Preview

Silas Marner Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1572 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Silas Marner Essay
Laura Walton Silas Marner Essay

“At the end of Silas Marner, there is a feeling that justice has been done, that the badhave been punished and the good rewarded.”

In the novel Silas Marner, numerous actions take place resulting in different consequences. Some are tragic, such as the death of Molly Farren, and some are beneficial, such as the return of Silas' lost money. It is remarked upon that each character's actions are linked to each other in some way, and each person's choice influenced and affected others. This creates a sort of domino-effect, as each main character influences surrounding characters in a positive or a negative way. Throughout the novel, certain characters are either punished or rewarded for their actions. This can be demonstrated through Silas Marner, Dunsey Cass and Godfrey Cass.

Silas Marner is first introduced as a lonely weaver living in the fictional village of Raveloe. He is described as being something akin to a recluse, as he doesn't go to church, he doesn't interact with any of the villagers and he spends his days weaving and counting his money. His comes across as being very suspicious and little children are scared of him. Eliot uses anthropomorphism to emphasise Silas' persona. Before Eppie entered his life, he was a miserable lonely man. Eliot compares him to insects such as a spider; he spins his linen like a spider would make its web, and he is described as having large blurry eyes, like that of an insect. Silas feels as though his life has fallen apart, as he was excommunicated from his initial home by his so-called best friend William Dane. Silas was accused of stealing money from the church and was determined guilty. Although Silas was completely innocent, he still refuses to interact with anyone in Raveloe, as he has lost trust in people. One evening Silas' money gets stolen from his house, by Dunsey Cass. This happens because Silas leaves the house to quickly run an errand in town and he leaves his

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    "I waked him up, and I reckoned it was going to be a grand suprise to him to see me again, but it warn't. He nearly cried he was so glad, but he warn't suprised." Chapter Page 108…

    • 451 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The novels ‘The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn’ and ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ are both set in times where the expectations of society differed from the ones of today. Huckleberry Finn is set in the late 1800s, pre USA civil war and in a time where slavery was an accepted occurrence and the escape of a slave was seen as legally and morally wrong. This was also a time in which church attendance and education were seen as tokens of respectability. A young boy, the eponymous character, Huck, seeks to reject all that he regards as oppressive and cruel in order to establish an alternative life as a wanderer, far from adult control. ‘The Catcher in the Rye’, on the other hand, was set in the late 1940s, a time when teenagers were just beginning to gain their own lives and being allowed more freedom than ever before. The picaresque novel gives the reader an insight into middleclass life in New York in the 50s and how one boy felt trapped by the expectations of his parents and school. His period of comparative freedom leads to unexpected consequences as he falls victim to depression and eventual supervision in an institution, putting paid forever to his dreams of freedom. Both novels present the themes of freedom and escape and the selected extracts portray incidents in the characters’ lives which focus on this theme.…

    • 1507 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Scarlet Letter Quotes

    • 3184 Words
    • 13 Pages

    “some sweet moral blossom, that may be found along the track, or relieve the darkening close tale of human frailty and sorrow.”…

    • 3184 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Billy Elliot is an eleven year old boy who stumbles out of the boxing ring and into ballet lessons. He learns to deal with many trials and triumphs as he hopes to change his family's set ways and the inner conflict between them.…

    • 758 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    english essay

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The author Tina Fanning in the newspaper article “cars no longer sustainable”, which was written in July 2007, contents the effect of car usage on global warming and the effect on the future of our children that proves the high level of harmfulness that global warming causes. The audience in this article is aiming at car users and state governors.…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Crucible Literary Essay

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Reverend Parris is a character in the play that is very static. His character does not evolve in many ways during the course of the play. By the end of the play, Reverend Parris is still selfish, stubborn, and greedy. However, one of his most prominent flaws at the begging of the play is his selfishness.…

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Shakespeare’s novel, Romeo and Juliet, a huge event occurs in which Romeo get’s banished from the city of Verona. All the characters in this story view the banishment in different perspectives. The one whom was exiled, Romeo, views his banishment as equal to death. One of Romeo’s supporters, Friar Lawrence, views Romeo’s banishment as an act of mercy. Clearly, Romeo’s banishment reveals the difference in perspective between Romeo and Friar Lawrence.…

    • 651 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    english essay

    • 942 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Pointed and scathing in its criticism of Australian attitudes to migrants; they will never fit in until they give up everything…

    • 942 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    English Essay

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Distinctive voices are created for different purposes. How is this shown in you prescribed text and at least one other text of your own choosing?…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    An example of a character whose morals are destroyed is Myrtle. Myrtle's attempt to enter into the group to which the Buchanan’s belong is doomed to fail. She enters the affair with Tom, hoping to adopt his way of life and be accepted into his class to escape from her own. Her class is that of the middle class. Her husband, Wilson, owns a gas station, making a living and trying his best to succeed. With her involvement in Tom's class, she only becomes rude and corrupt like the rich. She loses all sense of morality by hurting others in her unsuccessful attempt to join the ranks of Tom's social class. In doing so, she is leaving behind her husband who loves her. Myrtle believes he is no longer good enough for her. "'I married him because I thought he was a gentleman.' She said finally. 'I…

    • 400 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Jane Eyre Research Paper

    • 4912 Words
    • 20 Pages

    Genre: A hybrid of three genres: the Gothic novel (utilizes the mysterious, the supernatural, the horrific, the romantic); the romance novel (emphasizes love and passion, represents the notion of lovers destined for each other); and the Bildungsroman (narrates the story of a character’s internal development as he or she undergoes a succession of encounters with the external world)…

    • 4912 Words
    • 20 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Silas Marner Isolation

    • 233 Words
    • 1 Page

    Before Eppie comes into Silas Marners life, Silas was making as little human contact as he could, loving and caring for only his money, and letting his faith competely errode. When Silas first arrives in Ravelo he is seen as strange and foreign. This feeling is only heightened by his isolation and epileptic seizures (I, 4). Also, he is a weaver, something Ravelo is not familiar with along with his knowledge of herbs. This strangeness separates him from people, and he never even tries to eliminate the walls that close him in and leave him in isolation. Only through Eppie does Silas learn to to love people again, he sees her golden hair as his lost gold (XII, 112), but this gold is not cold and hard like his money was. Through Eppie, Silas began…

    • 233 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Justice in Silas Marner

    • 1099 Words
    • 5 Pages

    ‘At the end of Silas Marner, there is a feeling that justice has been done: that the bad have been punished and the good rewarded.’ To what extent is this statement true?…

    • 1099 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Jane Austen’s novel Persuasion, diction and subversive tone depict Austen’s disdain and disapproval towards the society. Sir Walter Elliot informs Anne and Mr. Shepherd about his irritation toward people who strive to rise above the society. He mentions how naval officer is a profession that transits “man with obscure birth into undue distinction” (Austen 14), and expresses his disgust towards the officers growing old in appearance sooner than any other man. Sir Walter declared, “I was in company with two men… Admiral Baldwin, the most deplorable looking personage you can imagine… I never saw quite so wretched an example of what a seafaring life can do…” (Austen 14). Austen implies the superficial nobilities…

    • 744 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The following topics from Romeo and Juliet must be included, but you may use any type of newspaper article to demonstrate your knowledge of these topics. Since 10 are required, after these 8 are included you may write the remaining articles on a topic of your choice (relating to the play, of course).…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays