# Conclusion explained — The Mill on the Floss

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

## What happens

Five years after the flood, nature and human labor have repaired much of the physical damage, but not all. Dorlcote Mill is rebuilt, and the churchyard is restored. A tomb is erected near the brick grave of Mr. Tulliver for Tom and Maggie Tulliver, who were found in close embrace. The tomb is visited by two men: one eventually comes with a sweet face beside him, the other remains solitary, finding companionship among the trees of the Red Deeps.

## Themes in this chapter

### Nature and the Individual

Nature repairs her ravages with sunshine and human labor, but not all; the scars of the past remain, and the trees are not the same as the old.

### Forgiveness and Redemption

The tomb bearing the names of Tom and Maggie Tulliver, with the inscription 'In their death they were not divided,' suggests a final reconciliation and unity beyond life.

## Character check-ins

### Maggie Tulliver

Buried in the tomb with Tom after the flood.

### Tom Tulliver

Buried in the tomb with Maggie after the flood.

### Mr. Tulliver

His brick grave in the churchyard was found with the stone laid prostrate upon it after the flood.

## Key lines

> Nature repairs her ravages—repairs them with her sunshine, and with human labour.

Nature restores what was damaged through sunlight and human effort.

_Opening reflection on recovery after the flood._

> In their death they were not divided.

Even in death, they remained together.

_Inscription on the tomb of Tom and Maggie Tulliver._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_mill_on_the_floss_se/chapters/vi-conclusion
- 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