The Filipino Group discussion

Hello. H, Ycel, and I will read this classic Victorian novel, Middlemarch, from February 26 to March 31. We need iron will and big muscles, physical and mental, to get through this. Here are some reasons you should read this book:

-You love classics.
-You love door-stoppers.
-You have lots of time.
-It's one of the ten greatest books of all time.
-You heard about Rebecca Mead and you want to jump in.

If you are interested, join us! Here are links for more inspiration:

What Is It About Middlemarch?
What Middlemarch means to some literary personalities
Tips for book clubs reading Middlemarch

Below is the proposed reading plan and some activities. It is roughly 30 pages a day.

Week 1
Feb 23: Prelims - Why do you want to read Middlemarch?
Feb 24: Prelims - Share some facts and trivia about George Eliot and Middlemarch
Feb 25: Prelims - What are your expectations from Middlemarch and from this buddy read?
Feb 26: Prelude, Book One: Chapters 1 to 4
Feb 27: Chapters 5 to 9

Week 2
Mar 02: Chapters 10 to 12
Mar 03: Book Two: Chapters 13 to 15
Mar 04: Chapters 16 to 18
Mar 05: Chapters 19 to 22
Mar 06: Book Three: Chapters 23 to 25

Week 3
Mar 09: Chapters 26 to 29
Mar 10: Chapters 30 to 33
Mar 11: Book Four: Chapters 34 to 36
Mar 12: Chapters 37 to 39
Mar 13: Chapters 40 to 42

Week 4
Mar 16: Book Five: Chapters 43 to 46
Mar 17: Chapters 47 to 50
Mar 18: Chapters 51 to 53
Mar 19: Book Six: Chapters 54 to 56
Mar 20: Chapters 57 to 59

Week 5
Mar 23: Chapters 60 to 62
Mar 24: Book Seven: Chapters 63 to 64
Mar 25: Chapters 65 to 68
Mar 26: Chapters 69 to 71
Mar 27: Book Eight: Chapters 72 to 76

Week 6
Mar 30: Chapters 77 to 82
Mar 31: Chapters 83 to Finale
Apr 01: Final thoughts

Here are some guide questions you may answer anytime:
(view spoiler)[
1. Discuss the relationship between religious and secular, spiritual and worldly, in the novel. Is it conflicted or not? Why?
2. What is Eliot's view of ambition in its different forms--social, intellectual, political? How is this evident in the novel?
3. A.S. Byatt contends that Eliot was "the great English novelist of ideas." How do you interpret this? How do you think ideas--human thought--inform the plot of Middlemarch?
4. George Eliot is a pseudonym for Mary Ann Evans. How does Eliot's femaleness--and her concealing of it--add resonance to the novel, if at all? Do you see Dorothea's character differently in this regard? Do you see Middlemarch as a "women's" novel?
5. Middlemarch was originally published in serial form, a single book at a time. What kinds of concerns affected Eliot's narrative in this regard? How do these discrete segments differ from the whole?
6. Discuss the convention of marriage in the novel. Do you feel it ultimately restricts the characters? Or is it the novel's provincial setting that proves more oppressive?
7. Discuss the metaphor of Dorothea as St. Theresa. What is Eliot saying here?
(hide spoiler)]

hahaha...I like the prelims readings. Very helpful to inspire to motivate. Bakit ko nga ba 'to gusto basahin??? hahaha

*gulp*

So technically today yung first prelim question: Why do you want to read Middlemarch? Hehehehe. Bakit nga ba?

1. I've heard a lot of wonderful things about Middlemarch (wonderful talaga :P).

2. I'm curious as to why it's such a "great" book.

3. I have nothing better to do with my life :P

Kayo ba??

Prelims - Why do you want to read Middlemarch?

Because I feel it's one of those "important" and "canon" books, and we all know that I gravitate toward such books. Also, I haven't read a lot of Victorian classics. This would be a nice (and hopefully triumphant) addition to that list.

H: Gusto ko yang third reason mo, haha!

Oh, dear. This is just like Bleak House. Why did I agree to this? LOL!

Ycel: Kaya natin yan!

Angus: Hindi ba Victorian si Jane Austen and the Bronte Sisters?

Prelim Exercise for today: Some fun facts about Middlemarch and George Eliot (hehehe)

Copied directly off the internet:


When Eliot’s first novel, Adam Bede, became a success, several men claimed to have written the book. Eliot was forced to come forward as the rightful author.

