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George Eliot
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Adam Bede (Oxford World's Classics) Paperback – June 16, 2008

by George Eliot (Author), Carol A. Martin (Editor)
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 188 ratings
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George Eliot's first full-length novel, Adam Bede paints a powerful portrait of rural life, seduction, faith, and redemption. First published in 1859, this innovative novel carried its readers back sixty years to a time of impending change for England and the wider world. Eliot's penetrating portrayal of the interaction of ordinary people brought a new social realism to the novel, in which humor and tragedy co-exist, and fellow-feeling is the mainstay of human relationships. This is the first edition based on Eliot's final revision of the novel in 1861, using the definitive Clarendon text. It includes Eliot's journal entry on the real-life origins of the story and broadsheet accounts of Mary Voce, whose execution provided the germ of the novel. Carol Martin's superb Introduction sheds light on the novel's historical context and some of the main issues it explores: the role of work, class, and relations between the sexes, and Eliot's belief that the artist's duty is "the faithful representing of commonplace things." The book includes comprehensive notes that identify literary and historical allusions.

About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    592 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Oxford University Press
  4. Publication date
    June 16, 2008
  5. Reading age
    13 years and up
  6. Dimensions
    7.75 x 1.08 x 5.1 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0199203474
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0199203475
  9. Lexile measure
    1260L
  10. See all details
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From the Publisher

oxford world's classics, literature, novels, myths, celebrated writing
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Editorial Reviews

Review

`Review from previous edition 'Carol Martin demonstrates that the first edition will not do and persuasively makes the case for taking as copy-text the corrected 'eighth edition' of 1861...the notes are the best available'' Stephen Gill, The George Eliot Review, No. 33, 2002 [n.b. Gill is editor of the Penguin edition, which uses the first edition text]

Book Description

The first edition of Adam Bede based on Eliot's final revision of the novel in 1861, using the definitive Clarendon text

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press; New edition (June 16, 2008)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 592 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0199203474
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0199203475
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 years and up
  • Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 1260L
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.75 x 1.08 x 5.1 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 188 ratings

About the author

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George Eliot

George Eliot

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Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 - 22 December 1880; alternatively "Mary Anne" or "Marian"), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She is the author of seven novels, including Adam Bede (1859), The Mill on the Floss (1860), Silas Marner (1861), Felix Holt, the Radical (1866), Middlemarch (1871-72), and Daniel Deronda (1876), most of them set in provincial England and known for their realism and psychological insight.

She used a male pen name, she said, to ensure her works would be taken seriously. Female authors were published under their own names during Eliot's life, but she wanted to escape the stereotype of women only writing lighthearted romances. She also wished to have her fiction judged separately from her already extensive and widely known work as an editor and critic. An additional factor in her use of a pen name may have been a desire to shield her private life from public scrutiny and to prevent scandals attending her relationship with the married George Henry Lewes, with whom she lived for over 20 years.

