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The Mill on the Floss
(1860)
The most autobiographical of Eliot's works.
As Maggie Tulliver approaches adulthood, her spirited temperament brings her into conflict with her family, her community, and her much-loved brother Tom. Still more painfully, she finds her own nature divided between the claims of moral responsibility and her passionate hunger for self-fulfillment.
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Book 1: Boy and Girl
Book 3: The Downfall
Book 6: The Great Temptation
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Tom and Maggie embrace in death - a happy ending?
On finishing The Mill on the Floss, I thought Maggie and Tom entwined in death a romantic but feeble ending to an otherwise great novel. Although a few pages earlier, I was blown away with the astonishing acceptance of Maggie by austere Aunt Glegg. Nevertheless, death coming to Maggie's rescue in situation impossible seemed decidedly too glib. On reflecting - and I find reflection is always prudent on finishing literature - I feel that this interpretation of the ending is superficial. Maggie is locked in a seemingly insoluble ethical dilemma throughout the second half of the novel, a dilemma which, if anything, worsens with time. Borne with brother Tom on the raging torrent of flood-waters, death provides her a convenient release? Surely the reader expects Maggie to endure heroically to a sad end decades in the future. In the flood she thinks only of Tom, trapped in the low-lying mill. From a young girl, Maggie has been motivated by a love that withstands repeated cold-shoulders from her intolerant brother. He has disowned her. But stranded by rising flood-waters, a hitherto recalcitrant Tom has a convenient change of heart and welcomes his rescuer in the row-boat. With the threat of drowning imminent, his rigid moral code becomes more accommodating, at least in the short term. Consider what is happening in the mind of this son of the late Mr. Tulliver? Why does the headstrong Tom venture recklessly into the perilous current, with his sister on-board, when he surely knows that Lucy’s home is situated on higher ground? Lucy is unlikely to be in mortal danger from the flood. Remember that Tom has just suffered the embarrassment of being rescued by his little sister, his fallen sister. So what does he do? He shows himself as reckless as his father, Mr Tulliver, who gambled everything on a frivolous lawsuit at the expense of his family. Tom gambles with his sister’s life, and in death they are entwined, just as the family had once been entangled in bankruptcy. Is this romance? I'm not so sure. The death of brother and sister in the flood-waters is hardly a happy ending from any angle. Maggie’s perennial struggle with passion for Stephen Guest and boundless sympathy for Philip Wakem is unresolvable. Had the two siblings survived, Tom would have continued to oppose Philip, and her sad obsession with the rather shallow Stephen Guest - and Lucy's loss - would have continued to haunt the clever Maggie. Tellingly, Stephen is such an unsympathetic character, with little moral sensibility as he continues to stalk Maggie like a spider its prey. I think the high drama of the ending makes little difference. Notwithstanding her epitaph, "In their death they were not divided," Maggie is a supremely tragic figure, dead or alive.
Posted By Gladys at Wed 30 Nov 2011, 3:05 AM in The Mill on the Floss || 2 Replies
forgiveness
I thought when I read this novel it had to do with the importance of forgiveness.
Posted By Motherof8 at Wed 13 Jul 2011, 7:35 PM in The Mill on the Floss || 0 Replies
Tom
Did anybody that read that book dislike the character Tom Tulliver? I didn't like the way he treated his sister. By the way, Why were so many unable to understand the book? I thought it was easy to understand and I'm a very "right brained" person.
Posted By Motherof8 at Mon 28 Jun 2010, 11:16 AM in The Mill on the Floss || 0 Replies
help needed as soon as possible
hey everyone, i have two speeches to give: 1. Moral conflict forms the basis of the novel. Discuss 2. " The Mill on the Floss" is to a large extent the autobiography of George Eliot. Discuss the element in the novel. i was wondering if anyone had any information that would help me? cheers
Posted By alpa at Fri 10 Oct 2008, 1:21 PM in The Mill on the Floss || 0 Replies
In reponse to the introduction
"Still more painfully, she finds her own nature divided between the claims of moral responsibility and her passionate hunger for self-fulfillment." : There really is in my humble and often incorrect opinion no difference.
Posted By captnklean at Sun 22 Jun 2008, 11:29 PM in The Mill on the Floss || 0 Replies
heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelp
hi every one iam studying the mill on the floss this semister and i need help cus we are supposed to cover many accepect of the novel and i havnt find these material in the internet do you know any site which can help me? these are the list of some of these things: morality and rationalism:thumbs_up realism:idea: humor:lol: maggie as tragic heroine:sick: eliot as a psychological novelist:yawnb: pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeas the first one is v imp and ineed help specially in this point:bawling:
Posted By lamess at Thu 20 Mar 2008, 9:17 AM in The Mill on the Floss || 1 Reply
help...I need information
i need your help to find some information about the humour in the mill on the floss.. I`v searched alot of sites but I couldn`t reach to any point so I`m desperate and I realy need your help.. thank you...
Posted By saryh at Sat 8 Mar 2008, 2:51 PM in The Mill on the Floss || 1 Reply
URGENT ESSAY HELP..deadline looming!!!!!!
i have got to hand in an essay on 'The Mill On The Floss' in a week. the essay is only on the first part of the book , that is, 'Boy And Girl'. I have some points in my mind but i need to get all possible issues that crop up in the first part. So please please help me with every possible point that marks the first part like social conditions , relationships .... and more.
Posted By littlelit at Sat 18 Aug 2007, 12:26 PM in The Mill on the Floss || 1 Reply
i m start reading but can't understand its 2 hard plz help me.....
help me in characters...i want 2 know the relation of all character from eliot....n what's the relation of all charater between them plzzzzzzzzz help me....
Posted By farahkhan at Fri 20 Apr 2007, 2:55 AM in The Mill on the Floss || 2 Replies
A Mill On the Floss
I am currently reading this novel, and have recently received an assignment from my teacher. Here is the question; How does Elliot convey to the reader the kind of community/society/family life leved by the Dodsons and Tullivers? You need to consider style, technique, description, devices, details, dialogue, analysis, author's commentary and thoughts. Give evidence for your comments by referring closely to the text. Can anybody shine some light on this? Or perhaps point me towards the flashlight of knowledge?
Posted By Mr. Schutte at Sun 7 Jan 2007, 1:14 PM in The Mill on the Floss || 6 Replies