The individual cannot exist without being part of society, this being a fact also emphasized by MacIver, “Society is more than our environment: it is our nature. It is within us as well as around us.” (MacIver 1). Aristotle, too, maintained that the man is inherently born to live among his peers, when he called the individual a “social animal”. In addition, it is worth mentioning the fact that, in regard to Silas Marner, society is reduced to the communities in which he lived, namely: Yard-Lantern and Raveloe.
In this essay my purpose is to demonstrate the importance of society, and at the same time, to talk about the rapport between individual and society in “Silas Marner” by George Eliot. In order to reach my goal, I am going to use theories …show more content…
Instead, Silas Marner, controlled by his “sociability drive” (Simmel 44) helped Sally Oates. “The sociability drive” a term introduced by Georg Simmel refers to the way in which individuals find pleasure in being a part of society. Consequently, the helping hand Silas Marner gave to the suffering woman was his impulse to sociability, emphasized his desire to be accepted by his peers. However, he could not fulfil his drive, Silas’ good deed caused his neighbours to seek his help and his refusal was not well received. His refusal, caused by good intention, was taken for vileness and Silas was once more rejected. Thus, when he found there was no way he could be accepted as a part of Raveloe, Silas turned to a solitary life which marks the beginning of the second stage of …show more content…
Take the case of Anna, a girl who had been kept for almost six years in a dark room, barely fed, neglected completely by her mother. When she was discovered, she could not speak, walk, not to mention she was indifferent to everything around her. Her case shows exactly how badly one can be affected by seclusion. However, Silas Marner’s situation differs in some respects from the one mentioned previously, since he is an adult. Yet one cannot help but observe the change in his character and way of being, he started even resembling the things to which he was deeply tied, his loom and his
In this essay my purpose is to demonstrate the importance of society, and at the same time, to talk about the rapport between individual and society in “Silas Marner” by George Eliot. In order to reach my goal, I am going to use theories …show more content…
Instead, Silas Marner, controlled by his “sociability drive” (Simmel 44) helped Sally Oates. “The sociability drive” a term introduced by Georg Simmel refers to the way in which individuals find pleasure in being a part of society. Consequently, the helping hand Silas Marner gave to the suffering woman was his impulse to sociability, emphasized his desire to be accepted by his peers. However, he could not fulfil his drive, Silas’ good deed caused his neighbours to seek his help and his refusal was not well received. His refusal, caused by good intention, was taken for vileness and Silas was once more rejected. Thus, when he found there was no way he could be accepted as a part of Raveloe, Silas turned to a solitary life which marks the beginning of the second stage of …show more content…
Take the case of Anna, a girl who had been kept for almost six years in a dark room, barely fed, neglected completely by her mother. When she was discovered, she could not speak, walk, not to mention she was indifferent to everything around her. Her case shows exactly how badly one can be affected by seclusion. However, Silas Marner’s situation differs in some respects from the one mentioned previously, since he is an adult. Yet one cannot help but observe the change in his character and way of being, he started even resembling the things to which he was deeply tied, his loom and his