Middlemarch response

Dorothea: naïve, inquisitive, confused, romantic, lonely
Eliot on Dorothea: P195 – “It would be a unique delight to wait and watch for the melodious fragments in which her heart and soul came forth so directly and ingenuously.”
Telling the same idea: Dorothea is a very emotional character. She deals with things with her feelings rather clearly exposed. Though this can be viewed as a flaw, in moments of happiness it is a gift of hers and is very endearing to Ladislaw.

Mr. Casaubon: experienced, knowledgeable, jaded, proper, guarded
Eliot on Casaubon: P185 – “With his taper stuck before him he forgot the absence of windows, and in bitter manuscript remarks on other men’s notions about the solar deities, he had become indifferent to the sunlight.”
Telling the same idea: Mr. Casaubon is a very smart man, but he focuses his intelligence and intuition on his work rather than the life that is taking place around him. Though he is very learned about people and places, he can’t read the events that occur in his life. This is shown in his reaction to Dorothea’s questions about what he thinks of art and architecture; he rattles off facts to her about the pieces, but has no emotion or connection to them.

Will Ladislaw: charming, scholarly, creative, observant, animated
Eliot on Ladislaw: P192 – “But the idea of this dried up pedant, this elaborator of small explanations about as important as the surplus stock of false antiquities kept in a vendor’s back chamber, having first got this adorable young creature to marry him, and then passing his honeymoon away from her, groping after his mouldy futilities (Will was given to hyperbole) – this sudden picture stirred him with a sort of comic disgust…”
Telling the same idea: Will is also emotional and tends to be extreme (“given to hyperbole” indicates a tendency to exaggerate). This sentence is what led me to describe him as animated – he experiences dynamic emotions such as “comic disgust.” He is also romantic like Dorothea, as is shown by the jealousy he feels that Casaubon mistreats his wife (in Ladislaw’s opinion, anyway).

Eliot rejects the concept of fancying up characters in order to conform to some sort of ideal. Instead she seeks a “rare, precious quality of truthfulness” and attempts to portray characters as real people who are identifiable and can be loved even despite their flaws. I think she does practice what she preaches to some extent in Middlemarch; all three main characters do have flaws and are interestingly developed in a way that you can identify with each one. The only qualm I would have with the story is the way that Ladislaw is shown in a mostly positive light. His flaws aren’t developed as well as Dorothea’s or Casaubon, but I think that is only because we read such a short section of the story.