The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

We come to the end of the first section, seeing Rex out of the picture (although not going so far as to emigrate to Canada) and the arrival of Mr. Mallinger Grandcourt. Gwendolen has the chance to show off her form and figure during the Archery competition and clearly makes a most striking display, although not going quite so far as to win the golden arrow. Ch 10 and The Spoiled Child section finish with a request for an introduction of Gwendolen to this local landowner, which she permits.

Book Two, Meeting Streams, opens with this introduction and the start of some flirtatious if stilted conversation between the two. Gwendolen possibly plays hard to get by refusing to waltz or polka-that is take part in couples dances-however she will dance the quadrilles. Grandcourt waits to ask for a dance and unfortunately by the time he does so her card is full, however a fortuitous absence of a partner allows him a chance in the end, which pleases Gwendolen by reinforcing her popularity and his need not to dally in courting her, while still permitting them to dance together.

Chapter 12 shows us an unsettling interaction between Grandcourt and his adoring dog Fletch, which he treats with casual unkindness and then dismisses when she becomes distressed. Does this foreshadow how he will treat a wife? We also meet Lush, a hanger-on in Grandcourt's retinue, for whom Gwendolen develops a dislike and treats somewhat dismissively. Lush is living the good life in his current milieu, although we learn that Lush's love of ease was well satisfied at present, and if his puddings were rolled towards him in the dust, he took the inside bits and found them relishing. , suggesting that perhaps Grandcourt's treatment of him was not all that it should be.

Grandcourt treats Gwendolen with marked attention and courtesy, arriving at the point where, if things do not progress to marriage, it will be a noticeable slighting of one or the other. Gwendolen appears quite satisfied with the prospect of marriage, but we suspect she may be somewhat out of her depth:

Certainly, with all her perspicacity, and all the reading which seemed to her mamma dangerously instructive, her judgement was consciously a little at fault before Grandcourt. He was adorably quiet and free from absurdities-he would be a husband to suit her with the best appearance a woman could make. But what else was he? He had been everywhere and seen everything. That was desirable, and especially gratifying as a preamble to his supreme preference for Gwendolen Harleth...Gwendolen conceived that after marriage she would most probably be able to manage him thoroughly.

And who is the mystery woman with children that Lush is meeting at the station?

I am somewhat struck by more names here-Rex (King) for the spurned lover and Mallinger Grandcourt for the presumably acceptable one, and Lush for the disliked friend. Any thoughts on these?

Please share your thoughts and impressions of this section.

I definitely get a bad impression of Grandcourt whenever he is not in Gwendolen’s presence, making it clear that he is playing a role. My suspicion is that he favors her over Miss Arrowpoint because she would have less power in the relationship and he could therefore have everything his own way, contrary to Gwendolen’s rosy speculations. I have what Margery Allingham calls a “deep feeling of no enthusiasm” about the prospective marriage—but in the next section the mysterious woman and children will presumably play a role. And of course we know that this is all a flashback, and in chapters 1 and 2 we saw that Gwendolen is not engaged so we don’t really have to worry too much.

Not only Grandcourt but also Gwendolen is portrayed as not what she seems. We are treated to her thoughts, especially during the conversation at the archery ball where Eliot reports her reactions during every pause in Grandcourt’s conversation—a very inventive and amusing section. Internally, she’s cold, calculating, and self-involved, but in conversation she’s clever and charming, even self-deprecating (a talent many egoists develop). The cumulative result is that we can’t trust that anyone is going to do what they seem to be planning to do.

I noticed a lot more references to gambling in this section, from the men betting on the outcome of the archery meeting; to “In gambling, for example, whether of the business or holiday sort, a man who has the strength of mind to leave off when he has only ruined others, is a reformed character”; and Gwendolen “believing in her own good fortune even more than in her skill,” among others. Definitely the setting of the first chapter seems more and more intentional, and games of chance seem like the dominant metaphor of the novel.

I love Eliot’s pithy insights, such as “the desire to conquer is itself a sort of subjection.”

