ABSTRACT
In a letter to Sara Sophia Hennell in 1849, Eliot explained how reading other writers helped her to make 'new combinations':
Distancing herself from any particular writer, Eliot understood the possibility of reshaping and recombining past and present discourses. In her fiction she transposed diverse philosophic systems of thought. The medium of her intellect blended narration, dialogue, philosophy, and irony into novels where she not only represented but also challenged conventional attitudes regarding gender, race, and class.
