George Eliot and the ‘Silly Novels’

Abstract

Mary Ann Evans had been a renowned critic before she began writing fiction under the pseudonym George Eliot. Her articles for the Westminster Review included extensive reviews of popular novels of the time, which she used as a springboard to delve into aesthetic principles and cultural responses to literature. “Silly Novels by Lady-Novelists” (1856) was to become one of the most-often cited contemporary analyses of nineteenth-century women’s writing. While Evans was to define her own works of fiction against the trends she identified and condemned, her article not only provided a good overview of current literary developments, but also contributed significantly to the critical discussion of popular culture at a time when the social role and the aesthetic functions of both literature and of literary criticism were under debate. This essay critically reassesses the literary as well as larger cultural significance of Evans’ “Silly Novels,” situating it firmly amidst her oeuvre as a critic and revaluating its changing interpretation and influence.