A study of characterisation in the novels of George Eliot

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construct for moral grovnh. It is also important to decide whether
such beliefs constitute limitations and restrictions on the manipulation
of plot or theme, or on the development of characters and the sorts of
choices offered them.
I will now turn my attention to some of the issues that have emerged
from an examination of George Eliot's moral and psychological stance. I
vrlll define her concept of self, the ways in which she allows her characters
to establish themselves in the world of the novels. I vall assess,
in terms of the individual, struggling human being, the tragic implicat~
ions of a framework of universal causality and irreversible laws. Finally
I will look at representative characters in order to analyse whether
they are allowed sufficient freedom for moral growth or whether they
suffer from George Eliot's too-controlling hand.
Let us now examine the ways in which George Eliot defines the selfhood
of her characters and the sorts of opportunities she provides for
them. We will also need to decide whether these opportunities allow for
a free range of expression, or whether they restrict the characters'
freedom of choice.