When the reading public discovered that Eliot was a woman, they didn’t know whether to condemn her for being an arrogant woman who thought she could write...or praise her for writing so well.

For over thirty years, Eliot lived with philosopher George Henry Lewes, although they never married and Lewes already had a wife.

It has been suggested that Herbert Spencer, a famed British philosopher, had an affair with Eliot and then broke up with her. Afterward, he wrote an essay on the repugnancy of ugly women. All of Eliot’s friends knew whom he was writing about.

British author Virginia Woolf said that Eliot’s Middlemarch was the first novel written for grown-ups.

Sorry, I don't know any fun facts about Middlemarch or George Eliot.

H: I think Austen is from an earlier era? So I googled and she belongs to the Romantic period (but her works daw do not conform to either Romantic or Victorian expectations).

Ycel: At least Middlemarch is rolling. Bleak House is still in the bleak future. :D

Share some facts and trivia about George Eliot and Middlemarch:

-George Eliot is the pseudonym of Mary Anne Evans (later Marian Evans).
-Her nom de plume was an homage to George Lewes. In addition to adopting his first name, the last name, Eliot, was code for "to L--I owe it"
-Middlemarch was published serially in eight parts.
-Miss Brooke, one of the eight parts, was initially a novella that she later integrated into the novel.
-Middlemarch's subtitle is "A Study of Provincial Life." This means that it represents the lives of ordinary people.
-Eliot married John Cross two years after Lewes's death. Cross was 20 years her junior.
-She died shortly after the marriage due to throat infection and kidney disease.

Because reading the Classics in the proper historical context enhances the reader's appreciation:

"But why was Middlemarch so popular? Well, it was socially and politically relevant when it first came out: it was published in 1870-71, just four years after the 2nd Reform Bill was passed in Parliament. Reform was a big deal in 19th-century England. Who would get to vote, and who would take care of poor people, and healthcare, and minimum wages – everyone had some pet reform project they wanted to bring before Parliament. But Eliot didn't want to write a novel about something that had just taken place, so she set the novel forty years earlier, in 1830 – just before the First Reform Bill was passed. Eliot believed that it takes time to understand historical events – it's impossible to understand all the consequences of something right after it takes place. It's like how all the best Vietnam War movies were made at least 5-10 years after the end of the conflict. Forty years, Eliot reasoned, was the perfect amount of distance: it's long enough that people have gained some perspective on what happened back then, but it's recent enough that the events are still pretty familiar.

Setting the novel right before the First Reform Bill of 1832 made the novel both historical and immediate (since reform was still such a hot topic). That contrast of historical and immediate, and of the universal and the individual experience, is something that comes up again and again in Middlemarch . Eliot's ability to move between specific events and general trends makes her characters some of the most sympathetic in English literature. That's what made her so popular at the time and it's part of why people still love her novels today."

Parang 'modern' na babae si George Eliot....interesting ang love life nya, and to think everyone calls her ugly.

What are my expectation, etc...?

I expect to be blown away and be amazed or enlightened by Middlemarch.

From the group discussion, I just expect to finish the novel, talk about it, be able to share ideas and insights, and have fun.

What are your expectations from Middlemarch and from this buddy read?

From the book: to understand why people adore it.
From the buddy read: to push myself to finish this. And to have fun while exchanging thoughts and feelings.

Bukas na!

H: Siguro dahil sa perceived ugliness niya kaya malakas ang loob niya na magrisk ng moves in the name of pag-ibig?

Angus: I guess, pero in fairness, maraming nagkakagusto sa kanya. Is it because of her writing or her winning personality?

Excited na ba ang lahat?? Ako......mixed feelings hehe. I'm excited to start, yet scared at the same time :P

My Thoughts and Feelings: Prelude, Book One: Chapters 1 to 4

(view spoiler)[
I actually felt sleepy while reading the first chapter so I decided to continue reading in the morning. I am still adjusting to the classical mood (I'm currently reading two other contemporary works), and it took me until Chapter 4 to finally attune my ear to it.

Probably because I was amused at Dorothea for immediately accepting Mr. Casaubon's offer at marriage and I also wonder if Dorothea exploited Sir Chettam's generosity or was she really unconscious of his affections for her? I find it hard to believe that it's the latter because it has been stressed that Dorothea is not your average vain girl and it's easy to assume that she has sharper observations than the others. But I was proven wrong when her sister, Celia, perfectly summed up her sister's attitude, about her not being easily satisfied and about her being smart but not able to see practical things as they are.

