During this time period, it was normal for women to feel as though they had to take on the "wifely" role and that was pretty much all that their life consisted of. For a woman, it was the most important thing in her life to get married and have children. This was not correlated to gaining any freedom but instead to move from their parents' protection to the husband’s protection, leaving all their possessions. Women were still discriminated when it came to the issue of divorce. This was always connected to a big scandal and the social discrimination of the woman. Whereas in the case of the husband, he could get divorced from his wife accusing her of infidelity, the wife could not do that of their own accord, even if the infidelity was not the only violation against her. After getting married, getting pregnant and raising the children was the second important goal to be fulfilled by women. In all classes, raising and educating their children belonged to the responsibility of the mothers, excluding the father’s intervention. However, while women belonging to the upper-class did not face many difficulties in reconciling motherhood and survival, because most often they were helped by governesses or nannies, women belonging to the working-class had to give their children away for a great part of the day to be able to hold down a job. "Women were not formed for political eminence, or literary refinement… Their destiny of bearing and nursing children, the necessity of superintending domestic concerns, and the peculiar diseases to which they are liable, leave them little time for such public undertakings…" (Clergyman 185). Women were viewed as needing to take care of domestic needs first, and would not have time for such things as their education. This quote very much wraps up what the thoughts on women's domesticity expectations were and how they should act. George Eliot's work portrays repeated expectations of women's domestic roles during the 19th century novels. This theme is apparent in her portrayals of Dorothea in Middlemarch, as well as Maggie in The Mill on the Floss."
Dorthea plays a critical role in the novel, I would say that she is even one of the main characters throughout the novel. It seems as though almost all of the characters, even the narrator, give off the feeling that Dorthea is somehow more than human, almost Saint like. I'm curious to know that if that was Eliot's intention, was to give off the vibe that Dorthea is a Saint, but she is also a "Saint" that has her own thoughts and opinions as well. Dorothea's intense spirituality and her position as a woman seem to be linked. Most aspects of Dorothea's character come back to her femininity. People want to idealize her as a work of art because she's a beautiful woman, and they want to associate her with saints or the Virgin Mary because she's a good woman. Dorothea's complexity comes in part from the narrator's assertions that she has a "mental life" beneath the surface which is something that even the narrator can't fully comprehend, I believe in part from the tension between Dorothea's physical femininity and her spirituality. This tension gets played out in the way other characters view her, too. Many characters idealize her either as a saint or as a work of art (or both), and have trouble thinking of her as a real person, rather than the Saint or Angel that they believe her to be.
Dorthea is definitely a character that seems to be very complex, but in her complexity, she has so much personality and spunk to her. She isn't afraid to speak some of her opinions and thoughts. Even the narrator likes to discuss the fact that Dorthea was not afraid to speak her opinions, even though that is not generally something that women back then were "supposed" to do. As the book progresses though, the readers really start to see how much Dorthea starts to keep to herself and feels so lonely in her marriage with Mr. Casaubon. It would be so difficult to be in a marriage like that where you realize that you made a mistake in marrying someone, but for religious reasons, she does not leave him. "He never expects his wife to be of use of his work, let alone to involve her in his research and writing… Dorothea finds that her marriage is completely different from what she has expected. Neither can she realize her noble quest for spiritual contentment… " (Zhang and Zeng 542). Dorthea sticks with him even though he has very much so turned into a controlling husband, and very jealous as well. The fact that he forbids Will to visit Dorthea, is such an indicator just how jealous and envious at the relationship that Dorthea and Will have started to form. Even when she has conversations with any man, for that matter, he seems to get jealous hearing about any interaction she may encounter throughout her days. ""She knows that I know," said the ever-restless voice within; but that increase of tacit knowledge only thrust further off any confidence between them. He distrusted her affection; and what loneliness is more lonely than distrust?" (Eliot 273) I believe that this quote is the epitome of what their relationship has boiled down to, they both felt very lonely and were not willing to admit that outright to one another.
