2025/03/19

Middlemarch by George Eliot - Audiobook - Audible.com.au

Middlemarch by George Eliot - Audiobook - Audible.com.au

Middlemarch

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George Eliot's most ambitious novel is a masterly evocation of diverse lives and changing fortunes in a provincial community.

Peopling its landscape are Dorothea Brooke, a young idealist whose search for intellectual fulfillment leads her into a disastrous marriage to the pedantic scholar Casaubon; the charming but tactless Dr Lydgate, whose marriage to the spendthrift beauty Rosamund and pioneering medical methods threaten to undermine his career; and the religious hypocrite Bulstrode, hiding scandalous crimes from his past.

As their stories interweave, George Eliot creates a richly nuanced and moving drama, hailed by Virginia Woolf as 'one of the few English novels written for adult people'. Middlemarch explores nearly all matters of concern to modern life, portraying an entire community and every class within it. Full of irony and suspense and even richer in character it shows how individual lives are shaped by and shape the community. Within Middlemarch, we find Eliot's ability to expand the audience's compassion and imagination.

George Eliot was one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. Her novels, largely set in provincial England, are well known for their realism and psychological insight. When Middlemarch was released Eliot was considered England's finest living novelist with many critics still regarding this novel as the finest in English.

A BAFTA winning adaptation of Middlemarch aired as a television series in 1994.

Narrator Biography

Maureen is an English actress and author best known for playing the role of Vicki in Doctor Who where she starred alongside the original Doctor, William Hartnell. She then went on to appear in The Legend of King Arthur, Casualty, The Duchess of Duke Street, Taggart, Cracker, A Touch of Frost, Heartbeat and Jonathan Creek. In 1985 she made a rare film appearance in the comedy She'll Be Wearing Pink Pyjamas opposite Julie Walters.

Maureen has also appeared in a number of stage productions, for example, The Relapse (Old Vic), The Merchant of Venice (Old Vic), The Archbishop's Ceiling (Bristol Old Vic) and Othello (Bristol Old Vic).

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
Release date
26-07-2009
Language
English
Format
Unabridged Audiobook
Length
32 hrs and 23 mins
Publisher
Audible Studios
Categories
Literature & Fiction
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What listeners say about Middlemarch

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Andrea
30-01-2015

A classic well worth revisiting - again and again!

Although this is an extremely lengthy listen, the narration is excellent and brings the characters into vivid life. The story can take perseverance in the first quarter but is well rewarded when things come together and the reader has an indepth background and understanding of the complex relationships and emotions. So clever, such wonderful language and so insightful with observations of human behaviour and social interactions that still resonate and provoke thought in contemporary times. And who would not seek and adore a friend like Dorothea?!



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Anonymous User
06-06-2022

Deeply satisfying.

Classic Eliot slow burn. The literary equivalent of staring into smouldering logs with nothing else to do but enjoy the heat and twinkling light. Ultimately better for the ability to listen and get about the housework!


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Hilary
14-05-2024

Beautiful Story and Telling

Loved the narration, great character voices. All different and interesting. The story is insightful and bittersweet.


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Anonymous User
03-04-2024

Well worth the time!

I had been intending to read this for some time, but was always daunted by the length. Once I began, I was hooked. Fantastic characters that I was keen to ‘get to know’ and was a fabulous read/listen. Would highly recommend the ‘investment’ of time. An amazing tale and understandably a classic.


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L.S.
18-02-2024

Beautifully Written - Classic for a Reason

Middlemarch has stood the test of time for a reason. Intelligent and sophisticated prose coupled with thoughtful observation of provincial life.

Weaving the political, social and religious questions of the day around the cleverly and honestly depicted lives of the people of Middlemarch, George Eliot deserves the praise she has received for writing 'the best novel in the English language.'

A very enjoyable production, well read and thoughtfully performed. Highly recommend.


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Amazon Customer
29-02-2024

great story

I really enjoyed this book. it was well written and a lovely long tale.


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Anonymous User
06-12-2024

Brilliant

This beautifully read English classic, which was originally published as a serial in 8 volumes, is well worth a listen.


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Kindle Customer
10-01-2022

stunning

beautiful and brilliant and timeless writing and social commentary. human nature really does not change though culture never ceases. this work is eternal and if you love the English language well worth what will look at first like a commitment.



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Anonymous User
09-04-2023

Worth it.

I just finished this and I am tempted to start it again. There is so much in it. Loved it.


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David
19-09-2023

A View of life in the 21st century

May Evans(George Eliot) provides a clear picture of life in any community. I first read this book in the early 1980's. Reading it 40 years later it leaves an indelible mark. Written as a view of life in the 19th century it remains an important mirror to our own age. Has anything really changed?


