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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
I spent over a month wading through this book, interrupting the effort at least once to read something for my book club.
For several reasons, I can’t recommend it for the general reader.
First, this is a very long book, about twice as long as it needs to be. It’s written for middle class or upper-class Victorians, who had way too much leisure time and were chiefly engaged in finding ways to fill up their empty hours.
[Rant warning: These were people who had somehow inherited an estate consisting of thousands of acres. And who did the work? Peasants, who toiled long days in the dirt and spent their sparse leisure time dulling their misery with beer and music.]
Second, a good part of that bulk consists of the long-winded interruptions of an omnipotent narrator. Some of Eliot’s observations are astutely tongue in cheek as when (page 379) she asks “what should we all do without the calendar when we want to put off a disagreeable duty? [The calendar] supplies us with the term before which it is hardly worthwhile to set about anything we are disinclined to.”
Third, although the excerpt above is potent, the always-verbose narrator is often impenetrable. See, for example, pages 364 through 365, which consist of ONE very long paragraph. I read the first several sentences, but could not get Eliot’s point at all.
Last criticism. Victorian England was breathtakingly anti-Semitic. This novel was recommended as a “sympathetic” portrayal of Jews.
Umm. Well, it avoids the most injurious of insults. But Eliot cannot understand that her characters can be both English and Jewish.
Final comment: one character, Mordecai, has tuberculosis, a respiratory disease spread by close contact. Eliot didn’t understand that, nor do her characters. Mordecai’s sister and brother in law hold his hands, lean close to hear his words, and engage in other behaviors that made me cringe. No wonder that “In 1801, up to one-third of all Londoners died from TB” (https://www.google.com/amp/s/theweek.com/articles-amp/692701/romance-tuberculosis).
For several reasons, I can’t recommend it for the general reader.
First, this is a very long book, about twice as long as it needs to be. It’s written for middle class or upper-class Victorians, who had way too much leisure time and were chiefly engaged in finding ways to fill up their empty hours.
[Rant warning: These were people who had somehow inherited an estate consisting of thousands of acres. And who did the work? Peasants, who toiled long days in the dirt and spent their sparse leisure time dulling their misery with beer and music.]
Second, a good part of that bulk consists of the long-winded interruptions of an omnipotent narrator. Some of Eliot’s observations are astutely tongue in cheek as when (page 379) she asks “what should we all do without the calendar when we want to put off a disagreeable duty? [The calendar] supplies us with the term before which it is hardly worthwhile to set about anything we are disinclined to.”
Third, although the excerpt above is potent, the always-verbose narrator is often impenetrable. See, for example, pages 364 through 365, which consist of ONE very long paragraph. I read the first several sentences, but could not get Eliot’s point at all.
Last criticism. Victorian England was breathtakingly anti-Semitic. This novel was recommended as a “sympathetic” portrayal of Jews.
Umm. Well, it avoids the most injurious of insults. But Eliot cannot understand that her characters can be both English and Jewish.
Final comment: one character, Mordecai, has tuberculosis, a respiratory disease spread by close contact. Eliot didn’t understand that, nor do her characters. Mordecai’s sister and brother in law hold his hands, lean close to hear his words, and engage in other behaviors that made me cringe. No wonder that “In 1801, up to one-third of all Londoners died from TB” (https://www.google.com/amp/s/theweek.com/articles-amp/692701/romance-tuberculosis).
FOREWARNING: Somewhat major plot spoilers, so please be aware if you haven't read the book. Thank you!
Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
Gwendolen Harleth, when she finds out that her family has lost their source of income, marries for money so she can support her family. But quickly, her marriage turns sour and sad. Before she was married, she met an interesting man named Daniel Deronda, who is thought to be the cousin of her future husband, although it's not entirely clear. Daniel himself does not know who his parents are, and his quest to find out the truth will lead to interesting discoveries. After her marriage, Gwendolen seeks advice from Daniel, as she is unhappy and torn. Daniel guides her with the best of his knowledge, but he too has his own struggles- after he saves a girl from drowning herself, he becomes involved in her life, and her own quest to find her brother and mother. Daniel becomes the friend of Mordecai, a Jew who is passionate about his faith, and soon what he learns from Mordecai will help him on his journey to find out the truth about his history...
