“Toujours la porcelaine”: George Meredith and the Willow Pattern

Abstract

An iconic emblem of the Victorian fascination for domestic objects with an exotic tang, the “willow pattern” reveals the problematic nature of the circulation of imperial commodities. A classic white and blue motif which was supposed to transpose an ancestral Chinese legend, the willow pattern was invented to cater to British taste. George Meredith’s novel The Egoist refers to this imposture to engage with cultural capital and the relics of an aging world order. Playfully naming his protagonist Sir Willoughby Patterne, Meredith dissects social prejudices and emotional coldness, calling for a different culture.

Keywords

• china
• desire
• icon
• imitation
• imposture
• myth