‎'‎the only true knowledge of our fellow‎-man is that which enables us to feel with him‎'‎ George Eliot‎'‎s first published work consisted of three short novellas‎:‎ ‎'‎The Sad Fortunes of the Reverend Amos Barton‎'‎‎,‎ ‎'‎Mr Gilfil‎'‎s Love‎-Story‎'‎‎,‎ and ‎'‎Janet‎'‎s Repentance‎'‎‎.‎ Their depiction of the lives of ordinary men and women in a provincial Midlands town initiated a new era of nineteenth‎-century literary realism‎.‎ The tales concern rural members of the clergy and the gossip and factions that a small town generates around them‎.‎ Amos Barton only realizes how much he depends upon his wife‎'‎s selfless love when she dies prematurely‎;‎ Mr Gilfil‎'‎s devotion to a girl who loves another is only fleetingly rewarded‎;‎ and Janet Dempster suffers years of domestic abuse before the influence of an Evangelical minister turns her life around‎.‎ These stories are remarkable for the tenderness with which Eliot portrays a bygone time of religious belief in a newly secular age‎,‎ giving literary fiction an alternative language to religion and philosophy for the observation and understanding of human experience‎.‎ ABOUT THE SERIES‎:‎ For over 100 years Oxford World‎'‎s Classics has made available the widest range 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,‎ helpful notes to clarify the text‎,‎ up‎-to‎-date bibliographies for further study‎,‎ and much more‎.‎