At various points I have been reminded of Austen’s novels, to the point that I wonder if Eliot was writing this drawing-room comedy as a sort of answer to, or in dialogue with, Austen. I seem to recall that she was an Austen critic. One passage really epitomized the difference between the two writers for me. Eliot: Some readers of this history will doubtless regard it as incredible that people should construct matrimonial prospects on the mere report that a bachelor of good fortune and possibilities was coming within reach, and will reject the statement as a mere outflow of gall. Versus Austen: It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

Based on the comments of others in last week’s thread, I am trying to be more sympathetic toward Gwendolen. This is as far as I have been able to get: in Victorian society, the female ego is given little scope for triumphs, and the areas available for competition are mostly trivial; and then women are despised as small-minded beings for operating within that limited scope.

Abigail wrote: " [Eliot] ... Versus Austen: It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."

Eliot, of all people, will have recognised Austen's famous statement as the irony as that it was intended. So I can't see a contradiction between the two here.

I wasn’t seeing it was a contrast in meaning but as a contrast in style—the different ways they choose to express an idea.

As someone mentioned last week, I am intrigued as to Grandcourt's purpose for being in the book seeing as Gwendolen is not engaged during the gambling scene, she must either refuse him, or he opts not to propose.

He clearly harbours some dark secrets in his past. What will they be? I am currently wondering whether Lush may be placed into Grandcourt's household due to some kind of dark scheme or blackmail involving this mysterious woman. Could she be Grandcourt's previous wife or mistress, and Lush is holding this secret (for now)...

Abigail wrote: "I definitely get a bad impression of Grandcourt whenever he is not in Gwendolen’s presence, making it clear that he is playing a role. My suspicion is that he favors her over Miss Arrowpoint becaus..."

Yes, I also thought of "a truth universally . . ." at that point. And wasn't there archery in Emma? Or was that just the Gwyneth Paltrow movie? Not that Eliot was making a judgment on Austen, she was playing on a known saying from current "pop culture". And the tone in this section is often like Austen. I loved the scene where Gwendolen is carrying on two conversations, one internal and one external. I have been known to do that myself - wondering how my words have been received, if the other person likes me, etc.

Gwendolen killed her sister's bird and Grandcourt is mean to his dog, who is just trying to love him. Seems like they deserve each other. Grandcourt's determination to marry Gwendolen has nothing to do with love, just pride and ambition. If he married a sweet woman, she would be treated like the dog Fetch. But Gwendolen wouldn't solicit affection, she would be happy to be ignored and to ignore her husband, as long as she got all the perks of the big house, carriage, horses, etc.

Gwendolen's imagination of how Grandcourt would look and act - ridiculous and offensive - turns out to be all wrong. I was reminded of Lady Mary in Downton Abbey who assumes the young Turkish man coming on the hunt will be greasy, ugly and crude. He turns out to be a completely British hunk.

The names do seem a bit Dickensian - Grandcourt for the man with the big estate, and Gwendolen seems a romantic name, linked to Guinevere.

That short interlude which took place in Grandcourt's ‘lounge’ or relaxing room with Lush and the dogs, together with Grandcourt’s reaction to Gwendolen’s fencing rather than her archery provided a clear insight into the ‘eligible bachelor’s’ temperament.

’ "Damn her!" thought Grandcourt, as he too checked his horse. He was not a wordy thinker, and this explosive phrase stood for mixed impressions……..and a determination that this girl should not make a fool of him.’

Yes Gwendolen was warding off his attempts to propose to her, using her flashing blade-like wit, and he didn’t like it. In thinking that she had gone too far, she had quietened afterwards, but not before that raw nerve of anger had been exposed.

It led me to imagine that Gwendolen, if she accepted his proposal, would end up joining his menagerie of dogs, who were stationed like courtiers around him, the royal lapdog perched like a soft cushion on his knee.

Any loud, annoying bark of dissent from Gwendolen would result in Grandcourt's command to Lush…..

"Turn out that brute, will you?" said Grandcourt to Lush, without raising his voice or looking at him—as if he counted on attention to the smallest sign.’

