The Relevance of Religious Identity in George Eliot's "Daniel Deronda"

This unjustly neglected last novel of Eliot, deals in some depth of religious identity in xenophobic England of the nineteenth century but is curiously contemporaneous.

The novel, starting with the "spoiled child", Gwendolen Harleth, traces her journey into misery through her wilfulness. Simultaneously, one of her admirers, the eponymous Daniel, starts investigating his Jewish roots.

Gwendolen, after losing her riches, being a talented musician, contemplates becoming a professional one. But Klesmer, a professional, dissuades her by saying mere talent is not enough. So she marries the manipulative Grandcourt, rushing headlong into marital purgatory. 

Meanwhile, Daniel discovers that his mother was a Jewish singer & delves deep into that religion's beliefs. Even though Gwendolen becomes a widow through the accidental death of Grandcourt, Daniel marries Mirah, sister of his friend Mordecai.

Gwendolen writes to Daniel on the eve of his marriage: "I have remembered your words - that I may live to be one of the best of women, who makes others glad that they were born."