'There were trim cheerful villages.'

Grayscale illustration of an active village of people doing tasks such as carrying water, talking, and sitting on benches in front of a large tree.

This scene of a village depicts the novel’s rural English setting, which is both picturesque and on the cusp of social transformation. This provides an essential foundation for the novel’s themes of political tensions and social hierarchies (Chapter 3).

Hartrick, Archibald Standish (1864-1950)

George Eliot Archive, edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org

1908

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Hartrick, Archibald Standish (1864-1950), 'There were trim cheerful villages.', George Eliot Illustrations Gallery, George Eliot Archive, edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org, Accessed September 7, 2026. https://georgeeliotarchive.org/items/show/83510