We were told also that Grandcourt would get someone else to his kicking for him because that sort of thing was beneath a gentlemen. No wonder Gwendolen took an instinctive, instant dislike to Lush.

Gwendolen’s imaginings that as his wife she would easily control Grandcourt and do exactly what she wanted made me both laugh and cry. She would have less chance of that than winning the lottery. Wishful thinking seems to be a a trait from her mother but that castle went into the stratosphere and way beyond the air.

Yes, that idea was a product of her personality and yet she can’t take all the blame because both her mother and Mr. Gascoigne were reckless allies in the match and seem to be about to fail her as ‘guardians’ miserably. Gascoigne’s refusal to look into Grandcourt’s past was disgraceful, he being so desperate to keep his son out of Gwendolen’s clutches. During his ‘fatherly’ talk with her, I felt like barging in myself as Rex to tell them both that Grandcourt would never suit Gwendolen.

You would think that Gwendolen’s mother might have a once bitten (maybe twice bitten) approach when you consider her marriages but her head was also in the sand.

As for Gwendolen comparing Grandcourt to a lizard and looking forward to taming him as her pet, she was forgetting that most lizards are carnivorous, predatory and many are venomous. Her mother might have been once or twice bitten but Gwendolen could end up being bitten many times and probably not by the dogs.

If Gwendolen married someone like Rex, she could order him around but that's not enough for her. I think one reason she is even a little bit interested in Grandcourt is because he is a challenge - and the same for him. He is used to fawning mamas and simpering daughters standing in line, and Gwendolen plays hard to get while still intriguing him. But once won, he would lose interest in her. He would like impressing people with her beauty and would probably provide beautiful clothes and jewels, just like showing off his mansion and carriage.

Exactly Robin, so very true.The probable union of Gwendolen is, apart from the financial aspects, initially based on the idea of a challenge - like gambling - to ward off "boredom", a kind of emptiness common to both Gwendolen, when the reader meets her for the first time, and Grandcourt, about whom we finally know very little. (The word bore is coming up very often in their respective contexts).

The words "reins" and "master, mastery" are coming up quite often. Their vocabulary and some metaphors are very symptomatic and even synchronised.The scene with Grandcourt's dogs is an apt metaphor of what might eventually occur.

It seems that Mrs Dawilow is blinded by her own indulging in a victim role, while Mr Gascoigne is in a world of appearances and its corollary hypocrisy.

Despite my initial negative reaction to Gwendolyn, I am very scared for her now. It is somewhat reassuring that she is not with Grandcourt in the gambling scene. I love how GE scatters little bits of info throughout the section (the dog, the relationship with Lush, how Gwendolyn doesn’t really know much about Grandcourt, the musing that even if he was up to some bad stuff in the past he’d surely be past it by now…). And now this dark haired woman. Eager to find out what we’ll learn next!

Abigail wrote: "I definitely get a bad impression of Grandcourt whenever he is not in Gwendolen’s presence, making it clear that he is playing a role. My suspicion is that he favors her over Miss Arrowpoint becaus..."

Great thoughts, Abigail. Some of your points were also in my mind e.g. the analogy to Austen and that quote.
I loved that section about Gwendolen's conversation (and thoughts in between) with Grandcourt.

All your comments are really great, I cannot add anything.
I am also wondering whether that mysterious lady with the 2 of her 4 children is maybe a former mistress of Grandcourt.

One thing I have been wondering about was that it was mentioned that Grandcourt might have the one or other debt (from gambling?) . Why would he then choose Gwendolen, the poor girl, rather than Miss Arrowpoint, the heiress? Was not that one of the big things in the marriage game to get to money as well, especially for the non-romantics, and Grandcourt is for sure one of those.
He is definitely a man with two faces, being able to charm people in a superficial way, and showing afterwards in private his real face, As you mentioned the treatment of his dogs and Lush says a lot. And I think he is only keeping Lush to do the dirty work for him. Maybe that is why Lush has contact with that mysterious woman. He might have been the one to give her money or do her favors when Grandcourt was too fine for that.

