The Dichotomies of George Eliot's Religious and Moral Attitudes

George Eliot was famous for the strong religious consciousness and sense of morality in her works.On one hand,she rejected Christianity and expressed her religious disbelief in her novels;on the other hand she never identified herself with an atheist.What she was opposed to was the dogmatic and the superhuman parts of Christianity.Eliot's unique anthropological religion reflected her dichotomous attitude to Christianity.In both her personal life and her works,George Eliot showed her defiance of conventional morality,but at the same time she thought high of and carried out some virtues in conformity withher contemporary moral standard and Christian ethical principles.This dissertation aims at making a brief analysis of the two dichotomies in George Eliot's views on religion and morality.