For me Eliot's genius lay in her attitude to her characters, and so I assume to real people: she saw through their facades and was happy to drily point out thei

For me Eliot's genius lay in her attitude to her characters, and so I assume to real people: she saw through their facades and was happy to drily point out their flaws and even mock them; but she clearly had a genuine affection for them, a willingness to understand, and to forgive though not to whitewash or give up on demanding better.