My Thoughts:
I personally found the character of Daniel very interesting. He's so careful to not offend anyone with his words, so thoughtful considerate and he has this amazing inner world that finds beauty in the plain things. I don't approve of the 'married woman with a male person she talks to that is not her husband' bit, but I love how Daniel advised Gwendolen to look around at others, and despite her own suffering to reach out to others, to use her talents to make others happy, even if her own life is going wrong. To tell you the truth I wasn't expecting that.
Mirah's story I found too was personally more interesting then Gwendolen's, although I am not saying that I did not enjoy her side of things. As with most books where there is many different characters, their lives and personal plots weave together to create the overall book. You cannot separate them no matter how you try. I enjoyed reading how Gwendolen faced different situations and seeing how much she grew in the end. It was encouraging and left me with quite a bit of hope for her.
What I did not exactly like about it, however, was that Gwendolen came to depend upon Daniel in such a way that people automatically assumed she'd marry him when her husband died. I do not think it is very God honouring when a young lady marries older man whether by force or choice, marriage is unhappy, she finds confidante in young, unmarried man her age who falls in love with her, older husband dies somehow and he marries her, etc. (Although in this case he does not marry her). Granted, in this book, it's not as horrible as I first thought, but it is there, especially on Gwendolen's side of things. It started out as a simple her feeling he did not approve of her, and as such, she wants to know why. This leads into at the most four or five other encounters- most of the time he's advising her as to how to change, etc. It slips into something more for Gwendolen, though, and Deronda knows something is happening and doesn't like it, but feels that he should not abandon her as he's the only one that she has told that her marriage is going wrong. (Problem there, she should of told her mother, but perhaps she was thinking she didn't want to burden her Mother or make her uneasy as Mr. Grandcourt might not like it....) After Mr. Grandcourt's death, people begin to immediately presume she'll marry Deronda, which shows just how noticeable it was. Even Mr. Grandcourt was feeling something akin to jealousy. And so he should. He might of been a villain but he was the one she married. This is probably a natural portrayal of how it works in the world- it starts out with a meeting where you may genuinely have reasons for discussing something....and then it becomes where one or both parties have a dependence upon the other person that should only be on their spouse. I'm not sure what would happen in Gwendolen's situation, but I think it'd be safe to say she should of talked to her Mother, because I strongly believe it's never right to have a person of the opposite gender be the one you depend on when you're married unless he/she is a sibling/father, etc.
Thankfully the problems in Gwendolen's marriage, while it's still clear there is something wrong, are not shown in much detail and are mainly emotional....nothing as to what the mini-series apparently shows. I was quite glad of this.
All in all, I'd probably rate it 4 stars. I did honestly enjoy it, parts of the storyline where very intriguing and interesting. Throughout my reading of the book I kept up a discussion of it with my Mother, and that was helpful. I really didn't feel right even reading a book that possibly could of dealt with that, without her knowing. Besides, we talk about so much, it was only natural I'd want her ideas of Daniel Deronda.
Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
Gwendolen Harleth, when she finds out that her family has lost their source of income, marries for money so she can support her family. But quickly, her marriage turns sour and sad. Before she was married, she met an interesting man named Daniel Deronda, who is thought to be the cousin of her future husband, although it's not entirely clear. Daniel himself does not know who his parents are, and his quest to find out the truth will lead to interesting discoveries. After her marriage, Gwendolen seeks advice from Daniel, as she is unhappy and torn. Daniel guides her with the best of his knowledge, but he too has his own struggles- after he saves a girl from drowning herself, he becomes involved in her life, and her own quest to find her brother and mother. Daniel becomes the friend of Mordecai, a Jew who is passionate about his faith, and soon what he learns from Mordecai will help him on his journey to find out the truth about his history...
My Thoughts:
I personally found the character of Daniel very interesting. He's so careful to not offend anyone with his words, so thoughtful considerate and he has this amazing inner world that finds beauty in the plain things. I don't approve of the 'married woman with a male person she talks to that is not her husband' bit, but I love how Daniel advised Gwendolen to look around at others, and despite her own suffering to reach out to others, to use her talents to make others happy, even if her own life is going wrong. To tell you the truth I wasn't expecting that.
Mirah's story I found too was personally more interesting then Gwendolen's, although I am not saying that I did not enjoy her side of things. As with most books where there is many different characters, their lives and personal plots weave together to create the overall book. You cannot separate them no matter how you try. I enjoyed reading how Gwendolen faced different situations and seeing how much she grew in the end. It was encouraging and left me with quite a bit of hope for her.