So far, it's okay. I think I need to keep to the reading plan so that I will not lose the rhythm.
(hide spoiler)]

Expectations:
(view spoiler)[
To finish this is more than enough.
(hide spoiler)]

Prelude, Book One: Chapters 1 to 4
(view spoiler)[
Dorothea Brooke struck me as an idealist. I had to constantly remind myself that she lived in the 1830s when her Puritan tendencies started annoying me (slight lang). People think she’s smart so am wondering if her decision to marry Mr. Casaubon was put there to achieve a comical effect? After all, Celia finds her sister’s decision pitiful. I’m starting to think that the latter is the more sensible of the two.
(hide spoiler)]

Sorry for the late post...I finished chapter 4 late last night, so put off writing my thoughts on it.

So far, I find it interesting. I find Dorothea and her uncle a bit amusing, Dorothea because of her puritan and naive way of thinking, and her uncle is more like a comic relief. Sir James seems like the typical "lover" character, wherein he intentionally ignores negatives because he is in love, etc. Celia seems to be the only "normal" character so far, when it comes to being a bit more well-rounded emotionally and mentally.

It was hard for me to get "into" the book at first, especially during the prelude, but after a while it was ok. There are parts where the writing and the meaning is perfectly clear to me, but there are parts that I had to read 2 or 3 times before I could really grasp what G.E. was trying to say. Because of her writing, I do need to concentrate more than usual in order to fully grasp what's going on.

There are parts where I actually laughed out loud, or snickered, at least, and there are parts where I was annoyed by Sir James' sentiments about women, especially when he thought: "A man's mind - what there is of it - has always the advantage of being masculine, - as the smallest birth tree is of a higher kind than the most soaring palm - and even in ignorance is of a sounder quality." If George Eliot was a really a man, that would sound sexist, but since "he" is really a "she," it just comes across as sarcastic and funny, as if it were like an inside joke .

Anyway, I am curious as to the fate of Dorothea....

Do you guys like Dorothea, in general, as a character / as a person?

By the way, sorry, I don't know how to put the "spoiler" cut.....???

Ycel: If it's for comical effect, I'm afraid it's lost on me. it would be hilarious tough if she marries Sir James instead so that she could continue building her cottages.

H: I haven't warmed up to Dorothea yet. She can be a little selfish and dense (I've had enough of these kinds of people, haha). But let's see. There are mooore pages to go!

Also, to put spoiler tags, type this:

< spoiler > [insert text here] < /spoiler >

Remove the spaces before and after the "<" and ">" symbols. Kung magulo pa rin explanation, click the (some html is ok) link sa upper right ng comment box. Note that spoiler tags do not work when using the Goodreads app.

A: Thanks! Ok na....

I also can't decide whether or not I like Dorothea as a person. Right now I just think she's a bit out of touch with the real world...

Well, in a way, I do think that Dorothea marrying Casaubon would be funny...in a sad way. They both have different reasons for wanting to marry each other, none of which really have anything to do with love.

Feb. 27 - Chapters 5-9:

(view spoiler)[So, Dorothea accepts Casaubon, which isn't a surprise. Both have very different reasons for wanting to marry though. Dorothea sees Casaubon more like a teacher / mentor / genius who she can learn from, and so is grateful for his offer, and Casauboon thinks her a suitable companion because she is unlike other women (i.e. not shallow, etc.).

Everyone is against the match, and it seems like their only reasons are because Casaubon is old, boring, and ugly, and not because he is a bad person.

In chapter 9, they introduce a new character, Will Ladislaw, Casaubon's cousin, whose first impression of Dorothea is not very favorable because she "loves" his cousin. I wonder if we'll see more of him in the future? (hide spoiler)]

So far, so good.... :) How are you guys doing?

My Thoughts and Feelings: Chapters 5 to 9

(view spoiler)[
I feel that this is going to be an unsuccessful marriage. The marriage is set too early in a novel that spans eight books. I have this nagging thought that there could be an adultery. And boom! We are introduced to Will Ladislaw. I can already sense the tension between him and Dorothea.

I also find the efforts of Sir James Chettam to defer the marriage of Dorothea funny. I think he really has deep feelings for Dorothea. Kind and generous, but yeah, brainless. I'd choose him anytime of the day. I'm tired of wise and learned people. I want beauty, haha!

Quotables:

We mortals, men and women, devour many a disappointment between breakfast and dinner-time; keep back the tears and look a little pale about the lips, and in answer to inquiries say, "Oh, nothing!" Pride helps; and pride is not a bad thing when it only urges us to hide our hurts— not to hurt others.

