George Eliot's Life, as Related in Her Letters and Journals. Vol. 1 (of 3)

"George Eliot's Life, as Related in Her Letters and Journals. Vol. 1 (of 3)" by George Eliot is a biographical narrative composed of personal letters and journal entries, likely written in the late 19th century. This volume, edited by J.W. Cross, provides an introspective glimpse into Eliot's life, encapsulating both her intellectual evolution and emotional experiences. Through the correspondence, readers can engage with the formative years and complex inner world of Mary Ann Evans, better known as George Eliot, shedding light on both the celebrated author and the woman behind the pen. At the start of this volume, the narrative establishes the context of George Eliot's upbringing, detailing her birth on November 22, 1819, at Arbury Farm and her early years at Griff House. The opening portion emphasizes the profound impact of her family, particularly her father, Robert Evans, whose character traits she inherits, and the memorable influences of her environment in the Midlands. The text introduces snippets of her childhood experiences, revealing her complex emotions, aspirations, and relationships within her familial sphere. The prose also hints at the realities of life in early 19th century England, highlighting Eliot's reflective nature and the seeds of literary inspiration that would flourish in her later works as she navigates the trials of youth and the nurturing of her intellect. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Mary Ann Evans, known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrote seven novels: Adam Bede (1859), The Mill on the Floss (1860), Silas Marner (1861), Romola (1862–1863), Felix Holt, the Radical (1866), Middlemarch (1871–1872) and Daniel Deronda (1876). As with Charles Dickens and Thomas Hardy, she emerged from provincial England; most of her works are set there. Her works are known for their realism, psychological insight, sense of place and detailed depiction of the countryside. Middlemarch was described by the novelist Virginia Woolf as "one of the few English novels written for grown-up people" and by Martin Amis and Julian Barnes as the greatest novel in the English language.