What I did not exactly like about it, however, was that Gwendolen came to depend upon Daniel in such a way that people automatically assumed she'd marry him when her husband died. I do not think it is very God honouring when a young lady marries older man whether by force or choice, marriage is unhappy, she finds confidante in young, unmarried man her age who falls in love with her, older husband dies somehow and he marries her, etc. (Although in this case he does not marry her). Granted, in this book, it's not as horrible as I first thought, but it is there, especially on Gwendolen's side of things. It started out as a simple her feeling he did not approve of her, and as such, she wants to know why. This leads into at the most four or five other encounters- most of the time he's advising her as to how to change, etc. It slips into something more for Gwendolen, though, and Deronda knows something is happening and doesn't like it, but feels that he should not abandon her as he's the only one that she has told that her marriage is going wrong. (Problem there, she should of told her mother, but perhaps she was thinking she didn't want to burden her Mother or make her uneasy as Mr. Grandcourt might not like it....) After Mr. Grandcourt's death, people begin to immediately presume she'll marry Deronda, which shows just how noticeable it was. Even Mr. Grandcourt was feeling something akin to jealousy. And so he should. He might of been a villain but he was the one she married. This is probably a natural portrayal of how it works in the world- it starts out with a meeting where you may genuinely have reasons for discussing something....and then it becomes where one or both parties have a dependence upon the other person that should only be on their spouse. I'm not sure what would happen in Gwendolen's situation, but I think it'd be safe to say she should of talked to her Mother, because I strongly believe it's never right to have a person of the opposite gender be the one you depend on when you're married unless he/she is a sibling/father, etc.
Thankfully the problems in Gwendolen's marriage, while it's still clear there is something wrong, are not shown in much detail and are mainly emotional....nothing as to what the mini-series apparently shows. I was quite glad of this.
All in all, I'd probably rate it 4 stars. I did honestly enjoy it, parts of the storyline where very intriguing and interesting. Throughout my reading of the book I kept up a discussion of it with my Mother, and that was helpful. I really didn't feel right even reading a book that possibly could of dealt with that, without her knowing. Besides, we talk about so much, it was only natural I'd want her ideas of Daniel Deronda.
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
So many complicated thoughts about this one. George Eliot is one of the most special writers of her time, no doubt. Her knack for stories that really represent the female experience in Victorian times is unmatched, and props to her for always writing the most tyrannical husbands and then killing them off mercilessly. Gwendolen is really an extraordinary character, her arc is amazing. I also love how real George Eliot is for not making Daniel end up with her, watching her rely on him while he only cared marginally was really heart wrenching and portrayed masterfully, rare for a novel of that time I think
On the other hand, Daniel’s plot felt a little icky, in this day and age. Don’t get me wrong; George Eliot’s willingness to champion a culture that was regarded with great prejudice with such empathy is really admirable, says a lot about her. But being quite ignorant myself, her depictions of Jewish culture in the Victorian era made me a little uncomfortable. Ultimately I realise it was all fine and really in good taste, but then came the realisation this was actually a proto-Zionist narrative, and then I was unease again. I’m glad this book was well received by the Jewish community, but the fact that it inspired a movement that now has ended up causing so much pain in the world is very sad. Wish the English would just mind their own business lol.
I didn’t mind the other elements of Daniel’s part of the story, he’s a good characters and Mordecai in particular is interesting. But there is a lack of cohesion between the two storylines. I wondered multiple times why the book was titles Daniel Deronda. He’s not the most interesting part of it. I don’t know, ultimately an uneven book, beautifully written but she made some real weird choices too.
On the other hand, Daniel’s plot felt a little icky, in this day and age. Don’t get me wrong; George Eliot’s willingness to champion a culture that was regarded with great prejudice with such empathy is really admirable, says a lot about her. But being quite ignorant myself, her depictions of Jewish culture in the Victorian era made me a little uncomfortable. Ultimately I realise it was all fine and really in good taste, but then came the realisation this was actually a proto-Zionist narrative, and then I was unease again. I’m glad this book was well received by the Jewish community, but the fact that it inspired a movement that now has ended up causing so much pain in the world is very sad. Wish the English would just mind their own business lol.
