Adam Bede: The story of character formation

ABSTRACT: George Eliot lived in a period marked by rapid changes and radical ideas. She had the opportunity to witness change and question the dogmas of her time during her transformation from a village girl to an educated woman, and through getting acquainted with the influential intellectuals of the nineteenth century. In time, she formed her own philosophy against the rigidly defined codes of Victorianism, and she came believe in the prominence of reality in life and art. Hence, reality became the perfect media for her to depict the true picture of individual in society. For Eliot, the individual is a problematic, self-deceptive being: he/she is inclined to form a fictitious image of himself/herself and fake social relations which result in self-deception and insincerity, and which distort the natural flow of life. The solution for this problem, Eliot thinks, is to encounter reality through a tragic experience which teaches and brings maturity to the individual and to life itself. In Adam Bede, George Eliot depicts four flawed, escapist characters: Adam, Dinah, Hetty, and Arthur are, in their own ways, self-deceptive, ego-centred figures. Having already formed second personality traits, they are neither true to themselves nor to the society do they live in. In the end these personality traits cause the emergence of tragedy and suffering after which their lives turn to normal. However, wisdom comes too late: it comes after experiencing reality. self-deception, family, parentification, individual, society, maturity.