In this essay I intend to compare the differences in the quality of Silas Marner's life following the events which altered his life. There are two main major changes in the book- firstly when he moved from Lantern Yard to Raveloe and secondly when he lost his money and found Eppie. Lantern Yard and Raveloe are two very different communities, having different beliefs and traditions, and Silas found it hard to adapt from one to the other. The downfall of losing his precious gold seemed to be compensated by the unexpected arrival of Eppie, so in this essay I will describe how his loss of money was a good thing.

When Silas lived in Lantern Yard he was respected and has a purpose in life- he had friends, family and was content. People in the community regarded him as a respectable man- 'Marner was highly thought of... believed to be a young man of exemplary life and ardent faith..

. ' (page 14). The church he attended was most probably a non-conformist one or puritan, with no decoration or communion, only a formal prayer ceremony, so when Dolly Winthrop gets her son Aaron to sing a choir hymn in chapter ten he wasn't unfamiliar with it because he had never ever had an interest in church, but because he had never sang hymns at Lantern Yard.The 'hammer-like rhythm' came to his ears as 'Strange music,' (page 104). After Silas's supposed best 'friend' William Dane framed him for murdering the senior deacon and stealing the church money, and also running off with Sarah, Silas's fianci?? e, Silas was forced to move away, and so he came to Raveloe. George Eliot describes Raveloe as a village where 'Many of the old echoes lingered, undrowned by new voices,' (page 14) and his once 'Filled with movement, mental activity and close fellowship,' (page 14).

Everything changed for him, his sense of belonging and feelings of love disappeared, as the tightly-knit community of Raveloe were wary of their new, strange neighbour. He had the knowledge of herbal remedies passed down to him from his mother at Lantern Yard, looked different and was unfamiliar with the villages' traditions so he isolated himself from society. His only passion was to weave, not just for the pleasure of it but for the knowledge that when he has finished he would receive handsome awards- guineas.Soon Silas became hungry for more money so neglected other aspects of his life- socialising, eating, going to church- to weave non-stop, 'He seemed to weave, like the spider, from pure impulse, without reflection..

. Silas's hand satisfied itself with throwing the shuttle, and his eye with seeing the little squares in the cloth complete themselves under his effort. ' (Page 24). So weaving for money became his solitary purpose in life, it dominated him and his gold, which he counted up every night, was everything to Silas- 'At night came his revelry..

. he drew out his gold... spread them out in heaps and bathed his hands in them.

(Page 29). The gold was his only companions and he would never part with his guineas and only spent his silver coins instead.He abandons his old interest of collecting herbs for remedies, far more engulfed in his new love- collecting gold. On page 30 he is near some fields which remind him of when he used to gather herbs and other ingredients to make medicines- 'The once familiar herbs: these too belonged to the past, from which his life had shrunk away, like a rivulet that has sunk far down from the grassy fringe of its old breadth into a little shivering thread, that cuts a groove for itself in the barren sand.

His life evolved around his loom. In chapter 4 Dunstan Cass, Squire Cass's son resorts in stealing Silas's gold when he ends up killing the horse (belonging to his brother Godfrey) which he intended to sell for the money Godfrey owed him.While Silas was returning back from the village, Dunstan sneaked into Silas's unlocked house and took the money, before making his way home with what his brother owed him, to keep quiet about his secret of his unspoken of wife. Silas seems rather cheerful as he arrives back, looking forward to his roast meal before 'Drawing out his guineas,' (page 54) as it would be Pleasant to see them on the table before him as he ate his unwonted feast.

For joy is the best of wine and Silas's guineas were a golden wine of that sort. 'This creates an image of how Marner likes to spend every night, counting out his gold and 'Feeling their rounded outline between his thumb and fingers, and thought fondly... as if they had been unborn children. ' (Page 30).

But when he goes to uncover his treasure he finds an 'empty hole' which makes his heart 'leap violently' and he realises he can no longer fulfil this wishful desire as he has been robbed.Eventually after searching everywhere, Silas makes an appearance at the local pub, to announce his tragedy. The felloe men warm to him, make him feel at home then offer verbal support with promises of how they'll help him. He accuses Jem Rodney of stealing his money but after the re-assurance of the inn-keeper they decide the only suspect is an earring-seller who everyone has a say of. As Dunsey hasn't returned to Raveloe there is no sign of Silas's money so he has to learn to adjust to a life without his only friends, his guineas.

