An Ecofeminist Interpretation Of George Eliot’s Middlemarch

George Eliot is one of the most influential British writers in the 19 th century.She is especially famous for the precise descriptions of details,including plot,setting,and the individual characters.A lot of social issues are highlighted in this novel,including political elections,medical progress,women’s education,etc.It has far-reaching influence in the literary world.From the perspective of Ecofeminism,Eliot not only reveals the sufferings of women under patriarchy by describing the five marriages in Middlemarch,but also accuses patriarchy of the oppression and control of women’s minds.Eliot explores the natural and acquired relationships between nature and women,regarding women,nature and all the other marginalized groups as the oppressed other in the structure of patriarchy.In Middlemarch Eliot expresses her expectation to disrupt the imbalanced relationship between the marginalized groups and the absolute dominant male authority in the process of women’s self-realization under patriarchy.The author of the paper uses the western theory of Ecofeminism to analyze deeply the common fate of women and nature under patriarchy.In the introduction,the author of the paper introduces the story of Middlemarch and the theory of Ecofeminism.The first chapter of the thesis analyzes how women become oppressed and conquered under patriarchy.The second chapter explores how the patriarchal thoughts conquer and over-exploit nature and causes ecological crises.The third chapter interprets the awakening of women and their resistance to patriarchy.The conclusion sums up the main points of the thesis: Ecofeminism sheds light on the ecological and social significance of Eliot’s advocacy of building a harmonious world in Middlemarch.