Criticism, since the hoary past, has been an expression of male sensibility. Woman has been treated merely as an entity concerning man either in his real or fantasy life. At a time when feminism is in the throes of a crisis because of its inherent paradoxes and the recantations of its ideologues, George Eliot has acquired increasing relevance as expression of the irrepressible female spirit transcending the artificial constraints of their male dominated social milieu. George Eliot occupies a significant place as one of the leading novelists of the Victorian era. The struggle for female self-liberation has been painfully grim and unrelenting, as the vicissitudes of the cavalcade of heroines indicates, but the gains have been considerable and feminism is today in full flower, thanks to the exploratory spade work done by George Eliot.