The Lifted Veil

Name: The Lifted Veil
Author: George Eliot

By George Eliot

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British Literature Novels

About This Book

A first-person narrator who possesses involuntary clairvoyant and precognitive powers describes a life of increasing alienation: childhood tenderness followed by emotional isolation, a medical prognosis of early death, and a compulsion to foresee others' thoughts and futures. Those gifts bring unwanted knowledge, erode relationships, and produce obsessive fixation on a woman whose engagement to the narrator's brother provokes jealousy and despair. The narrative traces attempts to control or escape prophetic insights, explores themes of privacy, free will versus determinism, and the psychological cost of privileged knowledge, and culminates in the narrator's foreseen final moments.

About the Author

George Eliot

George Eliot, the pen name of Mary Ann Evans, was a prominent English novelist and one of the leading figures of Victorian literature. Known for her keen psychological insight and exploration of social issues, she authored several influential works, including the acclaimed novel "Middlemarch," which delves into the complexities of life in a provincial town. Eliot's writing often reflects her deep understanding of human nature and moral dilemmas, making her a significant contributor to the literary heritage of the 19th century. Her other notable works include "Adam Bede" and "Daniel Deronda," which further showcase her narrative skill and thematic depth.