I also believe that Dorthea is influenced by the men that surround her life and Uncle Brooke is a man that raised Dorthea and her sister. He is a man that very much believes that women aren’t capable of doing much of anything. . I feel as though he truly cares deeply for his nieces, but he also seems as though because he has never raised children before, let alone girls, he seems a bit intimidated by them as well. He is also someone who seems to talk a lot and feels like he is the "expert" on a plethora of different topics and can't be bothered by other's opinions on really anything. This could also play into why he is a bachelor and has been throughout life. He doesn't seem like he would enjoy hearing anyone else's thoughts or opinions. He gives his thoughts and thinks that his opinions are the only ones that are relevant. "Mr. Brooke wondered, and felt that women were an inexhaustible subject of study, since even at his age was not in a perfect state of scientific prediction about them. Here was a fellow like Chettam with no chance at all" (Eliot 26). Mr. Brooke also seems to feel and isn't afraid to discuss how he feels about women, and feels that they should stick to their "women" duties which includes looking at jewelry and to not do anything that might exhaust them. Although this isn't too extreme of an opinion for the time period that it was written in, but his opinion of women does appear to be an extreme example of how men viewed women back in that time period. He feels as though they are dainty, poor women and are incapable of doing anything that might exhaust them in any sort of way. He is exhausted when he even has to think about them and thinks that they are such a complicated subject. I think the fact that women were not supposed to have any sort of opinion or have a say in anything in their life was a sad fact. It's men like Uncle Brooke that went on the extreme spectrum and didn't think that women's opinions were important and that they didn't know anything about anything. When he is discussing on how it is better to spend money in finding out how men can make the most of the land, and discussing those sorts of topics with Dorthea, he seems to get agitated although he tries to make a joke about it, but I feel as though he was being serious and wanted her to stop talking about the topic of money or anything other than jewelry. ""Young ladies don't understand political economy, you know," said Mr. Brook, smiling towards Mr. Casaubon. "I remember when we were all reading Adam Smith. There is a book, now. I took in all the new ideas at one time-human perfectibility, now…"" (Eliot 11). He seems to dismiss any of Dorthea had stated, it was as though she had not said anything at all. This is why I believe he is such a complex character because he seems to care about his nieces, but they also are women and whatever women say can't be taken seriously. Even when Uncle Brooke tries to deter Dorthea from marrying Mr. Casaubon, he gives his opinion on the matter and when Dorthea sticks to her guns about the topic, he again states that he doesn't believe Mr. Casaubon is a good fit for Dorthea.
Maggie is bold and independent, but she frequently gives in to her family’s wishes, even when they cause her pain. She longs to find a better life and a better future, but she stubbornly clings to her past and her family. She wants love more than anything. She has a great capacity to enjoy books and art and music, but she willingly denies herself these things. While Maggie’s desire for love for herself is a major component of her character, we also have to consider Maggie’s love for other people. Maggie’s desire to receive love and her desire to give love don’t always blend very well together. Maggie’s compassion and her reluctance to hurt others is at the core of Maggie’s character, and this compassion also helps to explain why Maggie is as complicated and as contradictory as she is. Maggie Tulliver is a people-pleaser. She wants everyone around her to be pain-free. If they are pain-free, it means that Maggie has done well and that people will in turn love her, which is the other driving imperative in Maggie’s character. Even when she chooses based on her desire, she ultimately feels the pull of her family and community too strongly, and can’t bear to imagine upsetting or hurting her family.
