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Mickey's Reviews > Romola
Romola
by
by
I've heard that George Eliot considered this book to be her best. I can see where she gets that. I know that Romola is not considered to be a good book, but I think that Romola shows growth, particularly in explicit theme.
This book is filled with transformations, but most are so sudden that they are likely to be problematic for the modern reader. I think that most Victorian people's experience with transformations might be from religious quarters and are likely to be sudden and complete. In our society, I think we get most of our ideas of transformations from rehab or therapy, which stress the process of transforming, which is likely to be gradual and incomplete. Because of this, I don't think that the book's rehabilitation is going to happen any time soon.
Romola goes through several major changes in philosophy in this book. One of which (I'm sure) would be hotly debated by many women today. She puts duty above personal happiness under Savronola's guidance in staying with a husband who is both unfaithful and villainous. Her personal growth during this time is undeniable, but I think that some of the tenets she comes to embrace are so different from our ideas of what growth are that they are likely to go unrecognized.
Tito's transformation is less jarring. It was interesting how Eliot introduced him. We knew practically nothing about him for the first 100 pages, but are gradually given a sympathetic view of him. It's only after a while that the emphasis on his upright appearances start to seem suspicious. His slide into villainy is gradual and built on lies and hesitations. This was just so well done. His descent reminds me of the dishonor that the captain in Adam Bede brought on himself through his weaknesses towards Hetty. His reasons for not seeking out his father (that he was comfortable and his burgeoning love for Romola) led to his alienation of both ideals that he sought. His decision to stay eventually estranged him from his true desires, but was something that he could not turn from.
One aspect of the book that I thought was interesting was the time and action were shown in short bursts. We would follow the character for sometimes under a day, then the next chapter would start some 18 months later. I think that Adam Bede had something of this feature as well. But I think the structure did odd things for the reaction to the story. In some ways, it kept you off balance and uncertain of the progression of the story. It's also more stylized than the realism that Eliot is generally known for (which is a focus on the mundane). It was more like a play with acts and scenes than a book.
For some reason, this book stayed with me long after I read it. I find its themes to be fresh and thought-provoking. One of her best, I would say, and criminally under-rated.
This book is filled with transformations, but most are so sudden that they are likely to be problematic for the modern reader. I think that most Victorian people's experience with transformations might be from religious quarters and are likely to be sudden and complete. In our society, I think we get most of our ideas of transformations from rehab or therapy, which stress the process of transforming, which is likely to be gradual and incomplete. Because of this, I don't think that the book's rehabilitation is going to happen any time soon.
Romola goes through several major changes in philosophy in this book. One of which (I'm sure) would be hotly debated by many women today. She puts duty above personal happiness under Savronola's guidance in staying with a husband who is both unfaithful and villainous. Her personal growth during this time is undeniable, but I think that some of the tenets she comes to embrace are so different from our ideas of what growth are that they are likely to go unrecognized.
Tito's transformation is less jarring. It was interesting how Eliot introduced him. We knew practically nothing about him for the first 100 pages, but are gradually given a sympathetic view of him. It's only after a while that the emphasis on his upright appearances start to seem suspicious. His slide into villainy is gradual and built on lies and hesitations. This was just so well done. His descent reminds me of the dishonor that the captain in Adam Bede brought on himself through his weaknesses towards Hetty. His reasons for not seeking out his father (that he was comfortable and his burgeoning love for Romola) led to his alienation of both ideals that he sought. His decision to stay eventually estranged him from his true desires, but was something that he could not turn from.
One aspect of the book that I thought was interesting was the time and action were shown in short bursts. We would follow the character for sometimes under a day, then the next chapter would start some 18 months later. I think that Adam Bede had something of this feature as well. But I think the structure did odd things for the reaction to the story. In some ways, it kept you off balance and uncertain of the progression of the story. It's also more stylized than the realism that Eliot is generally known for (which is a focus on the mundane). It was more like a play with acts and scenes than a book.
For some reason, this book stayed with me long after I read it. I find its themes to be fresh and thought-provoking. One of her best, I would say, and criminally under-rated.
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Reading Progress
August 24, 2011
–
Started Reading
August 24, 2011
– Shelved
September 7, 2011
–
6.54%
"The amount of research that went into this book is astonishing. I like how it starts the day after Lorenzo de Medici dies and how the 'newcomer' to Florence is still largely a mystery."
page
45
October 3, 2011
–
12.06%
"I'm trying to decide if I like the change of scenery from small town 18th-19th century England to 15th century Florence. So far, I think there's some part of Florence that doesn't really breathe yet. Too much research and not enough character interaction. But I've noticed that in other stories, too. Wait and see, I guess."
page
83
October 7, 2011
–
16.57%
"We finally get a handle on Tito's character after 100 pages! I like it when Eliot introduces us to characters like this. It's always a bit of a surprise when an outwardly sympathetic character suddenly takes on new aspects when we are taken deeper into his nature."
page
114
October 8, 2011
–
23.69%
"This book's structure is very different. It shows a short period of time-often less than a day- of action and then skips over a couple of months. We are caught up on the intervening time mostly by paying careful attention to the small details Eliot gives us. (She certainly won't give summaries.)"
page
163
October 9, 2011
–
32.56%
"The historical people are starting to have bigger roles now. It's amazing how many famous people were contemporaries."
page
224
October 19, 2011
–
49.85%
"The sudden transformation of Baldassarre will probably rankle modern sensibilities that are used to more of a process than a moment of change."
page
343
October 20, 2011
–
56.69%
"Every major character here seems to make a complete 180 degree change. Tito slowly becomes a villian. Baldassarre flip-flops from pathetic to formidable and back again (and back again), all in an instant. Romola has a 'road to Damascus' moment and is transformed. Any one of these in a novel would be jarring. Together, they're almost enough to break the reader's sense of continuity."
page
390
October 24, 2011
–
74.13%
"Romola's disenchantment with Chrisianity after the meeting with the prophetess and the death of her godfather is extremely well-written and is a true account of any sudden break with a philosophy. This book is filled with so many changes in the characters."
page
510
October 25, 2011
–
Finished Reading