I didn’t mind the other elements of Daniel’s part of the story, he’s a good characters and Mordecai in particular is interesting. But there is a lack of cohesion between the two storylines. I wondered multiple times why the book was titles Daniel Deronda. He’s not the most interesting part of it. I don’t know, ultimately an uneven book, beautifully written but she made some real weird choices too.
This is by far the longest audiobook I've ever taken on (36h) and although I'm feeling a little exhausted and glad it's done, there is a slight melancholy feeling too as I think about leaving these characters behind.
I greatly enjoyed Eliot's writing and although the book mainly consists of descriptions and characters' thoughts rather than anyone actually doing anything, I liked the book from a language perspective. You get to know the characters intimately as you are privy to all their thoughts (which social rules often prevent them from sharing with each other). Some characters are more interesting than others and I did occasionally get bored when the characters I wasn't particularly attached to took centre stage for several consecutive chapters. The book progresses extremely slowly and although the individual, seemingly separate strands of narrative do come together to form a coherent whole, I did lose interest occasionally when the story ended up in a bit of a rabbit hole (but I couldn't face quitting because I was already several hours in!).
Eliot raises a lot of societal, political and religious issues, and seeing these from the perspective of the different characters was intriguing. However, I feel like this leisurely pace detracted me from really comprehending the work as a whole and although I haven't come away disliking the book per se, I feel like I am failing to appreciate the intricacies and the significance of Eliot's work on this occasion.
I greatly enjoyed Eliot's writing and although the book mainly consists of descriptions and characters' thoughts rather than anyone actually doing anything, I liked the book from a language perspective. You get to know the characters intimately as you are privy to all their thoughts (which social rules often prevent them from sharing with each other). Some characters are more interesting than others and I did occasionally get bored when the characters I wasn't particularly attached to took centre stage for several consecutive chapters. The book progresses extremely slowly and although the individual, seemingly separate strands of narrative do come together to form a coherent whole, I did lose interest occasionally when the story ended up in a bit of a rabbit hole (but I couldn't face quitting because I was already several hours in!).
Eliot raises a lot of societal, political and religious issues, and seeing these from the perspective of the different characters was intriguing. However, I feel like this leisurely pace detracted me from really comprehending the work as a whole and although I haven't come away disliking the book per se, I feel like I am failing to appreciate the intricacies and the significance of Eliot's work on this occasion.
I read most of it, but we were reading it in school and when I missed a section for class, I just read the sparknotes version of it and skipped on to the next one. It was long and not altogether uninteresting, but not enough that I really cared to read the whole thing.
Adoro questa autrice, ma questo romanzo mi ha deluso, sembra scritto da un'altra persona. Probabilmente non ne ho capito lo spirito.
This took me forever to finish! Hoo-boy. I'm proud of myself for sticking with it. When I was about 70% finished I decided to just watch the BBC miniseries. But when I finished the miniseries, I wanted to go back and finish the book. It's so slow, it's almost meditative. The audiobook narrator was great. Other things I liked about this book:
1. Daniel Deronda is a super appealing hero. Very crush-worthy if you like lawful good types. His whole thing is empathy!
2. Gwendolyn Harleth is obnoxious at first, but then she goes on a real journey of self-discovery. And then she's obnoxious is a totally different way. All you can do is feel sorry for her. It's 144 years since this book's publication and it's still a thing that beautiful women are treated like their beauty gives them power. But does it? In Gwendolyn's case, it leads to suffering.
3. Spoiler alert (lol, this book came out 144 years ago) but Deronda's mother is great character even though she only has two scenes. Favorite quote: “You are not a woman. You may try—but you can never imagine what it is to have a man's force of genius in you, and yet to suffer the slavery of being a girl.” Damn.
1. Daniel Deronda is a super appealing hero. Very crush-worthy if you like lawful good types. His whole thing is empathy!
2. Gwendolyn Harleth is obnoxious at first, but then she goes on a real journey of self-discovery. And then she's obnoxious is a totally different way. All you can do is feel sorry for her. It's 144 years since this book's publication and it's still a thing that beautiful women are treated like their beauty gives them power. But does it? In Gwendolyn's case, it leads to suffering.
3. Spoiler alert (lol, this book came out 144 years ago) but Deronda's mother is great character even though she only has two scenes. Favorite quote: “You are not a woman. You may try—but you can never imagine what it is to have a man's force of genius in you, and yet to suffer the slavery of being a girl.” Damn.