George Eliot: The Writer's Motivation?

[polynices]

Here's a quote from the fourth chapter of George Eliot's Daniel Deronda, in which she describes the aspirations of her central character, Gwendolen:

She meant to do what was pleasant to herself in a striking manner; or rather, whatever she could do so as to strike others with admiration and get in that reflected way a more ardent sense of living, seemed pleasant to her fancy.

Eliot isn't directly discussing writing here - Gwendolen is just a spoiled beauty of twenty who wants to be noticed in 'society' - but it seems to me that the above is a pretty accurate description of many writers' basic motivation. And, given that Eliot was a pretty fine writer herself, she presumably knew what she was talking about. (I suspect she's so down on Gwendolen in the novel because she's describing aspects of herself.)

Any thoughts?

- polynices

 

[3113]

Doesn't hit the mark

She meant to do what was pleasant to herself in a striking manner; or rather, whatever she could do so as to strike others with admiration and get in that reflected way a more ardent sense of living, seemed pleasant to her fancy.

Having read the book, I think Elliot's down on Gwen because she, Elliot, was the brainy girl and brainy girls often view such spoilt beauties critically--as well as the society that raises and fetes and pampers them and then, as happens to Gwen, forgets about them once they're locked away in marriage.

As for this describing writers, certainly, writers do have an ego and want to "strike others with admiration." That's kinda a given. But really, this is way too broad. The importance of this line is simply that it allows the reader to identify with a character otherwise hard to identify with, which is Elliot's gift. However much we like or dislike a character, we can always see something of ourselves in them.

What little kid, after all, hasn't thought, "I wanna grow up and be famous?" What teen hasn't thought, "I wanna be a rock star/famous athlete/famous model" (etc.)? What ignored man or woman hasn't stared at themselves in the mirror and given some mock acceptance speech for an award for...anything? Or done their best to show off to their friends in some way or other?

But a writer--and I mean someone who does more than writes and posts something on-line in hopes of gushing comments--is one who is going to take a year to write a novel (or several poems, short stories, essays), then spend more time editing them, crying in frustration over them, ignoring their family for them, etc., then try and get them published meaning they'll face rejection several times (and in Elliot's time this was all done with ink and paper!)....

Putting it another way, the quote is on the mark because, of course, we want that. But it misses the mark because writers are so determined to get admiration via writing which is a damn hard, elusive, and uncertain way to get it. I think Elliot was wiser and more self-aware. Self-aware enough to know that, yes, she was after admiration as we all are, but also self-aware enough to know that there are far easier ways to get that then writing (certainly, she had easier ways, the woman spoke fluent Hebrew!). So, really, it's hitting a different target, the one about what we all want, not why writers write to get it.