(hide spoiler)]

H: I'm enjoying it and I'm still on track. Late post lang because of Friday Night Plans.

I was thinking the same thing....the book is so long, is it going to describe Dorothea's life and marriage until she's 80 years old???

Hmm..I don't think Sir James' feelings for Dorothea are that deep, I mean, he's already thinking of courting Celia instead. I think he was just enamored with his beauty. I wonder if he'll marry Celia instead?

Btw...advance notice...I might not be able to finish all the readings exactly next week, though I will try my best. Suffice it to say that if I don't finish the required reading everyday, that I will catch up during the week (I hope). So, if I don't post everyday, please don't give up on me hahahaha.

Chapter 6 to 11:
(Reading a bit ahead, because I can only “read” this during commute. No spoilery stuff here, don’t worry)
(view spoiler)[
Chapter 6: Oh, there’s a Jane Austen crossover by way of Mrs. Cadwallader. She acts like the next generation Emma Woodhouse.

By the end of Chapter 8, I already had a sense of the characters having a voice of their own: Dorothea speaks loftily, Casaubon is boring, Celia speaks with a quiet staccato and Mr. Brooke has a habit of repeating himself (and quite a male chauvinist pig, too).

In Chapter 11, Dorothea Brooke disappears for a while and a whole new host of characters are introduced. Once the Vincy family walks in, I realize this is going to be a story about an entire town. Assembling family trees becomes essential at this point.
(hide spoiler)]

Angus: Spot on on that quote! Really loved that.

H: No worries. Life will get in the way at some point :)

I think it's the stories of everyone in Middlemarch....their town is called Middlemarch, right??

Chapter 12-17:
(view spoiler)[
Starting to get the feel of the town with the introduction of other characters.

At the start of the book, I thought that I’ll be rooting for Dorothea Brooke (being the first character to be introduced, so maybe she is the lead star). But as the chapters progress I feel myself distancing away from her. I think I will bet on Mary Garth :)

That chapter on Mr. Featherstone’s power tripping on all these people who are after his money, that is a laugh.

Mr. Lydgate and Rosamond ---I have a bad feeling about this pairing (déjà vu).

Fred and Mary? Sheesh, I wish there is someone better for this girl.

So surprised to find out that in those days, surgeons were not at par with physicians. That’s why he’s Mr. Lydgate, not Dr. Lydgate.

I liked that conversation with Mr. Lydgate and Mr. Farebrother . That certainly kept me interested.
(hide spoiler)]

H: Yup, it's the entire town's story :)

Question: Do we really have to put the spoiler tags? Tayong tatlo lang naman? Wala lang :P

Anyway, March 3 readings:

(view spoiler)[So, new characters, Mr. Lydgate, and the Vincy's. I found the whole Rosamund-Mr. Lydgate pairing funny because Rosamund has this fantasy image of Mr. Lydgate and already planning her wedding, when Mr. Lydgate is this poor doctor with no means to marry Rosamund, and does he even want to marry her? I think he just thinks she's beautiful.

From what I've read so far, I don't really like Rosamund...she seems like the shallow type....

Though I found the Mary-Fred pairing funny, even though Fred is a bit of a douchebag (sorry) hahahaha.

What was the conversation between mr. Lydgate and Mr. Farebrother....? How come I can't seem to remember that...hahaha. (hide spoiler)]

H: Baka lang may spoilery stuff if someone's ahead of the reading plan. But no spoiler tags will work for me. GR mobile sucks.

Yun nga din eh, kasi madalas sa GR mobile din ako gumagamit, pero dahil sa spoiler tags, kelangan ko pa i-access sa computer :(

Siguro ilagay na lang sa header what chapters we are commenting on.

Based on their ideas and personality, parang mas bagay itong si Mr. Lydgate at si Dorothea hahahaha.

Hi, H. Some future readers refer to archived buddy read threads (I know some people who do). So, it's better to put them in spoiler tags kahit tatlo lang tayo dito. And this thread has 31 views as of this moment. So there are 28 other people who are snooping around. ;)

I was not feeling well for the last two days but I will catch up tonight. :)

My Thoughts and Feelings: Chapters 10 to 12

(view spoiler)[
Rosamond Vincy is like another Dorothea Brooke. They are both unconventional ladies who don't conform with the town's expectations regarding the man that they want to marry. However, I feel that Rosamond's determination to marry a non-Middlemarcher more affected and deliberate, but this makes her seem like a carefree spirit, albeit very mannered. I like Rosamond more than Dorothea because she seems to have a better humor. Or probably because she has a feisty relationship with her brother.

