On The Theme Of Moral Growth In George Eliot's Adam Bede

George Eliot was a distinguished woman writer of the Victorian age and was famous for her acute powers of observation and in-depth characterization in her novels. Being a distinguished writer of her time and at the same time one of the most successful women writers in English literary history, together with her legendary life, Eliot and her works attracted great attention from both readers and critics. She made a profound exploration in philosophy, religion and morality, all of which could be reflected in her novels and other writings. For her early novels which were set in the rural places at the very beginning of the 19th century, the morals of humanistic religion were well shown. This thesis, taking Adam Bede, one of her early novels, as the object of study, mainly analyzes the theme of moral growth in the novel and the importance of liability and altruism, so as to reveal its moral depth and significance and thus deepen the understanding of the novel.This thesis falls into three parts. The first part is a brief introduction to Eliot and her novels' status, the research on her and her novels at home and abroad, the research purpose and significance. The second part is part and parcel of this thesis, which mainly analyzes her moral views embodied in Adam Bede. This part consists of three chapters. The first chapter is about the social background of Eliot's time and the source of her religious, philosophical and moral views. The second chapter is a detailed analysis of the reflection of moral growth in Adam Bede. The third chapter goes into the exploration of her humanistic ideas which supply essential ways for her characters to achieve moral growth. The last part is the conclusion which summarizes the previous ideas and points out that moral growth is a painful process, and liability, altruism and the law of consequences are essential aspects in achieving moral growth.