Everyone begins to take an interest in him after the theft of his money, mostly out of pity but also because everyone is feeling considerate during the festive season. Mr. Macey is one example of someone who becomes Silas's friend now he is so hopeless with a sense of having no purpose in life- he tells Marner that maybe it is a good thing that he is two hundred and seventy-two pounds, twelve and six pence less rich- 'Why you've no call to sit-a-moaning. You're a better off to ha' lost your money, nor to ha' kep it by foul means.

.. ' (Page 96) but with all his friendly neighbours he gives the same motionless response- Marner remained silent.He had a sense that the old man meant to be goodnatured and neighbourly...

the kindness fell on him as sunshine falls on the wretched- he had no heart to taste it, and felt that it was very far off him. ' Dolly Winthrop was another of his 'comforters' and she encouraged him to go to church on Sunday's, with her little knowledge on the whole concept of Christianity, just knowing that 'them up there' do some good for us- (Page 102) 'For I feel so set up and comfortable as niver was, when I've been and heard the prayers, and the singing and glory o' God.All these people mean well towards Silas but he rejects their pity and every night mourns for his gold. However hard Dolly tries, she is unsuccessful in persuading Silas to go to church. She is shocked when he says he never goes and believes if he does, maybe he will forget his misery over the loss of his money.

Before Silas moves to Raveloe he was a member of the church and attended regularly, this was when he had respect and love but then when he came to Raveloe and only lived to make more money he didn't bother to carry on going to church on Sunday.It wasn't until the arrival of Eppie that he showed an interest in church again, and this was when his happiness returned. When he was cut off from religion this seems to be reflected in his emptiness and lack of purpose in life. (Page 105) 'The fountains of human love and divine faith had not yet been unlocked, and his soul was the still the shrunken rivulet, with only this difference, that its little grove of sand was blocked up, and it wandered confusedly against dark obstruction.

'- George Eliot tries to illustrate how lost Silas feels in his mismal, lonely state, his empty life, lost of the one thing that kept him going- his gold.When the baby turns up at Silas's house he immediately warms to it, and treats it as if it were his own. At first sight he sees not a child before him on the fireplace but his gold returned to him- 'It seemed as if there were gold on the floor in front of the hearth. Gold! -his own gold.

.. instead of the hard coin with the familiar resisting outline, his fingers encountered soft warm curls...

it was a sleeping child-a round, fair thing, with soft yellow rings all over its head. ' (page 135).As soon as he has overcome his initial shock he hurries about to see to the child- making porridge, comforting the child, warming it up, taking off its boots- 'He had plenty to do through the next hour,' (page 136) so you realise that beneath his stone-cold exterior is a warm heart capable of loving something other than gold. He finds the child's mother dead in a bush outside his house so seeks help from a doctor at the new years eve party at the Red House, and this is when Godfrey realises the child in Marner's arms is his own, but knows he cannot admit it as it would reveal the secret of his wife.A few days later the local people are deciding what to do with the baby, whether or not to take it to the orphanage. They know that this would mean it would have a poor quality of life and see no harm in letting Silas Marner bring the child up.

Silas sharply insists on keeping the child, when Godfrey suggests taking the child to the parish, and says (page 144)- 'Till anybody shows they've a right to take her away from me... it's a lone thing-and I'm a lone thing. This is the first time Silas has felt passionately about anything since the theft of his gold and you can sense that he feels very attached to the child already.

He believes the baby is a substitute for his loss and at first thinks it is his sister returned to him, as the baby reminds him very much of her before she died.Eppie stirs emotions long dead in the old man, 'The thoughts were strange to him now, like old friendships impossible to revive; and yet he had a dreamy feeling that this child was somehow a message come to him from that far-off life- it stirred fibres that had never been moved in Raveloe. (page 136). Dolly Winthrop helps Silas cope with the change of a baby in his life as she is a mother a three. She helps him take care of the child, brings over old clothes of Aaron and even helps him name the child- they come up with several names and finally settle on Eppie.

On one of her visits she is dressing Eppie when Silas confides in her and tells her he is concerned she might become fond of someone else, other than him, 'it may get fond o' someone else and not fond o' me' (page 149) but Dolly reassures him that Silas is Eppie's favourite person.He appears to be very protective and unwilling to give Eppie up, for example when Dolly is talking of teaching her housework when she grows up- 'but I can teach this little un,' (page 150) Marner agrees but hastily adds 'But she'll be my little un. ' Again Mrs. Winthrop attempts to get Silas involved in church again, though this time for a different reason- to get the baby christened and he has an anxious reaction- (page 151) 'Marner's pale face flushed suddenly under a new anxiety,' and later on only agrees to it after asking if how Eppie would be treated would depend on whether or not she had be christened.

