Middlemarch

Favorite phrases

Our passions do not live apart in locked chambers, but, dressed in their small wardrobe of notions, bring their provisions to a common table and mess together, feeding out of the common store according to their appetite. (Chapter 16)

Subtle Sarcasm

Often Eliot is complementing the young ladies of Middlemarch in descriptive text, but sometimes it seems like veiled sarcasm. Just from the text it is impossible to tell, even knowing the entire story.