Symbolism In Silas Marner

Silas Marner, written by George Eliot, contains symbolism to represent both good and evil. Some of the symbolism can be related back to God or other religious beliefs. There are many incidents in the book that contain symbolism. Silas has elliptic seizures, which the town calls ‘trances’ or ‘fits’ that allow both good and evil to enter and leave as it wishes. During one of his trances a child, who is called Eppie, enters and changes his life for the better. Eppie is also to be considered as Silas’s replacement for the gold stolen by Dunstan Cass. When Dunstan is found dead in the stone-pit with Silas’s gold it can be considered symbolism due to the fact that the gold took him to a ...

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thus being one of the reasons for him not telling anybody of their (Godfrey and Molly’s) marriage. The other reason Godfrey can not be considered free and at peace with God is because when Molly is found dead, he (Godfrey) would not even admit that he knew her, let alone say that he married her (Molly). After Godfrey found out that Eppie had toddled into Silas’s home and looked at her (Eppie) would still not acknowledge her (Eppie) as his own flesh and blood.
One night when Molly decided to let the town know about her and Godfrey’s marriage, she wound up freezing to death. Her true purpose was to set Godfrey free and at peace with God. As Bennett states “She must have been unusually strong, for a child of that size is not easy to carry…” (132). When Molly went to tell the town of the marriage, she carried Eppie, who is around the size of a toddler, with her because it was their child. While on her journey Molly froze to death. This is when Eppie toddled to Silas’s home and ...

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shows that he cares for Eppie by giving her what she wants. His growth comes from seeing Eppie happy, just as any parent feels happy and grows spiritually as he sees his child happy and full of life.
“The gold brings death to Dunstan” (Thale, 59). Because Dunstan stole the money, it could be considered as an act of the devil. When Joan Bennett states that “… coincidence that Dunsey Cass falls into the stone pit near-by…”(133). It is no coincidence because throughout the novel Eliot shows that God is watching over everything. God makes sure that Silas’s life gets better. He (God) makes sure of this by letting Eppie come into his life. It is also symbolic because we assume that the ...

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Added: 5/11/2006 11:14:42 PM
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