"Middlemarch" by George Eliot, one of the masterpieces of English fiction, is set in the fictitious Midlands town of Middlemarch.
It has multiple plots with a large cast of characters, and in addition to its distinct though interlocking narratives it pursues a number of underlying themes, including the status of women, the nature of marriage, idealism and self-interest, religion and hypocrisy, political reform, education, class climbing and sinking, love and marriage. Despite the fact that it has some comical characters, "Middlemarch" is a work of realism. Through the voices and opinions of different characters we become aware of various broad issues of the day: the Great Reform Bill, the beginnings of the railways, the death of King George IV and the succession of his brother, the Duke of Clarence (King William IV).
