# IV: “The Young Idea” explained — The Mill on the Floss

> Chapter companion for The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot.

## What happens

This chapter explores Tom Tulliver's education under Mr. Stelling, a clergyman of limited intellect but broad ambitions, and his evolving relationship with Philip Wakem. Despite initial hostility due to Philip's father being a 'rascal,' Tom grows to appreciate Philip's help with Latin and his vivid storytelling. Tom also takes drawing lessons from Mr. Goodrich, which he finds dull, and drilling lessons from Mr. Poulter, a former soldier whose tales of the Peninsular War captivate him. The narrative critiques the haphazard nature of education in the era, where luck often determined a boy's schooling.

## Themes in this chapter

### Education and Self-Improvement

Tom's education under Mr. Stelling is critiqued as ineffective, relying on rote learning and luck rather than genuine development.

### Social Class and Respectability

Mr. Stelling's need to maintain a genteel lifestyle despite limited intellect reflects class pressures on clergymen.

### Pride and Fall

Tom's initial pride and prejudice against Philip due to his father's reputation gradually soften through shared activities.

## Character check-ins

### Tom Tulliver

Struggles with abstract learning but improves under Mr. Stelling's relaxed regimen; enjoys drilling with Mr. Poulter and Philip's stories.

### Philip Wakem

Tom's schoolmate, helps with Latin and tells heroic tales; sensitive about his deformity, leading to occasional outbursts.

### Mr. Stelling

Tom's tutor, a broad-chested clergyman with narrow intellect; prioritizes his own convenience over effective teaching.

### Mr. Tulliver

Arranges Tom's education, including drawing lessons, with vague hopes for Tom's future in business.

### Mr. Poulter

Village schoolmaster and former soldier who drills Tom; shares vivid war stories from the Peninsular War.

### Mr. Riley

Advised Mr. Tulliver to have Tom take drawing lessons.

## Key lines

> Mr. Stelling’s faculties had been early trained to boring in a straight line, and he had no faculty to spare.

Mr. Stelling's mind was narrowly focused on routine tasks, leaving no room for broader thinking.

_Critique of Mr. Stelling's limited intellectual capacity._

> Tom never quite lost the feeling that Philip, being the son of a 'rascal,' was his natural enemy; never thoroughly overcame his repulsion to Philip’s deformity.

Tom always saw Philip as an enemy because of his father's reputation, and he could not fully accept Philip's physical difference.

_Tom's persistent prejudice against Philip._

> The thumbscrew was a little relaxed, however, during this second half-year.

The pressure on Tom's studies was eased in the second half of the year.

_Metaphor for reduced academic rigor._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_mill_on_the_floss_se/chapters/iv-the-young-idea
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_mill_on_the_floss_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_mill_on_the_floss_se/chapters