1819 - 1880

George Eliot (Marry Anne Evans)

She used a male pen name, she said, to ensure her works would be taken seriously.

Also as her life was very scandalous, many believe the reason she used different name is simply because she wanted to keep her privacy.

Why pen name ?

Birthplace: Warwickshire (1819)Parents: Robert and Christina Evans Siblings: Christina, born in 1814; Isaac, born

in 1816 and twin brothers who survived only a few days into March 1821.

Half brother and half sister: Robert (1802) and Fanny (1805)

Early Life

Marry Anne was considered rather intelligent.

Ages 5-9: Miss Latham’s school, AttleboroughAges 9-13: Mrs. Wallington’s school,

NuneatonAges 13-16: Miss Franklin’s school, Coventry After the age of 16 she started self-educating

by being allowed access to the library of Arbury Hall.

Education

Evans was 16 when her mother died, leaving her to take care of her father and be a housekeeper.

When she was 21 her brother Isaac married taking over the family home. Evans moves to Coventry with her father.

There she meets Charles Bray who was a wealthy man and became intimate friends with him. Also starts questioning her religious faith.

Her after dies later on when she was 30. 5 days after she travels to Switzerland with

Bray.

Move to Coventry

Moved to London with the intent of becoming a writer and calling herself Marian Evans.

Contributed essays and reviews for the journal of the man whom she had stayed with while in London, a certain John Chapman.

Move to London (1850)

Philosopher and critic met Evans in 1851 and by 1854 they had decided to live together.

He was married to Agnes Jervis with whom he had had 3 children.

They travelled to Germany for the purpose of research.

Evans worked on translation of theological texts.

They considered themselves married and everybody else considered them a scandal.

George Henry Lewes

While writing for the journal Westminster Review she started mocking the way women writers wrote at the time by writing an essay naming it ‘’Silly Novels by Lady Novelists’’. (1856)

Came up with the name George Eliot and decided to be a novelist.

George Eliot

Adam Bede (1859) – Instant success, everyone wanted to know who this new writer was.

Admitting she was Marian Evans Lewes. It made a huge shock for her admiring readers

but it never lowered her popularity. 18She was completely accepted to polite society in

1877. 15 years of writing novels Daniel Deronda (1876)

First and Last Publications

George Lewes gets ill and dies in 1878.Evans finds solace with John Walter Cross

who is twenty years younger than her. She later on married him and changed her

name to Mary Anne Cross. John tries to kill himself during their

honeymoon but survives. They return to England where Eliot gets a

throat infection which couples with kidney disease and leads her to death in 1880 at the age of 61.

Last Years

Even after her death they didn’t let her have a memorial stone in Westminster Abbev’s Poets’ Corner. They allowed it one hundred years after.

Several people claimed to be George Eliot before Mary Anne came out.

It is said that after an affair with Evans, famous British philosopher wrote an essay on repugnancy of ugly women and all of Evans’ friends knew it was about her.

Facts

Eliot's grave in London.

Sorry you had to put up with my accent, Tamara.

Love,Irena

Sorry