Novel of George Eliot by Dinitia Smith. The book is a depiction of a 60 year old Eliot's honeymoon with a 40 year old man. The book also contains flashbacks to her earlier life, so it will be interesting to see Eliot's story portrayed on screen.

[Tr1sha]

I’ll read this too.

[Kathy]

I'll be listening to this.

[Tr1sha]

I read this about 3 years ago & had forgotten how good it is. The descriptions of the places are beautiful. I’m glad it was chosen as a group read as that prompted me to start reading it again.

[Kathy]

I like the character of Maggie. So many emotions and thoughts.

[Tr1sha]

Kathy wrote: "I like the character of Maggie. So many emotions and thoughts."

I agree, I think she’s wonderful even though she often acts without thinking first. (view spoiler)[But I’m disappointed that her brother is so selfish & often upsets her. She adores him but he can be very unkind to her at times. (hide spoiler)]

[[deleted user]]

I'm a little more than halfway through. My first George Elliott novel. I love her descriptive writing and wit. I am reminded of the themes in Jane Austen's writing (am also beginning a reread of Austen novels with a group formed on Litsy). The ideas of of sense and sensibility: the push and pull of emotion and love of art, etc vs. desire/need to hunker down and focus on survival, supporting family, etc. That is Maggie's story halfway through the novel and I'm very interested in how the story unfolds!

[Tr1sha]

I just finished this & am very pleased I read it again. I had forgotten a lot of it & definitely enjoyed it more this time than when I read it previously.

[[deleted user]]

I'm about 3/4 through and it has engaged me for sure. At first I was lamenting that I hadn't started with Middlemarch, but that can come next. I'm also re-reading Austen's Sense and Sensibility right now and am liking some of the similar themes--the pursuit of love, art, etc vs. submitting to the confines of a life limited by income and circumstances.

[Kathy]

The book is so enjoyable. At about halfway through, Maggie and Tom seem more sensible than their parents.

[María]

I've just got a copy from my online library, hope to start soon and get back on track with the classics :)

[Kathy]

I've finished the book and loved the character of Maggie throughout because of her loyalty. She was so hard on herself though, although I suppose that goes with the times.

[Brian E]

Sam wrote: " At first I was lamenting that I hadn't started with Middlemarch, but that can come next. "

I think its better to start Eliot with a 206,000 word book like this one than with the lengthy 316,000 word Middlemarch. Being cautious, I chose to dip my toe into the Eliot world with the relatively short 63,000 word Silas Marner about 32 years ago.
This novel was my second Eliot, but read long enough ago to warrant a reread - I started yesterday.

[Eugene]

I finished this on Thursday. I like characters who are well constructed and believable, complete with human frailty.

[Tr1sha]

Sam wrote: "I'm about 3/4 through and it has engaged me for sure. At first I was lamenting that I hadn't started with Middlemarch, but that can come next. I'm also re-reading Austen's Sense and Sensibility rig..."

Sam, I think you made a good decision. I enjoyed The Mill on the Floss. But since finishing it I tried Middlemarch, struggled to get into it & gave up after just over 15%. It was very different, I felt as though I was reading a book by a different author - the style seemed very pompous & unnecessarily long. I felt quite sad, as many people say it’s wonderful & possibly her best book - but it didn’t work for me. I may try it again in future, but not yet.

[Rosemarie, Northern Roaming Scholar]

Trisha, if you want to read another book by this author, I recommend Silas Marner. I read it a couple of years ago, after reading most of her long novels, and loved it.

[Piyangie, Classical Princess]

This is a book sadly I haven't been able to enjoy even after reading twice. Unfortunately, this was my first Geroge Eliot reading and it kind of put me off from reading more of her works. But last year I read Middlemarch and loved it. But I'm still a little apprehensive of reading her.

[Brian E]

I've finished about 60% of the book. This is a general comment without. or at least with very minimal, plot spoilers.

An interesting aspect of this novel to me is the narrator who, while normally telling the story in 3rd person, occasionally, though rarely, steps into the story and comments using the 1st person "I."
In the beginning, the narrator introduces herself as someone remembering being at the time and place of the story and then introduces the story:
"I wander along the bank, and listen to its low, placid voice... I remember those large willows, I remember the stone bridge... Before I dozed off, I was going to tell you what Mr. and Mrs. Tulliver were talking about, as they sat be the bight fire in the left-hand parlor, on that very afternoon I have been dreaming of.
The narrator reappears, such as at the beginning of Book IV, when in describing the oppressive feeling of the Tulliver life to that of abandoned ruin towns on the Rhine, states:
"I share with you their sense of oppressive narrowness; but it is necessary that we should feel it if we care to understand the lives of Tom and Maggie."

I didn't remember this aspect from my previous read of TMOTF or other of Eliot's novels. While narrators do comment in other novels, such as Trollope's, somehow this narrator seems different. Usually the comment is as the author/omniscient narrator while here it seems to be more of a ghostly person - almost like the Stage Manager in Our Town, albeit a smaller role,

[Brian E]

FINISHED THE BOOK - SPOILERS
Well, I enjoyed that ride. At first, I thought the story was fairly slow and uneventful and I was wondering about my positive memory of it as a 4 star read. However, as the story progressed through the last third to its conclusion, I thought it was almost riveting, reinforcing my memory of it as a very good novel. Here's some comments, which I will put in spoilers for double protection as I don't want to spoil the experience for first timers:
(view spoiler)[
1. Maggie is such a wonderful human heroine with goodness and weaknesses that makes the tragedy more...tragic?
2. The book revolves around the dynamics of Maggie's relationships; the key ones being with: her brother Tom, her friend/cousin Lucy, and her suitors Philip and Stephen.
3. On one hand, Eliot ties to temper the end tragedy in this novel with the fact that Maggie has resolved one of the personal conflicts the book, in that she and her brother are joined, almost entwined, just before and in death. While I say, bullcr@p, as my sympathy to Tom was nil by that time, I understand Eliot's attempt to reconcile the two. The story does begin with their childhood relationship and so the cycle concludes with them being back together.
4. On the other hand, Eliot exacerbates the tragedy by presenting Stephen, Philip and Lucy as being open to loving/liking Maggie whatever she does. At least, that's the impression I had, despite Stephen's constancy. Of course, Maggie doesn't want to have the power to decide as anything she does hurts somebody somehow.
5. On that point, my memory (after 30/35 years) was such that I didn't recall if Maggie had just allowed herself to drown at the end. I can see why my memory could be confused on that - one often takes the easy way out - though it is clear that she didn't here. (hide spoiler)]

This is a book that I closed (well, touched the screen?) and said, "that was a well-done story." I also understand why I remembered it as the most like a Hardy novel of the Eliots I've read.

[Brian E]

While reading the last part of the book, I found myself often thinking of another character named Philip; the main character in Of Human Bondage. Both Philips are romantically frustrated through their physical handicap; one a club foot, the other a hunch back. I found no evidence that Maugham was thinking about The Mill on the Floss character when he named his autobiographical character Philip. Maugham himself had a stammer rather than a club foot.