Have you thought about the time this is playing in? It was mentioned the outcome of a war in America. So I wondered whether this all takes place in the summer of 1865.

It was published in 1876 but you're right, it seems more like the 1860s.

Yes Hedi, late August 1865 when Daniel Deronda meets Gwendolen in Leubronn.
There is a detailed timeline in the Oxford World Classic paperback edition but it contains spoilers if you have not read the novel before.

Claudia wrote: "Yes Hedi, late August 1865 when Daniel Deronda meets Gwendolen in Leubronn.
There is a detailed timeline in the Oxford World Classic paperback edition but it contains spoilers if you have not read..."

Thanks for the confirmation.
Interesting that you have received a timeline in the Oxford World Classic edition. My Everyman's library edition does not have much in the form of annotations this time and I have not read the introduction yet either due to possible spoilers.

So many great comments. I feel that Gwendolen is definitely in danger. Despite her mother’s unhappy marriage, G seems to think that as the wife of a rich man she will have both complete freedom and great social position. She doesn’t take into account that she will be expected to have children and be subject to the restrictions her husband places upon her money and activities. Also, her competitive instincts are aroused as she seeks to capture Grandcourt’s attention and eliminate other women from the competition. As for Grandcourt, anyone who can resist pleading spaniel eyes is a cruel monster.

All these insightful comments are really enhancing my reading pleasure and understanding.

Gwendolen was so repulsed by the passionate feelings of Rex that I think Grandcourt's general coldness...well I don't think it attracts her, it's more like it doesn't repel her. She says about him something like "He's not a fool" or has the thought that she wouldn't have to worry about him acting like a fool. Fool may not be the word she uses, but I think that's the sentiment that she has.

And I too am apprehensive about what will happen if she were to marry Grandcourt. The idea that she could control him or do what she wants seems naïve to say the least.

Robin P wrote: "If Gwendolen married someone like Rex, she could order him around but that's not enough for her. I think one reason she is even a little bit interested in Grandcourt is because he is a challenge - …… But once won, he would lose interest in her. He would like impressing people with her beauty and would probably provide beautiful clothes and jewels, just like showing off his mansion and carriage...."

Yes you are right. Gwendolen would become one of Grandcourt's collection of exotics used to impress others by his ownership of her. But his number of dogs and the way he treats them shows that he would soon be looking for something else to interest him.

As for Rex, yes he is too young and too inexperienced to impress Gwendolen (Also I’ve just realised that they are first cousins, which didn’t seem to matter much then but it wouldn’t be good for their possible future family.)

But at least, like an eager puppy, Rex would be forever digging down, down, down to try and reveal that goodness that Gwendolen possesses. With Grandcourt, (who is too old and too experienced for Gwendolen) the goodness would only be buried deeper and perhaps lost for ever.

The ‘dog incident’ is a masterpiece in ‘characterisation by example’. Eliot paints a perfect portrait of an emotionally abusive tyrant. One element of his tyranny is total control of his emotions (or their expression) so that the ‘victim’ never knows where she really stands; another is unpredictability: the victim never knows what reaction to expect and if and when. Thus the tyrant makes sure that he is always central to her thoughts and feelings even in his absence. The victim becomes dependent on the abuser, while the tyrant is violent without lifting a finger.

I would guess that power is Grandcourt’s only passion: very direct personal power over humans and animals. To subdue them is a challenge which agreeably interrupts boredom. His preference for Gwendolen over Miss Arrowpoint is based on his assumption that Gwendolen offers more resistance to his tyranny and is therefore more of a challenge, and more desirable.

sabagrey wrote: "The ‘dog incident’ is a masterpiece in ‘characterisation by example’. Eliot paints a perfect portrait of an emotionally abusive tyrant. One element of his tyranny is total control of his emotions (..."

Wow, you are right, a perfect portrait of an abuser. It's always interesting when authors like Dickens or Eliot identify so succingly situations that we now have psychological names for. Grandcourt seems to be a psychopath, his main emotions are arrogance, annoyance/anger, and boredom.