Maggie’s love for each of the different men characters is very different. Her love for Tom seems most passionate when they are children and grows into something more complicated as they age. It is a love that is symbolic of her deep and often constricting and painful ties to her past, and her family. She loves him greatly even though he often tries to control her, and he does not truly understand her. Contrasting with that for Tom, Maggie’s love for Philip is built largely on similarities between them. His love for music, art, and literature, and his significant intelligence, which means that she can converse with him in a way she cannot with any of her family members. This love, though, lacks any physical passion. The only physical aspect of her affections is that of sympathy for his "deformity." She also seems as though she feels some a pity towards Philip, also due to this deformity. Finally, Maggie’s love for Stephen seems almost purely physical. He is witty, charming. We never see what specifically in his character draws Maggie to him. There is a sense of a strong physical passion which leads her into a kind of trance. Through Stephen's eyes, Maggie sees herself as a desirable lady for the first time, someone who is acceptable to society. There is a passage that I thought fit well with Maggie and how even when she tries to open up and tell Lucy how she is feeling unhappy, Lucy interacts with her and basically dismisses Maggie's thoughts and emotions. This is during a conversation that she is having with Lucy, the passage is the following; " 'You dear, tiny thing,' said Maggie, in on her bursts of loving admiration, 'you enjoy other people's happiness so much, I believe you would do anything without any of your own. I wish I were like you.' 'I've never been tried in that way,' said Lucy, '… You have been tried, Maggie; and I'm sure you feel for other people quite as much as I do.' " (Eliot 345). Maggie is being vulnerable with Lucy, and Lucy tells her that she has been "tried" and seems to dismiss Maggie's feelings. Maggie was longing for any sort of sympathy back from Lucy, and she does not receive the love or sympathy she was anticipating from Lucy.
Another element to which I believe molds Maggie into the woman that she is, is the relationship that she has with her brother, Tom. The brother and sister are polar opposites in almost every regard, and Maggie seems to really worship her older brother. Tom is someone that may not be the smartest or have the greatest imagination, if any. Maggie is the opposite, she enjoys reading and has such a vivid imagination. Tom almost seems to scold Maggie for the imagination that she has, and I wonder if it's because he's jealous of the creativity and thought that Maggie has. "Maggie’s identity is debased by the culture of patriarchy which… society strives to instill into Maggie the perception that she has no alternative but to conform to its conception of appropriate female behavior… ultimately she is defeated and chooses self-abnegation" (Akça and Güneş 1). Maggie is devoted to Tom and apologetic for any wrong she may do to him, which is usually unintentional or not even hurtful, he just portrays her actions as hurtful. Tom is severe in his reactions and stubborn in his understanding of how justice and punishment work. We have seen previously how quickly Tom moves on from his anger towards his sister, and says very hurtful things to her. Tom so easily tells his sister how he is mad at her and that he no longer loves her, and she is not afraid to vocalize to him how much his words hurt and have an effect on her. Tom is a complex character just on his own, because he seems to be pretty full of himself for such a young boy. It seems as though he thinks that people should just do and act as he feels that they should and just automatically read his mind. While Maggie and Tom were sharing pastries, Tom and Maggie had such an interesting interaction. I found the "power play" occurring in this scene to be intriguing because Maggie feels as though she was in the wrong, which is so sad to see Maggie taking on that false guilt. There is another scene in which I found to very interesting because of the way that Tom and Maggie act towards one another. "In his secret heart he yearned to have Maggie with him, and was almost ready to dote on her exasperating acts of forgetfulness; though, when he was at home, he always represented it as a great favour on his part to let Maggie trot by his side on his pleasure excursions" (Eliot 135). Tom seems like he really is a sweet, caring brother in this scene. More so than we have seen previously throughout the novel, but in less than a page later, he is voicing quite the opposite. Maggie tells him that she can study with him and read with him, and comes back with a sassy, rude remark back to his sister. Tom is constantly antagonizing his sister, but his response back to his sister would frustrate me as well. " ' You help me, you silly little thing!' … 'I should like to see you doing one of my lessons! Why, I learn Latin too! Girls never learn such things. They're too silly.'" (Eliot 136) Tom talks to Maggie as though he is superior to her and that there was no way a girl could ever learn such things because they are far too silly. It will be interesting to see how Tom and Maggie's relationship progresses and if he ever realizes how mean he truly is to his sister that seems to really worship Tom. Tom seems to take for granted how much his sister cares for him, and I think that very much effects Maggie's self-esteem and how she views herself.
In this era of writing, it was common for women to feel as though they didn't have any agency and had to submit to their male counterparts. There are many characters in this time period that Eliot writes about, but Maggie and Dorthea are both characters that heavily influenced by the men in their lives as well as the expectations from the society that surrounds them. Both Maggie and Dorthea are examples of women that were trapped in the patriarchal thoughts throughout the society and felt that they could not be independent. The women were stunted by the men that surrounded them and appeared to be fearful of becoming or having too much power or thoughts of their own.