Farebrother arrives and invites Lydgate to visit him.
Lydgate observes Farebrother's skill at card games. Later, he wonders whether
Farebrother cares for the money he wins at cards. His thoughts turn
to Rosamond. He admires her, but he doesn't plan to marry for some
years. He doesn't know that Rosamond has other ideas. She thinks
he has important, aristocratic relations. She believes she will
live in aristocratic style as his wife.
Commentary
Lydgate is an orphan and a newcomer to Middlemarch. The
orphan is a metaphor for the changing social structure. Before industrialization,
familial connections largely determined social status. Family honor
largely determined the range of social possibilities for the individual,
including marriage and profession. As an orphan, Lydgate is less
fettered by familial concerns.
Lydgate is an early example of an important, and distinctly
modern, character type: the self-made man. He represents the growing importance
of modern scientific thought, further strengthening his position
as herald of modernity. He comes to Middlemarch as a reformer of
outdated medical practice, which further marks him as a representative
of social change. Moreover, he dislikes his aristocratic relations,
and he chose the medical profession against their wishes. A fierce
individualism characterizes Lydgate's personality. He disdains petty
social politics. For him, the hospital represents a purely professional
project, not a social or political entanglement.
Bulstrode was once a newcomer to Middlemarch as well,
but method of integration into the community is directly opposed
to Lydgate's. Bulstrode took great pains to insert himself deeply
into the web of Middlemarch society. He married Walter Vincy's sister and
allied himself with an old, influential family. Moreover, Bulstrode
is no stranger to the game of petty local politics. He regularly pulls
the strands in the web of social relations in any direction he wants.
As an important, wealthy banker, Bulstrode possesses a
powerful view into the private lives of his fellow Middlemarch citizens through
their finances. Unlike Lydgate, he doesn't make a strict distinction
between his professional and private interests. He loans money professionally
through his bank as well as privately through his personal wealth.
This allows him to place other people in the position of strong
obligation to him personally and professionally. Therefore,
he can manipulate other people. Bulstrode is a strict Evangelical
Christian. He uses his power to impel other people to live according
to his moral system as well as to support his political agenda.
Bulstrode's influence allows Lydgate to have the facilities
and professional autonomy that he needs to conduct his research.
By virtue of Bulstrode's power, Lydgate possesses the right to make
the ultimate decision in the treatment of patients. Bulstrode intends
to use Lydgate's professional and personal obligation to him in
order to control Lydgate's vote in the clerical dispute. Lydgate
does not realize that the new opportunities for social mobility
carry disadvantages as well as advantages. He achieves one form
of personal independence as a self-made man, but he must deal with
matters of professional obligation. His fierce individualism alienates
other Middlemarch medical men. Because he is not careful to familiarize himself
with the web of Middlemarch social relations, he inadvertently insults
the coroner.
