The Dimension of Human Possibilities in Silas Marner

Abstract

The article envisages a thought-provoking direction for the future, juxtaposing but not blending the theory of possible worlds and the concept of space applied to literature. It brings new methodologies to the forefront of current research, reading “Silas Marner” (1861) by George Eliot as a landscape of the Self, a construction of a possible world for an old-fashioned way of life. The theory of possible worlds was originally introduced in philosophical logic and has gradually gained interdisciplinary ground, namely in literary and cultural studies; hence the article analyses “Silas Marner” in the light of this theory, discussing the places where the novel develops like dimensions of human possibilities of ways of life and like metaphors of dynamic generation of story worlds and of emotion. Looking into the construction of cultural landscapes and contexts of experience, the article discusses how identity and the way Silas interacts with others provide meaning and develop a sense of belonging. Underpinned by the notions of place and space that inform people’s identity and develop bonds, the critical analysis reaches the conclusion that in the plurality of distinct worlds and in the relation to physical environment, one finds in the novel dimensions of the individual through patterns of belief, preferences, feelings, values and aspirations.