Romola
By George Eliot
4.5/5
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About this ebook
When Tito Melema meets Romola, the daughter of a blind scholar, he quickly makes it his goal to marry her. For her part, Romola is enchanted by Tito during their courtship, but soon after they marry, she discovers life with Tito is more difficult than she imagined.
Set in fifteenth-century Florence, Romola is a delightful departure from English author George Eliot’s typical depictions of nineteenth-century English society, and is notable for being Eliot’s only work of historical fiction. Romola was Eliot’s fourth novel and turned out to be one of her least commercially successful works. Despite this, many literary critics and historians have argued that Romola was Eliot’s greatest novel.
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George Eliot
George Eliot (1819–1880), born Mary Ann Evans, was an English writer best known for her poetry and novels. She grew up in a conservative environment where she received a Christian education. An avid reader, Eliot expanded her horizons on religion, science and free thinkers. Her earliest writings included an anonymous English translation of The Life of Jesus in 1846 before embracing a career as a fiction writer. Some of her most notable works include Adam Bede (1859), The Mill on the Floss(1860) and Silas Marner.
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Reviews for Romola
3 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Romola was a tremendous undertaking – both to write and to read. As historical novels go, it is one of a kind. In telling the story, Eliot provides a crash course in Florentine history circa 1492. In fact, she filled several notebooks (one of which is in my collection) preparatory to writing it. Come to find out, 1492 was significant for more than one reason – to the Florentines, at least – the other reason being the death of Lorenzo de Medici, “the Magnificent.” His death initiated a period of political uncertainty in Florence which included many dramatic events such as an invasion by the French King Charles VIII in 1494, a period of plague and the rise and fall of Savonarola. These events are played out in high relief against the remarkable story of Romola, the heroin who showed all the outward signs of saintliness without actually being one.My edition (Modern Library Classics) is excellent for the introduction and notes, which are indispensible for the modern reader who may be unfamiliar with Florentine history. Many people find notes to be off-putting. I do not.While I enjoyed Romola very much, I dare not recommend it because it is – you must be warned – heavy going, perhaps not everyone’s cup of tea. But if you have a taste for the Renaissance and George Eliot, I say, give it a go. It is a painless way to absorb plenteous information about the Florentine Renaissance. At least the introductory proem should not be missed – a prose poem that presents Eliot at the height of her literary powers.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I found this a lovely read, full of striking imagery and an almost lyrical feel. Yes, the central characters are largely Victorian stereotypes, especially Romola herself, but sonehow this did not bother me due to the sheer quality of the writing. I also like anything set in Rinascimento Italy, so that was a winner for me also.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5....mmmmm....odd little book, this. Unlike her other masterpieces, Silas Marner, Adam Bede and Mill on the Floss, Mary Anne Evans here delves into 15th Cent. Florentine history and, quote, puts her best blood, unquote, into this fault-filled work of art. Takes some getting used to but well worth the effort.