The Lifted Veil

The Lifted Veil is a horror and paranormal short story written by George Eliot and first published in 1859.

Latimer is a man who discovers after an illness that he has abilities that allow him to predict future events and read the minds of those close to him. What may seem like a blessing soon becomes a nightmare for Latimer, as it isolates him from others and causes him to live in constant fear of future events.

The situation is further complicated by the arrival of the cold and calculating Bertha and her promise of marriage to Latimer. He is unable to perceive her true feelings and thoughts. Latimer's struggle against reality and a fate he can see but seemingly cannot change brings the story to a rather disturbing climax.

In a mixture of psychological realism and gothic elements, George Eliot offers us a very interesting read that reflects the writer's versatility and her ability to combine the mundane and the metaphysical in the same story.

"Give me no light, great Heaven, but such as turns
To energy of human fellowship;
No powers beyond the growing heritage
That makes completer manhood"