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Cover of Silas Marner

Classic Fiction

Silas Marner

by George Eliot

A miserly weaver’s isolated life is transformed by the theft of his precious money and the sudden appearance of an abandoned infant, whom he adopts and raises.

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First published
1861
Length
71,448 words
Reading time
About 4 hr 58 min
Language
English (UK)

About the book

In Silas Marner , author George Eliot (the pen name of Mary Ann Evans) introduces an embittered linen weaver who withdraws from society after a betrayal of trust. He retreats to work his loom or count and re-count his accumulated gold and silver. The abrupt theft of his money sends Marner into despair, which is interrupted just as suddenly by the appearance of an abandoned infant on his hearth. Marner adopts and raises the child, finding a new place among his community.

Silas Marner was well-received at the time of its release for its “fairy tale” charm, and has since gained appreciation for Eliot’s treatment of alienation, religious feeling and community. It has remained popular ever since its publication and has been adapted many times to stage and film.

First published 1861; the Read4Max reading text contains approximately 71,448 words arranged in 26 navigable sections.

About the author

George Eliot

George Eliot (1819–1880) is described by Wikidata as English novelist, essayist, poet and journalist (1819–1880), with citizenship or national association recorded as United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Recorded occupations include novelist, translator, philosopher, writer, poet, and journalist. Languages recorded for George Eliot include English and German. The structured record associates George Eliot with literary realism. Wikidata lists The Mill on the Floss, Silas Marner, Middlemarch, Daniel Deronda, Adam Bede, and Romola among George Eliot's notable works. Open Library identifies The Mill on the Floss as a leading work in its author record. Open Library catalogs 1789 works under this author record. The Read4Max catalog currently includes Daniel Deronda, Middlemarch, Silas Marner, and The Mill on the Floss under George Eliot's authorship.

1819–1880

Reading options

  • A complete text with direct section navigation in the browser reader.
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  • Book and contributor metadata are checked against the source edition before indexing.

Themes and ideas

  • England
  • Domestic fiction
  • Fathers and daughters
  • Adopted children
  • Foundlings
  • Weavers

Table of contents

Open reader
Show all 26 sections
  1. Epigraph
  2. Silas Marner
  3. Part I
  4. I
  5. II
  6. III
  7. IV
  8. V
  9. VI
  10. VII
  11. VIII
  12. IX
  13. X
  14. XI
  15. XII
  16. XIII
  17. XIV
  18. XV
  19. Part II
  20. XVI
  21. XVII
  22. XVIII
  23. XIX
  24. XX
  25. XXI
  26. Conclusion
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