Great comments. I would add that his preference for Gwendolyn might be due as well to her greater value as a “trophy” wife given her beauty. And fascinating, Robin, how she describes these psychological syndromes at a time before they were labeled as such.

Eliot is certainly a keen observer of psychology! In the same line, while it is illogical for a man with debts to consider a penniless wife, when Lush mentioned his debts Grandcourt ignored him—so he seems to be in denial about his real situation. There’s a lot of denial going around in this story, people placing their social aspirations ahead of practicality.

I couldn’t resist this luxurious painting of Victorian archery taking place on a country estate. It is called ‘The Fair Toxophilites’ and was painted in 1872 by William Powell Frith. It is quite possible that George Eliot had viewed this painting before writing Daniel Deronda, as the artist was famous for depicting scenes from literary works as well as portraits of authors, including Charles Dickens.



Here is a link to the gallery where the painting can be viewed, including some information about it.

https://rammcollections.org.uk/collec...

For those who like jigsaws (albeit online jigsaws) you could try this…

https://www.jigidi.com/jigsaw-puzzle/...

The best article I could find about the development of women’s archery (including the importance of the Victorian period) was this one from the ‘World Archery’ website. (I loved the hats that the archeresses were wearing in the Pathé film of the 1908 Olympics.)

https://www.worldarchery.sport/news/1...

And as for the winner of the archery competition, should I be critical of George Eliot’s cruelty in her description of Juliet Fenn, or allow her some licence, especially after the remark about ‘intending bridegrooms’ which follows straight after?

’It was impossible to be jealous of Juliet Fenn, a girl as middling as mid-day market in everything but her archery and plainness, in which last she was noticeable like her father: underhung and with receding brow resembling that of the more intelligent fishes. (Surely, considering the importance which is given to such an accident in female offspring, marriageable men, or what the new English calls "intending bridegrooms," should look at themselves dispassionately in the glass, since their natural selection of a mate prettier than themselves is not certain to bar the effect of their own ugliness.)’

I've finally caught up to you all and can join in!

On the subject of names, Mallinger sounds to me like the verb "malinger" which is "pretend to be ill in order to escape duty or work," but also sounds so much like linger + mal, which sounds like bad. "Mallinger Grandcourt" as a whole gives me a feeling of absolutely rotten aristocracy. Meanwhile, Rex does mean king, but it's also a fairly classic dog name, and he is a bit like a lapdog, poor Rex.

By the end of this section, I felt thoroughly sorry for Gwendolen. The truth of the matter is, she doesn't even want to get married; she knows she has to, and wants to do so in a way that will guarantee her own needs (some of them selfish, it's true). Repeatedly she says she doesn't want to be made love to, she doesn't desire any of these men.

I was particularly struck by this passage in Chapter 13. Mr Gascoigne says:
You are quite capable of reflecting, Gwendolen. You are aware that this is not a trivial occasion, and it concerns your establishment for life under circumstances which may not occur again. You have a duty here both to yourself and your family.

Later, he rebukes her further, and:
Gwendolen became pallid as she listened to this admonitory speech. The ideas it raised had the force of sensations. Her resistant courage would not help her here, because her uncle was not urging her against her own resolve; he was pressing upon her the motives of dread which she already felt; he was making her more conscious of the risks that lay within herself. She was silent, and the rector observed that he had produced some strong effect.

“I mean this in kindness, my dear.” His tone had softened.

“I am aware of that, uncle,” said Gwendolen, rising and shaking her head back, as if to rouse herself out of painful passivity. “I am not foolish. I know that I must be married some time—before it is too late. And I don’t see how I could do better than marry Mr. Grandcourt. I mean to accept him, if possible.” She felt as if she were reinforcing herself by speaking with this decisiveness to her uncle.

And Eliot concludes:
But the rector was a little startled by so bare a version of his own meaning from those young lips.

"I mean to accept him if possible" is such an interesting phrasing!

