George Meredith, Diana of the Crossways, 1885
This is, among other things, a novel about a novelist; since the author’s
own methods of composition were similar to those he ascribes to his subject,
the topic prompts the narrator’s self-scrutiny, self-criticism and apologia.
Meredith’s novels repeatly show intelligent people whose articulateness
is not self-knowledge.
At the same time, of course, Diana of the Crossways is a novel about
a highly independent woman written by an author with strong ambivalence toward
notions of a “new woman” and gender equality, so that at times
the author seems to turn upon his subject, protected by the mask of apparent
narrative objectivity.
Gillian Beer has written of the novel’s central subject: "The
theme of the novel is the disparity between the awakened intellect and the
slumbering sexual nature of his Diana-heroine; the movement of the work is
seismographic, tracking deep emotional stirrings and irruptions which on the
surface may seem disconnected. Diana’s attempt to reconcile her individual
identity with her inescapable instinctive being is the central concern of
the book.”
On egotism: “Meredith was sufficiently a Victorian to be troubled by
the omnipresence of self but he was also fascinated by its disguises and its
manifold expressions in action. . . . it is not simply egoism which causes
mischief but the refusal to accept one’s own egoism. . . .”
Yet incesasingly the novel emphasizes the extent to which actions are determined
by society rather than individual choice.
In cases where Meredith presents autobiographical elements, these are often
shown with harsh self-distancing, as among other examples, in his sarcastic
portrayal of the young poet Arthur Rhodes, or Sir Lukin’s remorse when
his wife was dying of cancer, written while Merdith’s own wife was dying
of cancer. By contrast Diana is shown as unaware of her own motives: the uses
Percy Dacier as the hero of her book, The Young Minister of State,
without recognizing that the portrait expresses her hidden love for him. And
she places Redworth in her novel as man who worships an opera singer, failing
to recognize his feeling for her.
Critics of the period distinguished between the realistic novel and the romance;
one can see this novel, with its mythical and poetic portrayals of its subject
blended with its ultimately unillusioned views of life’s possibilities,
as an attempt to reconcile these two modes of presentation.
- How would you describe this novel’s style? In what ways may
it have been unusual among the novels of the time?
- How would you describe the narrator’s stance toward his creations,
and how important is the presence of this narrative voice to the novel?
(ambivalent, oblique, perhaps contradictory)
- From what point of view is Diana generally regarded? (from without)
- What is the significance of Diana’s name? (Diana/Crossways)
Of her use of alternate names? (e. g. Diana Marion, Antonia, Tony)
- What may have been some uses of the book’s mythological allusions?
- the use of myth enables the narrator to allude to topics, such as
sexuality, which might have been more difficult to portray more directly.
- mythology becomes a means of endorsing the “stature” of
his heroine while questioning her aspirations.
- What are some ways the novel treats issues of perception and misperception?
- Diana believes in her own lack of passion, 180
- is overly proud of her disinterestedness, 205; suffers from tragic
flaw of hubris
- There is a contrast between Diana’s novels and her life. Objectively
she understands human behavior, but in her own conduct she is blind.
- What are the heroine’s contrasting responses to Dacier and Redworth?
- idealizes Dacier in her second novel
- presents Redworth realistically, 227-228
- experiences difficulty in arriving at an independent perception,
211
- Can you see resemblances in theme between this novel and Jane Austen’s Emma?
Eliot’s Daniel Deronda? Henry James’s Portrait of a Lady?
- What are some features of the heroine’s speech? (abrupt, effusive)
- Is Dacier an adequate object for Diana’s extended love interest?
(little basis for relationship; he is biased against Irish, 204) Redworth?
- What changes seem to occur in Diana after the end of her affair with
Dacier? Does the narrative present her regression?
- Do you find her decision to marry Redworth convincing? (she is frequently
described by others as cold; contrast Redworth) In what way is he contrasted
with her other suitors? (only man who refuses to pursue her--and he is
successful)
- Is Diana’s character presented as consistent throughout? For example,
is the episode in which she sells information ever quite explained satisfactorily?
What effect does this lapse have upon the novel’s tone and general
message?
- How does knowledge that the novel is loosely based on the life of
Caroline Norton affect one’s reading of the novel?
- From what you know of Norton’s life, how has Meredith altered
the original in order to create his heroine? What may have been his motives,
dramatic or person, for so doing?
- Are there parallels between Diana-as-novelist and Merdith the novelist?
(206)
- In what ways does the novel deal with or fail to deal with issues
of feminism?
- marriage law, her political concerns
- independence, 194, 213, 211, 185, 187; contrast Redworth
- To what extent are Diana’s flaws presented as essentially sex-linked?
- What are some images associated with Diana? Are these gendered, and
what are their implications? (constant moon imagery, 185, 187)
- What effect is created by the narrative stance and tone of the novel?
What effect does this have on the reader’s sympathies?
- What function is served by the character of Emma? (virtually an admiring
chorus) What are qualities of their friendship? What is the narrator’s
response to their relationship?
- Do you feel the novel treats a full range of characters adequately?
(e. g., Mr. Warwick)
- Does the novel’s conclusion satisfactorily resolve the issues
raised in the narrative?
- What forms of criticism are especially useful for unlocking the complexities
of this work? (biographical? psychological? narratological? reader-response?
reception theory?)
- Can you compare the presentation and plot outcome of this novel with
that of other “new women” novels of the period, such as Oliver
Schreiner’s The Story of an African Farm, George Gissing’s The
Odd Women,
or Israel Zangwill’s Children of the Ghetto?