Her 1872 work Middlemarch has been described by Martin Amis and Julian Barnes as the greatest novel in the English language.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Swiss artist Alexandre-Louis-François d'Albert-Durade (1804-86) [Public Domain], via English Wikipedia.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
188 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Sue B P
5.0 out of 5 stars Glad I discovered this classic!
Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2016
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As a lifelong avid reader of classic and historical fiction I am surprised that I never ran across this author before. I had heard of the name and actually read Silas Marner in high school but never connected with any of her other works. This book puts you in the early 19th century I guess it was considered historical fiction at the time it was written in 1859. It is about a fictional country estate and the squire and his tenants. The colloquial speech as written is sometimes difficult to follow and there is a bit too much philosophizing for an easy read. But the pathos of the story makes it all worth while. You will come to love all the characters in spite of their quirks. I'm glad I read this book and will certainly be reading more by this author!
10 people found this helpful
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Lynn M.
4.0 out of 5 stars Look Deeply Before You Leap!
Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2015
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This is a story about the consequences of poor judgment in character. Young Adam Bede, an upstanding dairy farmer, is in love with the vain and self-centered Hetty Sorrel. She is involved in a secret relationship with the young Captain Arthur who has no intentions of making her his proper wife. She is later found to be with child and runs away. She eventually murders her child. Her family, Adam and all who knew her are horrified. The young Captain Arthur and Hetty’s lives are forever stained in this piece from the late 1700’s. Adam goes on to make a better choice in a wife when he and Dinah, a young preacher woman, find love in each other. They realize that their “souls are knitted together and they comfort each other after enduring much suffering. Good, slow moving old-fashioned writing which makes the reader think.
6 people found this helpful
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The Schoolmarm
5.0 out of 5 stars Worthy of Being Called a Classic
Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2017
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First published in 1859, the human interactions are as poignant and authentic as today. Social mores have changed of course, but the pain and joy of personal relationships remain unchanged. As engaging as this book was to me, after all I have seen and read in movies books and TV, i can only imagine how fascinating it was over 150 years ago. This is a good example of why we should read the classics. It is indeed worthy of the title.
2 people found this helpful
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willie 77777
3.0 out of 5 stars Adam Bede
Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2010
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I was urged by Amazon to write a review on this product before I listened to it. My review has to be neutral.
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Atiryak
4.0 out of 5 stars Classic novel
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2018
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Adam Bede is about a carpenter and his neighbors in an area in England during the early eighteenth century. The story is slow-going at times because the author writes in the local dialect, so it is a bit difficult to understand but totally relevant to the tale. Descriptions of the characters, the countryside and the town are well drawn and colorful. The characters are believable and sympathetic, while the story itself is engaging and satisfying. I am especially glad I read this book in this stage of my life rather than in my teenage years, because I wouldn't have had the patience to complete it.
8 people found this helpful
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Nina S-G
5.0 out of 5 stars Adam Bede
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2016
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It's a classic, of course it gets 5 stars! I received this book free of charge from Amazon for Kindle. I'm glad I got it and happy to have read it. The story was good! Thank you to the publisher for generously providing the work at no cost to Kindle readers.
2 people found this helpful
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Joan
1.0 out of 5 stars Find another narrator.
Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2011
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My only point for this review is the reader. He is so bad, that although the price of this audio-book was reasonable, and in spite of looking forward to listening to it, I had to put it away and come online to find another narrator. Nor could I with good conscience sell this copy.

My specific complaint with this reader is his lack of personality, passion, emphasis, or anything that could be called "feeling". He just reads straight on as though the story is no more interesting than a laundry list. If bland and boring is good, he's your guy. Not that I think I could do better, but one expects he makes his living doing this - and then wonders how he possibly can.
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Legamin
5.0 out of 5 stars Clarity of Personal Thought
Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2015
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Mind Blown. -_- I began thinking I had purchased a cheap snooze fest.... Couldn't be more wrong. Drink your coffee, sit in a not too comfortable chair and open your mind.
8 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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SCook
5.0 out of 5 stars Encantadora, encantadora
Reviewed in Spain on August 15, 2020
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Su primera novela. Encantadora, encantadora. La vida lenta de la gente del campo escrita de manera encantadora.
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chris
1.0 out of 5 stars Avoid the 'publisher' called "CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform"
Reviewed in Canada on September 28, 2016
Verified Purchase
Steer clear of the 'publisher' of this book whose name is "CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform".

This review is not about the content of this book - it's great, of course, because it's George Eliot. I'm giving this the worst review I can because the publishers of this book are scammers. They just slapped this text together, the font is incredibly small (smaller than 10 point i.e. nearly microscopic) and they've made the book look like it's published by Penguin.
One person found this helpful
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Chris Armstrong
5.0 out of 5 stars A very human writer
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 27, 2014
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There could not be a more thoughtful writer than George Eliot, she considered everything of what it means to be human and wove it into her novels. Adam Bede is perhaps not as sophisticated in style as Daniel Deronda, but is still a wonderful read. George takes us on a slow journey through her pastoral landscape and what she says of life in the 19th century, you find is often just as relevant to us now.
One person found this helpful
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Carlos
3.0 out of 5 stars Letra MUY pequeña
Reviewed in Spain on July 18, 2019
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Un gran libro, una pena que el formato de edición sea tan poco adecuado. La letra es minúscula, cuesta mucho esfuerzo leerla incluso para alguien sin problemas en la vista como yo. Recomiendo buscarlo en un formato que permita una mejor lectura.
One person found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Great story - set in 18th century England
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2018
Verified Purchase
I have never read George Elliott. This book is a fascinating insight into 18th century English country life. Not only a great story but the setting gives a view of country life that may be unequalled. Worth a read
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