How far would you agree that Silas Marner is a simple morality tale Essay Example For Students

How far would you agree that Silas Marner is a simple morality tale Essay I see a morality tale as a story or fable that is designed and constructed purely in order to put across a strong moral message, which is cleverly woven into a story which would appeal to readers. This story may be a representation of real life like Silas Marner, or instead, just metaphors for life in general. The word simple, however, implies that the fable perhaps doesnt get right to the heart of the characters or the plot, possibly not describing anything in great detail, but achieving its primary aim of preaching a moral message nonetheless. Silas Marner has many aspects which could be seen as a morality tale, however there are also other elements which I believe do not conform to this. George Eliot lived from 1819 to 1880, a time when the Romantic period was flourishing. The Romantics, for example William Wordsworth and Emily Bronte, had a very strong set of beliefs which would have naturally influenced the context of Eliots novels. These ideas included the belief that man has the ability to be good, and if you are taken away from nature, and natural impulses, then you become almost unnatural. In this particular novel, Silas Marner is the character that puts across these views on life. After being found guilty of a crime he did not commit, Silas has a shaken trust in God and man which is little short of madness to a loving nature. Because of this, Marner retracts himself completely from any social gatherings, and in doing so, away from nature. He then becomes unnatural in the way that he becomes obsessed with his gold. He spread them out in heaps and bathed his hands in them; then he counted them and set them up in regular piles, and felt their rounded outline between his thumb and fingers, and thought fondly of the guineas that were only half-earned by the work in his loom, as if they had been unborn children. In Part I, Silas Marner has become addicted to hoarding gold, because of the fact that he had been wrenched from the loving hands of Mother Nature. This is the image that the Romantic authors put across in many of their novels. Another example of this is Scrooge, in Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol. He, again, is a miser, living solely for his work, never really experiencing nature in all its glory. Another theme that novelists of this period were interested in, was the innocence, purity, and cleansing power of childhood. This is reflected in an extremely strong way in this particular novel, through the character of Eppie. Silas has been an embittered man for fifteen years of his life. Nothing has given enough to make him change, until the arrival of Godfrey Cass child. As the childs mind was growing into knowledge, his mind was growing into memory; as her life unfolded, his soul, long stupefied in a cold narrow prison, was unfolding too, and trembling gradually into full consciousness. Silas has been almost locked in confinement for fifteen years, with nothing happening to bring him back into the real world, however, in the end, it is the benevolence of a child that awakens him. Eliot comments at this point that men are led away from threatening destructions: a hand is put into theirs which leads them forth gently towards a calm and bright land, so that they look no more backward; and the hand may be a little childs. This describes perfectly what has happened to Silas. Through this, Eliot is preaching her message about the healing qualities of children. Even how the child arrived at Silas house showed how innocent children are. Eppie toddled through the snow, the old grimy shawl in which it was wrapped trailing behind it, and the queer little bonnet dangling at its back toddled on to the open door of Silas Marners cottage, and right up to the warm hearth, where there was a bright fire of logs and sticks. By describing the arrival of Eppie in this way, George Eliot is saying that children are so benevolent that despite their innocence, they are attracted towards warmth and brightness. Eliot, like other writers of the period was also interested in discussing ideas about class, and the pride, selfishness, social pretentions and patronising attitudes of the landed gentry. She does this perfectly through the character of Squire Cass, describing him as slovenly, and with a slack and feeble mouth. His person showed marks of habitual neglect, and his life was quite as idle as his sons. The author is trying to say that the aristocracy are rich and squandering, arrogant and demanding, yet at the same time they do nothing and earn respect. The short story A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O"Connor could be viewed as a comic strip about massacre and martyrdom EssayAll this description on the plot, the settings, and the development of the characters would not be included at all in simple morality tales, meaning that Silas Marner is not just a straightforward simple tale. Eliots use of dialogue is also very unlike a simple morality tale. She spends a lot of the time including conversation between the characters which doesnt have much to do with her themes. This is very realistic of life, and realism is something which authors of simple tales are not concerned about, as long as they get their moral stance across. For example, the whole of Chapter 5, Conversation in the Rainbow, is dedicated to adding an element of realism to the novel, with traditional villagers sharing anecdotes to pass the time, very typical of a village pub. Therefore, I believe that Silas Marner is a morality tale. I believe this, as George Eliot has included some very obvious themes which she definitely wants to put across to her readers and make them think about her views. The main ones include the healing powers of childhood portrayed by Eppie, the healing powers of love and relationships shown by the characters of Godfrey and Nancy, class, and natural impulses. These ideas are put across in a way similar to that of a fable. Also, the fact that Eliot was alive during the time of the romantics, who had a very strong set of beliefs, adds to this. However on the other hand, the author describes everything, including the plot and development of the characters in tremendous amounts of detail which would certainly not be found in a simple morality tale. Even though I believe Eliot set out to preach moral messages in a fable-like way, she has woven these themes around a detailed story, which is far from simple. In conclusion, Silas Marner is a complex, yet powerful morality tale, which has had a great amount of detail and effort put into it, to make it as realistic as possible, far more realistic than any other fables. In my opinion, the themes in particular of Silas Marner would definitely interest a typical audience of today. The main example of a topical theme is the harmful effects of industrialisation. When Silas seeks his past in Lantern Yard, and discovers that it has been swept away, Eliot puts her views on industrialisation across very strongly. She describes the modernised Lantern Yard as having grim walls and being a dark, ugly place. It smells bad, and the residents are unfriendly. For example, a sallow, begrimed face looked out from a gloomy doorway at the strangers, and the whole town is a multitude of strange indifferent faces. It is clear that from this description that George Eliot is against any modernisation of rural communities, in turn, not in favour of the industrial revolution. She does this even more powerfully by making Eppie, with the pure and innocent qualities of a child, detest it all as well. Eppie comments that its like as if Im stifled and she describes the man as having a sallow, begrimed face. She is full of uneasiness at the situation, because the humanity and individuality of the town has been removed. Eppie reflects exactly the mind of George Eliot. Another factor that a modern day audience would be interested in, are the attitudes of the novelist to religion, which is mainly shown through the two main settings, Lantern Yard and Raveloe. Eliot had a varied life, and during it, she experimented with many different views of life. By doing this, she experience different views on religion, like Im sure many people would do nowadays. There is no doubt that Lantern Yard is a narrow religious sect, and Eliot does not agree. She shows this when Silas is tried for his crime, by the drawing of lots. She is sceptical of this blind faith in God, which presides over any humane decisions. The people in this town meaninglessly visited church, constantly believing that God was their only guide in life. Eliot is a lot more in favour of the way of life in Raveloe, where villagers see the church as a key part in social customs, and their attitude is Christian in the true sense. George Eliot is certainly encourages scepticism about religion, making the readers think for themselves on different ideas about religion, and this would, without a doubt, be interesting for a modern audience. Silas Marner is an intriguing novel written by an intriguing author, which can be read on many different levels. The plots, characters, and general structure of it is complex, and the themes are varied and filled with moral messages. This novel had, and still has a strong message for its readers, past and present.