Middlemarch, a Victorian novel written by George Elliot, depicts a realistic view of a conventional society in the 18th century. Middlemarch, the town in England where the novel is set, embodies many provincial characters marked by the social world in which they live and interact with one another. The novel focuses on many characters and their relationships as part of a whole in a human social network. Among the many characters, the main ones are: Dorothea Brooke, a beautiful, good and caring young woman, but very naive and idealistic; Edward Casaubon, a boring old scholar who marries Dorothea; Rosamond Vincy, a beautiful young woman, but very selfish and self-centered; Tertius Lydgate, a brilliant and handsome doctor who marries Rosemonde; Will Ladislaw, a passionate young artist who falls in love with Dorothea and later marries her after Mr. Casaubon's death; Fred Vincy, a good-natured young man often in debt; and Mary Garth, a simple, but very kind and sensible woman. Elliot focuses heavily on the realities of marriage and the incompatibility between a couple based on idealistic notions of each other and marriage in general. Idealism leads to the failure of the marriages between Dorothea Brooke and Edward Casaubon and Tertius Lydgate and Rosamond Vincy. The fall of these two unions contrasts sharply with the marriage between Fred Vincy and Mary Garth. Fred and Mary do not have an idealistic view of each other and are realistic in their thinking and approach to marriage, which is the reason for their mutual success and happiness. Dorothea's second marriage is also successful because she does not base her thinking and happiness on ideal beliefs. At the beginning of ...... middle of paper ......rd and the union between Tertius and Rosemonde. The marriages between these couples are failures because they are blind to the faults of their spouses. It is only after marriage that these characters realize the mistakes they have made. Ideal visions are crushed by depressing reality. They cannot continue to idealize when they learn and see the truth. The marriage between Fred and Mary and the marriage between Dorothea and Will are successful because they are free from ideals that hide the truth and cause unhappiness. These couples did not have high expectations of each other or their marriage. They saw and accepted reality as it was and humbled themselves. The idealism of the novel only led to the characters' downfall and unhappiness in their marriage. In contrast, successful marriages were devoid of high expectations and ideals..