More parallels:
Celia = Fred (the foil siblings)
Mr. Brooke = Mrs. Vincy (the comical parents)
Mr. Casaubon = Mr. Lydgate (the objects of affection)

I didn't bother much with the other cast at the dinner party. I have a feeling that we'll see more of them, this being a novel about a provincial town.
(hide spoiler)]

Chapter 21:

>>>I can totally relate to Dorothea’s sentiment about art. Sometimes I feel exactly like this:
(view spoiler)[
“I must have said so only because I never could see any beauty in the pictures which my uncle told me all judges thought very fine. And I have gone about with just the same ignorance in Rome. There are comparatively few paintings that I can really enjoy. At first when I enter a room where the walls are covered with frescos, or with rare pictures, I feel a kind of awe — like a child present at great ceremonies where there are grand robes and processions; I feel myself in the presence of some higher life than my own. But when I begin to examine the pictures one by on the life goes out of them, or else is something violent and strange to me. It must be my own dullness. I am seeing so much all at once, and not understanding half of it. That always makes one feel stupid. It is painful to be told that anything is very fine and not be able to feel that it is fine — something like being blind, while people talk of the sky.”
(hide spoiler)]

>>>Oh, my. Do you also see that Will Ladislaw *sparkles*? I like him already :)

>>>“We are all of us born in moral stupidity, taking the world as an udder to feed our supreme selves.” Ouch.

H:
What was the conversation between mr. Lydgate and Mr. Farebrother....?

I like that chapter when Mr. Lydgate visited Mr. Farebrother and found out about his hobbies. I liked that (view spoiler)[he openly warned Lydgate not to cross Bulstrode (hide spoiler)].

Ycel: Yes I just read that last night. At the time I read your comment I hadn'realized that you were reading in advance.

With regard to yesterday's reading: (view spoiler)[I don't particularly like Rosamund. I think she's a bit shallow and vain. She knows everyone who meets her is in love with her so she assumes that
Lygate is in love with her and wants to marryher. She has all these fantasies about him and their future wedding without really knowing, or caring about the truth. Lydgate on the other hand admires her but is more concerned with his career....so much so that he even voted against a friend, even though Farebrother told him to. (hide spoiler)]

I haven't made up my mind whether I like Lydgate or not, but I think I don't like Rosamund much already.

H: Doing advanced reading because I will be busy this weekend :)

Angus: I just realized today that Mr. Casaubon and Dorothea are like John Ames and Lila in terms of age disparity (but I think John Ames is older) except that the latter is a happy couple.

My Thoughts and Feelings: Book Two: Chapters 13 to 15

(view spoiler)[
I'm not sure if I like Mr. Bulstrode. However, I do agree with him for not immediately giving in to Mr. Vincy's request to sign an affidavit. I also find it repugnant that Mr. Vincy is doing this for his happy-go-luck son.

Mary amuses me. In a period where marriage is a major goal of women and matchmaking is the hobby of married women, she shows a good head for not wanting to marry a man like Fred. (I'm contrasting her from Lydia of Pride and Prejudice).

So, do we compare Rosamond and Mary in terms of their "prospecting"? It's too early because I think we should see how Mary would react if she finds someone whom she would like to marry.
(hide spoiler)]

I'm late, hehe. Work spikes this week.

H: Boo! Team Rosamond ako because I like that she's kind of a prude and yet she harbors all these fantasies

Y: Yes and yes! Not sure about the happy couple but I had this feeling right from the start that Dorothea's marriage is doomed. I even imagine, gasp, adultery!

Angus: Hahaha...is she prudish? I feel she's a bit manipulative, or maybe that word is too strong. It's just that all her actions are calculated for the purpose of being attractive. Hmm we'll see.

Actually I think I'm kinda leaning more toward Dorothea....

As for Mary and Fred, I don't know but I kind of want them to get together eventually, even though Fred seems immature and happy-go-lucky. Is he happy-go-lucky or just young carefree? He doesn't seem to be an "evil" guy.

So today's readings - March 5 - chapters 19-22

(view spoiler)[These chapters return us to Dorothea, now Mrs. Casaubon on her honeymoon in Rome, and she's starting to realize her mistake (maybe) in marrying Casaubon. She's starting to feel that he will never return her feelings of love or affection, but she seems to want to make the effort to make her life work. Of course she is still blaming herself for his lack of affection towards her, and she blames herself for her ignorance and for not enjoying Rome.