Dolly manages to persuade him and the child is baptised. After the baptism Silas compares Eppie to his gold, realising that his gold didn't require attention, only worshipping in close-locked solitude, whereas Eppie 'called him away from his weaving, and made him think all its pauses a holiday, reawakening his senses with her fresh life, even to the old winter-flies that came crawling forth in the early spring sunshine, and warming him into joy because she had joy. ' (page 154).So it is becoming apparent that this mysterious arrival of Eppie has changed Marner for the better, and the results of this are more obvious later on, when she has grown up.

As she is growing up his once-hardened character softens, his soul 'unfolded, long stupefied in a cold narrow prison, now unfolded too, and trembled gradually into full consciousness,' as Eppie's mind grew into knowledge and his into memory. (page 154). It is in part two of the book where we can recognise the effect Eppie has had on Silas's life- over the sixteen years she has made him a better man, a man part of the Raveloe community.Because of her he now takes pride in his appearance, walks around with a smile on his face, enjoys the beauty of the world and has renewed his faith in God. Sixteen years later Silas's appearance hasn't really altered, it is hard to mistake him and his once- vague big brown eyes have now, 'gathered a longer vision, as is the way with eyes that have been shortsighted in early life.

.. with a more answering look...

one sees signs of a frame much enfeebled by the lapse of the sixteen years. ' (page 166).Instead of hibernating in his cottage everyday and every night Silas is an active member of the community, now accepted as a true Raveloe villager, as he has grown to socialise more and pay his duty to God by going to church. Earlier on in the story you were given the impression that Marner does not like to discipline Eppie, as when she was a small often troublesome child he would find it hard to lock her in the coal shed as Dolly Winthrop suggested and he preferred to let the child do as she pleased.

You can see that this has not changed sixteen years on as when she talks about having a garden he willingly agrees- Yes, I could do it, child, if you want a bit o' garden: these long evenings, I could work at taking in a little bit o' the waste, just enough for a root or two o' the flowers for you; and again I' the morning I could have a turn wi' the spade before I sat down to the loom. ' (page 167). But it's not as though Eppie is spoilt and expects everything she asks for from her father, she loves him greatly, and this is evident in his expression- 'mild passive happiness of love-crowned age in his face,' (page 169) so you can imagine how happy and content he is with his life, all because of Eppie.His reputation now is very high, people have become fond of the new improved Marner, 'Nobody was jealous of the weaver, for he was regarded as an exceptional person, whose claims on neighbourly help were not to be matched in Raveloe. Any superstition that remained concerning him had taken an entirely new colour,' (page 170).

Eppie had even encouraged him to take up new interests, such as smoking a pipe, despite the fact that he disliked it, (page 171) 'Silas had taken to smoking a pipe daily during the last two years, having been strongly urged to do it by the sages of Raveloe, as a practice 'good for the fits. 'And even when he wondered how his neighbours were so fond of smoking he holds on to the habit because of a 'humble sort of acquiescence in what was held to be good... of that new self.

' (page 172) Silas seems to have adjusted to his new, normal and happy life with Eppie, but knows he might have to give it up soon, when she considers marriage. He tells her that he would be lonely if she left him though she assures him that she would never leave him, and that Aaron was happy to leave with Marner too, so he says that after talking to Aaron's mother he would not stand in the way to Eppie marrying.Their life is enhanced by the addition of pets- cats, dogs and a donkey, 'The presence of this happy animal life was not the only change which had come over this interior of the stone cottage. ' (page170) and often Eppie plays with her pets at the table- 'Eppie's play with Snap and the cat, by which her own dining was made rather a lengthy business. ' (page 171).

The quality of Silas Marner's life had its ups and downs and a link can be established between when he was happy and when he was in touch with God.Eppie's unpredicted appearance changed Silas for the better and enhanced his life, making him as happy as he was at Lantern Yard. At the end of the book he fears losing Eppie to Aaron but knows he won't be around forever to look after her and loves her too much to stand in the way of her marriage to him and hopes he will still see her if she does decide to marry him. By the end of the story it is clear that the love Silas felt for Eppie is far more strong than anything he felt from the gold, therefore Dunstan stealing his money was definitely a good thing.