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Middlemarch by George Eliot | V Miniseries S01 E01-07 (1994) Subtitles - video Dailymotion

Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Drama Romance TV Miniseries S01 E01 (1994) Subtitles - video Dailymotion



Middlemarch TV Miniseries Drama Romance (1994)(7/7)

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Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Dra ma Romance TV Miniseries S01 Final E07 (1994) Subtitles
Beth Freed

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Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Dra ma Romance TV Miniseries S01 E06 (1994) Subtitles
Beth Freed

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Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Dra ma Romance TV Miniseries S01 E05 (1994) Subtitles
Beth Freed

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Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Drama Romance TV Miniseries S01 E04 (1994) Subtitles
Beth Freed

55:23
Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Drama Romance TV Miniseries S01 E03 (1994) Subtitles
Beth Freed

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Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Drama Romance TV Miniseries S01 E02 (1994) Subtitles
Beth Freed

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Middlemarch by George Eliot | Period Drama Romance TV Miniseries S01 E01 (1994) Subtitles
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Adolescence is a technical masterpiece that exposes the darkest corners of incel culture and male rage

Adolescence is a technical masterpiece that exposes the darkest corners of incel culture and male rage



Adolescence is a technical masterpiece that exposes the darkest corners of incel culture and male rage
Published: March 19, 2025 6.07am AEDT


AuthorsKate Cantrell

Senior Lecturer – Writing, Editing, and Publishing, University of Southern Queensland
Susan Hopkins

Senior Lecturer in Education (Curriculum and Pedagogy), University of the Sunshine Coast
Disclosure statement

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Partners


University of Southern Queensland and University of the Sunshine Coast provide funding as members of The Conversation AU.

======

Filmed in a one-take style, Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham’s new crime drama Adolescence is being hailed by critics as a technical masterpiece.

Out now on Netflix, the four-part series follows the fallout surrounding 13-year-old Jamie Miller (Owen Cooper) after he is arrested and later charged for the murder of his classmate, Katie. 

Co-creator Stephen Graham stars as Jamie’s father, Eddie.

Adolescence draws inspiration from the United Kingdom’s knife crime epidemic, the rise of incel culture and the brutality of online bullying. These malignant forces combine to create every parent’s worst nightmare.

However, unlike true crime, where there is often a resolution, there is no escape from the horror.

The show’s continuous filming style offers no reprieve, and the story itself provides no easy outs – refusing to provide a simple explanation for why an intelligent boy from an “ordinary” loving family would borrow a knife from a friend and, on a casual Sunday evening, stab another child to death.

While Jamie’s motives remain murky, the show makes one thing clear: today’s teens inhabit an online world that adults, however well-intentioned, are incapable of understanding if they do not listen.

Anxieties distorted by algorithms

At the centre of the show’s broken heart is a devastating truth: the most dangerous place in the world for a teenager is alone in their bedroom.

Trapped in the dark mirror of social media, Jamie – like a growing number of teenage boys – turns to the digital “manosphere” and the grim logic of online misogynists.

Read more: The draw of the 'manosphere': understanding Andrew Tate's appeal to lost men

He subscribes to the “red pills” of incel culture, so-called truth groups and the 80/20 rule (the theory that 80% of women are attracted to 20% of men, and that women only seek out men who are physically and socially desirable).

While Jamie is, for the most part, an outwardly “normal” and well-adjusted teen, his explosive rage and aggrieved entitlement is revealed in a climatic scene in episode three, when he intimidates and shouts down a female psychologist (Erin Doherty).

“You do not control what I do!” he yells. “Get that in that fucking little head of yours!”

Jamie is quick to apologise when a guard intervenes. “I shouted,” he says. “I’m sorry. Can I have another hot chocolate, please?”

In one particularly unnerving moment, Jamie recalls his decision to ask Katie out after receiving a topless photo of her on Snapchat.

“I thought she might be weak cause everyone was calling her a slag,” he says. “I just thought that when she was that weak, she might like me. It’s clever, don’t you think?”

While the sinister child-teen killer trope has been a mainstay of horror, from Child’s Play (1988) to The Exorcist (1973), Adolescence out-scares its predecessors in its unflinching portrayal of a radicalised misogynist-turned murderer.
A nightmare with no end

The show’s most stunning achievement is without a doubt its one-take style. Each hour-long episode is filmed in a single take which, as director Philip Barantini explains, “basically means that we press record on the camera, and we don’t stop until the very end of the hour”.

Tapping into today’s true crime zeitgeist, the series renders Jamie’s story more real than it actually is by imitating the cinéma vérité style of documentary filmmaking.

Each episode creates an immersive fly-on-the wall experience that is deeply compelling and uncomfortable. The lack of breaks forces viewers to feel as trapped as the characters, in an unfathomable spiral through confusion, guilt and shame.

This unease is heightened when the action is shot in claustrophobic spaces, such as inside the family van or a police interrogation room.
The continuous shooting style makes the viewer feel as trapped as the characters as they spiral through confusion, guilt and shame. Netflix

The soundtrack adds another layer of gritty true crime trauma, with random sirens, slamming doors and thumping discordant notes designed to mirror the inner turmoil of the characters.

As the story unfolds, it charts the devastating impact of Jamie’s crime on those around him. While Katie’s school friends struggle to process their unfathomable grief, Jamie’s parents must also confront their son’s capacity for cruelty.

“We made him,” despairs Jamie’s mother (Manda Miller).

The unbroken style, in this regard, is important for understanding how broken this family is. Because there are no cuts, there is no escape from the nightmare.

Indeed, Jamie seems to have fallen through the cracks of the social institutions we relied on in the pre-internet age: the schooling system, the judiciary and the family itself.
Jamie has fallen through the cracks of the schooling system – a social institution that is supposed to help keep him and his peers safe. Netflix
The generational chasm

The show’s true sympathy lies not with its cast of troubled teens but with the baffled adults around them. Like Jamie’s parents, viewers must surrender to the sorrow and disbelief of never truly understanding what went wrong.

Adolescence is a convincing portrayal of the widening chasm between parents and their teenage children in a savage, unregulated digital age.

It is also a social commentary on how little we know about how to communicate with teens effectively.
Read more »
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