Casaubon, on the other hand is also starting to be annoyed with Dorothea, especially when she inquires about his book (or lack of it), even though she means well and just wants to organize his notes. He thinks that she is accusing him of not actually writing anything.

Will shows up again in Rome and it is more obvious that he is in love with Dorothea, even though he doesn't know it yet, or hasn't admitted it yet to himself. I think I'm kinda liking him more now, or only because Mr. Casaubon is such a jerk to Dorothea.

I feel sorry for Dorothea, even though it's her own fault. She had such high hopes for her marriage and for Casaubon. Maybe Casaubon is partly to blame for her unhappiness, but then again he never pretended to be what he wasn't - it was really just Dorothea's imagination that doomed her.

Now I'm thinking....is Will and Dorothea going to have an affair??!! I'm kinda hoping so...or maybe, it's not that type of novel! hahahaha.

Also, has any of you thought about Casaubon and Dorothea's sex life???? Meron kaya????? *gasp!* hahahaha (sorry...but I'd be lying if I said it didn't cross my mind :P) (hide spoiler)]

H: I use the term happy-go-lucky loosely. Wala pa siyang nakaset na goals eh. Tapos may utang agad? I think carefree is a euphemism (I think they basically have the same meaning). If you have set the direction of your life, it means that you care about how your future will be. If you don't, you are free of cares. Carefree. Keber. Walang kebs. Happy-go-lucky. LOL.

Y: I like Will right from the start. The artist with the curly hair. I swoon!

hahaha, I also think he is happy-go-lucky, pero walang malice sa personality nya. He doesn't seem to be a Wickam to me...

Will, dreamy....? hmm....we'll see :-P

My Thoughts and Feelings: Chapters 16 to 18

(view spoiler)[
I had a bunch of stuff typed in when I inadvertently closed the browser window. LOL. Anyway, I have a feeling that Eliot developed Lydgate as a sort of alpha male in the early part of the book. However, she put him in a difficult situation (the voting for the chaplain). Whichever way he votes, the novel would still take an interesting turn, and I like that.

If Lydgate voted for Farebrother, he would be the romantic-heroic man. But he has set a goal, which is not be a romantic-heroic man. He wants to use his gifts and medical knowledge for the good of other people (the hospital). His convenient vote for Tyke dampened my admiration for him, but should we make a judgment on his moral character? Does the end really justify the means? Is there a sense of betrayal in voting against Farebrother?
(hide spoiler)]

I have the weekend to catch up. Cheer for me!

My Thoughts and Feelings: Chapters 19 to 22

(view spoiler)[
First, can I just say that kinikilig ako kay Will Ladislaw? Hahaha! Anyway, I first thought that the book title, Old and Young, is a reference to the newlyweds, the Casaubons. However, I feel that it is more about Mr. Casaubon and his cousin, Mr. Ladislaw. It's like a compare-and-contrast chapter of the two men who are romantically involved with Dorothea.

Also wondering why women of those times sat comfortably in the role of subservience. I don't get why Dorothea, a promising girl who is definitely not the common type, would always defer herself to men and think little of her knowledge (and still defer to men instead of imagining means on how to expand her knowledge).

I get that the truly wise admits to knowing less, or even nothing. And modesty is a virtue of those times. Eliot, I imagine, is all for girl power. So I would like to think that this is Eliot's take and critique on the role of women in that society.
(hide spoiler)]

Y: I also get that sentiment of Dorothea's, especially if art is subjected to lofty criticism. My art critique is limited to exclamations of "I like the colors," "I like the mood and portrayal," "I like the feeling it evokes in me." But in the end, what matters is the experience (so yeah, I wouldn't go to the art museum with snobbish artists because lest they ruin the experience for me). Painting is, after all, a visual experience. So, I'm more inclined to side with Dorothea's other sentiment:

"I suppose I am dull about many things[...] I should like to make life beautiful--I mean everybody's life. And then all this immense expense of art, that seems somehow to lie outside life and make it no better for the world, pains one. It spoils my enjoyment of anything when I am made to think that most people are shut out from it."

H: The first time I read about Will, I immediately thought of adultery. At hindi pa kasal sina Dorothea nun. I don't think that the possibility is not without reason. Anna Karenina, published at the same decade, centers on adulterous affairs. So let's see if the novel will take that turn.

And yes, mukhang walang sex life ang Casaubons! Baka naman umiiyak si Dorothea because she feels that she cannot fully complete her duties as a wife, either because she feels ugly or not enough or something. Dorothea is always self-deprecating!

