The Marriage Question

"""Eloquent and original . . . [Carlisle] combines a biographer's eye for stories with a philosopher's nose for questions . . . Masterly and enriching . . . The ideal historian [of marriage] will need great tact and an impious curiosity. Carlisle has both."" --James Wood, The New Yorker ""Carlisle conveys [Eliot's] shades of emotion and temperament while expertly charting both the intellectual and artistic development of her subject and the dramas that beset Eliot's personal life. With formidable erudition and insight, this sympathetic author paints her own memorable portrait of the soft-spoken woman who quietly revolutionized the English novel--and who scandalized society by never marrying her husband . . . [Carlisle] shrewdly illuminates Eliot's consciousness and, in turn, her fiction."" --Anna Mundow, The Wall Street Journal ""Careful but impassioned . . . [Carlisle's biography] is different in its close focus on an idea: that the titular institution shaped Eliot's identity and work . . . One need not have read all [Eliot's] works to appreciate The Marriage Question, but, in the most meta sense, it is an ideal companion volume."" --Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times ""Brilliant . . . [Carlisle] guides us, by way of biography, philosophy, literary interpretation, literary history, and the histories of art and religion, through a profound consideration of Eliot's unconventional ""marriage,"" and how that emotional--and, in many ways, strategic--choice influenced her life and career . . . Ultimately, Carlisle's thoughtful, comprehensive account of this particular liaison exquisitely probes the complex, thorny, and fascinating question: How much does our choice of partner determine who we ultimately become?"" --Jenny McPhee, Air Mail ""A deep examination of long partnership--how it affects us, how it is negotiated . . . Carlisle has written a book that seems to tell us a story about others but instead deeply informs us about ourselves."" --Anna Spydell, BookPage ""A richly textured and absorbing biographical study Carlisle's intense, empathetic study reflects Eliot back to us, echoes her and rises up to meet her in order to give Eliot her philosophical due."" --Marina Benjamin, Prospect ""Carlisle, a brilliant philosophical mind herself, is perfectly matched to her subject here. The kind of book you savor page by page."" --Sophia Stewart, The Millions ""A dazzling intellectual prism . . . Presenting revelatory glimpses into her subject's social and domestic life, Carlisle employs biography as a philosophical enquiry into the Victorian author's romantic life, her craft, and her characteristic use of marriage plots as a literary device . . . The Marriage Question is an eloquent, elegant tribute to the brilliant Victorian novelist who gave voice to hidden female fears and desires."" --Shahina Piyarali, Shelf Awareness ""A highly illuminating portrait of the acclaimed writer's evolution as a novelist and a wife . . . Carlisle's ability to distill and connect ideas from such disparate fields as philosophy, theology, and literary analysis only brings Eliot into tighter focus . . . Fans of literary history will savor this book. Carlisle's empathetic exploration of a unique relationship provides a clear lens through which to view Eliot's life and work."" --Kirkus ""Captivating . . . Carlisle's cogent prose brings Eliot's story to life, and astute literary analysis shows how Eliot's biography influenced her novels . . . This is a must for devotees of Victorian literature."" --Publishers Weekly ""Clare Carlisle's The Marriage Question is the best book I've read on George Eliot."" --John Carey, Sunday Times (UK) ""Magisterial . . . a book that triumphantly enlarges our understanding of [Eliot], and of her time."" --Kathy O'Shaughnessy, Financial Times (UK) ""Finally, Eliot has got the biographer she deserves, namely an ardent and eloquent feminist philosopher who shows us how and why Eliot's books, rightly read, are as philosophically profound as any treatise written by a man."" --Stuart Jeffries, The Observer (UK) ""Thrilling . . . Frankly brilliant . . . In her introduction to The Marriage Question, Carlisle speaks of wanting to employ biography as philosophical inquiry and here she succeeds magnificently. With great skill and delicacy she has filleted details from Eliot's own life, read closely into her wonderful novels and, most importantly, considered the wider philosophical background in which she was operating."" --Kathryn Hughes, The Guardian (UK) ""A richly considered study that brings one close to the heart and mind of a great writer and a wise soul."" --Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph (UK) ""Like her subject, Carlisle conveys the fruits of her studies and reflection with a light, sometimes even lyrical touch."" --Jacqueline Banerjee, The Times Literary Supplement (UK) ""Carlisle, a seasoned researcher, biographer, and philosopher, wisely emulates Eliot's own reluctance to make definitive pronouncements . . . A brilliant and important biography."" --Beverley Park Rilett, The George Eliot Review"