Trev's painting is a popular one to use on the cover of DD editions:


I accidently read through Chapter 14 so I hesitate to comment more and accidently reveal a spoiler from that chapter.

Brian E wrote: "Trev's painting is a popular one to use on the cover of DD editions:
."

I did find another relevant piece of art, painted in 1850, but I didn’t like it as much.

https://www.mediastorehouse.com/fine-...

https://www.mediastorehouse.com/p/690...

Trev wrote: "I did find another relevant piece of art, painted in 1850, but I didn’t like it as much.
https://www.mediastorehouse.com/fine-...
https://www.mediastorehouse.com/p/690..."

You definitely chose the right one to highlight, Trev.

Robin P wrote: ""I mean to accept him if possible" is such an interesting phrasing!"

True, although I think she's referring to her new doubts that he will still be interested in the morning.

I’ve just caught up and feel you have said it all. Completely agree that Grandcourt is an abuser who constantly needs to be entertained. Gwen also constantly needs to be entertained. I can’t help thinking that perhaps Grandcourt thinks Gwen does have a dowry of some sort. I’m not fond of either of them, Elliot does clearly show what is expected of women in this time - marriage

Trev wrote: "I did find another relevant piece of art, painted in 1850, but I didn’t like it as much."
https://www.mediastorehouse.com/fine-...

That one, "Archery Meeting in Bradgate Park, Leicestershire," does show what the archery party days were like, though.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Jo...

But the rector was a little startled by so bare a version of his own meaning from those young lips.

As others mentioned, I liked that observation, and also hearing Gwendolyn's thoughts racing ahead while waiting for Great court to respond.

Thanks for comments and insights here (e.g. the polka dances vs. quadrilles).

I'd been thinking that Thomas Hardy invented Wessex, but ~Wessex~ has been mentioned in DD several times. Maybe Hardy had his own built-out version of it.

Bonnie wrote: "I'd been thinking that Thomas Hardy invented Wessex, but ~Wessex~ has been mentioned in DD several times. Maybe Hardy had his own built-out version of it."

That struck me, too. But I don't think it's Hardy's invention - it's a historical name for a real region, and I suppose the name has remained in use traditionally.

sabagrey wrote: "Bonnie wrote: "I'd been thinking that Thomas Hardy invented Wessex, but ~Wessex~ has been mentioned in DD several times. Maybe Hardy had his own built-out version of it."

That struck me, too. But ..."

Yes you are correct Sabagrey. Some modern businesses have adopted the name but, as a region it is hardly ever mentioned as Wessex. Here is the history….

https://www.britannica.com/place/Wess...

It interests me that Eliot set this story in that part of England. As far I remember, Mary Anne Evans grew up in the Midlands of England, Warwickshire and around Coventry and then moved to London. Whilst she might have visited the southern region often it could be said that, unlike Hardy, the region was much less well known to her.

Trev wrote: "It interests me that Eliot set this story in that part of England.."

This part of England evokes more associations with the landed gentry's country life than the Midlands, I think - houses, parks, hunting, archery - so it must have suited her social setting for this novel better than the (more industrialized) Midlands.

For me, that region is emblematic for English countryside and traditions. - Maybe Eliot wanted a visualization of the traditional life and its breaking up. Old, entailed estates with manors and parks and hounds and hunters, but now going to new money (Quetcham) or out of the direct line of inheritance (Diplow).

I will follow this line of thought by noting who comes into this 'Wessex' world and who leaves it, what maintains it and what disturbs it.

I'm from Wessex and, although the English don't generally refer to it as Wessex in common conversation, it is rather affectionately called so, relating to the southwestern part of England with Winchester as its capital.

Every time I read about Wessex in classic literature I believe the authors to be closer to the time when the kingdom of Wessex truly was (as distinct from Mercia, which is adjacent and north - the Midlands, Kent, etc). Over time I believe as a region it has slowly become less commonplace in use, although, when used by authors such as Eliot, there is certainly an aim to romanticise and hark back to the most well-known, heartland of middle England.