A: Actually, tanong ko din yan (view spoiler)[is Mr. Casaubon good in bed? (hide spoiler)] I wonder if GE will even answer this question.

Will *sparkles.* Ang cute cute ng lines nya.

Y: Ang cute niya kapag nagseselos siya!

Haha, para tayong nag fa-fangirl-ing over Will :P (Including Angus haha).

(view spoiler)[I think though that Dorothea is self-deprecating because that's just how she is. At the time, women were taught to be subservient to men, so it's not like something to choose to do - that's just what comes naturally, maybe especially to girls born and raised in the province. Dorothea, for her part, probably thinks it's the natural thing to do, so when she feels a bit rebellious or her a bit argumentative, she feels guilty. Also, she takes her "duties" as a wife seriously, as in, she doesn't want to contradict her husband and looks to him as her ultimate everything (provider, protector, etc., etc., etc.,).

Honestly though, I don't see Dorothea as the cheating kind......she keeps blaming herself for Casaubon's shortcomings, I don't think she'll ever feel that he's at fault for anything. It would be interesting to see though, if she will eventually commit adultery. (hide spoiler)]

Sorry, I haven't finished the chapters for last Friday, and I didn't read at all during the weekend. I have 1 chapter left, from Friday's readings. I'll catch up today, as well as try to finish today's readings.

A funny thing....I was reading another book during the weekend, a non-fiction about a Victorian murder somewhere in the English countryside, and there's an inn mentioned there called the Red Lion. I noticed that it's the same in mentioned in Middlemarch (where Fred went to sell his horse). Wala lang...just a weird coincidence of the Red Lion in. I wonder if it's in the same area though.

H: Must look into the history of the feminist movement. It's blood-curdling seeing these women do "what comes naturally."

Mar 06: Book Three: Chapters 23 to 25
Mar 09: Chapters 26 to 29

(view spoiler)[Where in Fred has some really bad luck with a horse, but mostly because of his own stupidity; Fred loses the Garth's trust; Fred gets sick and Lydgate becomes closer to Rosamund because of it; The Causobons return from their honeymoon; We learn of Celia's engagement to Sir James; and Causobon gets a heart attack after reading Will's letter and intention of visiting Lowick Manor.

Well, I think I'm beginning to dislike Fred. Before I just thought he was young and foolish, but now he's really showing himself to be selfish and self-centered. Poor Mary....I hope she doesn't secretly love him and intend to marry him.

And Rosamund!! I really don't like her. She was happy that Fred got sick so that she could spend time flirting with Lydgate! Though she has no evil intentions or not manipulative or spiteful, she is also selfish in her own right. Her and her brother are really birds of a feather....though in different ways.

And Causobon having a heart attack after an argument with Dorothea, but really probably because he was jealous of Will...I hope that George Eliot won't just kill him off, leaving Dorothea free for Will. I think that would be a cheap trick on Eliot's part. I want Dorothea to come to a realization and make up her mind of leaving Casaubon or cheating on him with Will, and not because Casaubon died.

The title of Book 3 is Waiting for Death...but whose death? Mr. Featherstone (the asshole), Fred (maybe he's better off dead), or Casaubon (but I don't want him to die - that would be too easy)?

In a way Fred is a little bit like Will Ladislaw. No occupation, living off their relatives, no intention of ever doing anything with their lives. But at this point it seems like Will is going to live independently and make something of himself for Dorothea's sake. Fred, on the other hand, wants Mary to encourage him to be independent, but doesn't have the initiative to do it on his own - of course, he's fatalistic and leaves his fate (fortune, happiness or unhappiness) in the hands of others. (hide spoiler)]

BTW...there's a BBC mini-series of Middlemarch, made in 1994. If I'm successful in downloading it, I'll probably watch it after we read the book :)

My Thoughts and Feelings: Book Three: Chapters 23 to 25

(view spoiler)[
I have nothing but admiration and respect for the Garths. I think "living in a small way" is a virtue, and I am annoyed that some of the upper class characters in the novel (i.e. The Vincys) look at their way of life with scorn.

But Fred, despite being a Vincy, is not like that. Which is why I like him. But after failing to pay his debt, I change my mind. He didn't have to do that buy and sell with the horse. It did more damage than good despite his intentions.

Also, he can't seem to fully own up to his shortcomings. He's blaming his fate, lucklessness, and Mary's reluctance to say that she loves him. Which she shouldn't do, although it would be interesting to see how the two of them ending up together would look like.
(hide spoiler)]

My Thoughts and Feelings: Chapters 26 to 29

(view spoiler)[
Everyone is sick, and the book title is Waiting for Death. I imagine that it's going to be someone's death, but with Fred convalescing thanks to Lydgate, I think it may be a metaphorical death, maybe the marriage of the Casaubons? It has only been three months since they got married and already, there are already problems, which I think are not mere trifles. I think it's abominable that Casaubon pushed through with the marriage just because it was an expectation or a role that has to be achieved. It makes him look like a miser. But in fairness, it's laudable that a dour guy like him has ensnared a marriageable young woman.

My feelings for Sir James and Rosamond have not changed. I still think that Sir James is a good catch (kind-hearted, magnanimous, maybe dashing). Rosamond is not virtuous, but I like her precocious imagination and her scheming and plotting. No direct harm is inflicted yet (surely, she did not cause Fred's fever?), so why not let her have her fun?

And can I just say that I'm annoyed with the narrator interjecting his/her feelings? Something like "I think Dorothea and Celia cried", or "I believe Fred is like this and like that". It gives the novel a gossipy feel to it. On the other hand, I think it's okay to have that gossipy feel because it's a novel about a small provincial town with a huge cast. It's just a pet peeve. I would find it acceptable if the narrator is also a character in the novel, but an omniscient narrator (he/she is omniscient, right?) sounds flimsy when the narrative voice is filled with such affectations.
(hide spoiler)]

H: Na-spoil yata ako nung tiningnan ko yung series poster at cast! Gusto ko kasing makita mga hitsura nila, ayan tuloy!

Angus said: “And can I just say that I'm annoyed with the narrator interjecting his/her feelings? Something like "I think Dorothea and Celia cried", or "I believe Fred is like this and like that". It gives the novel a gossipy feel to it.”

This is so funny, because in the later chapters, the author alludes to “secret of usurpations and other scandals gossiped about long empires ago:— this world being apparently a huge whispering-gallery.” I don’t really mind when the third person omniscient narrator does this. I like it when she shifts from micro to macro and back to micro level.

H: I think 1994 is the best adaptation.

Chapter 30 to 33:

I must say, this is a very exciting part of the book. Huzzah, Mary Garth! We can argue about this when you guys are done reading this part :)

Ang dami ko nang na-type...nabura lang lahat :( (Also sorry for not posting yesterday, nawalan kami ng internet sa bahay eh)

ANyway.....

Angus said: “And can I just say that I'm annoyed with the narrator interjecting his/her feelings? Something like "I think Dorothea and Celia cried", or "I believe Fred is like this and like that". It gives the novel a gossipy feel to it.”

I actually kind of like it. It feels like the narrator is talking to me directly hahaha. I especially like that part where she starts by saying "one morning, Dorothea - but why just Dorothea, let's look at Casaubon's pov...etc, etc."

Readings for march 10 and 11:

(view spoiler)[Where Lydgate and Rosamund get engaged; Casaubon recovers; Featherstone dies; everyone is disappointed with his will; James and Celia are engaged; Mr. Riggs appears; and the return of Will Ladislaw.

I'm a bit disappointed with Lydgate for falling in the clutches of Rosamund. He thinks that she will understand his being poor, etc., but the truth is, she won't, because she is a vain and shallow creature! Despite his wanting to marry soon and forget about all the fancy schmancy stuff, she's still just concerned about her fancy clothes and whatnot. Hindi sila bagay ni Lydgate. Lydgate is such an idiot for wanting to marry her....hmp! buti nga sa kanya if he later realizes what kind of girl she is.

So, is Mr. Riggs' Featherstone's illegitimate son or what?? did I miss that information somewhere in the book?

I'm annoyed with Fred because you'd think that he'd better himself after knowing that he is not featherstone's chosen heir...but no! He's still a happy-go-lucky, good for nothing "tambay."

So Will returns - originally just to visit, but thanks to Mr. Brooke's bungling nature, it looks like he's staying for good, much to Casaubon's annoyance. Casaubon is starting to look like the main villain of this novel, because of his dour nature and because nobody except Dorothea likes him, and even she's getting a bit annoyed with him.

Mary Garth - So far, I think she's the only normal girl in this novel hahaha. I don't think she should marry Fred, unless Fred actually changes for the better. He's so immature!

I wonder why the author isn't paying much attention to Sir James and Celia? Are they really just secondary characters? Or maybe because there's no conflict in their lives that the author just wants to leave them alone.....or maybe it's just for now? (hide spoiler)]