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The second in the 'Chronicles of Barsetshire' series, Barchester Towers Trollope's mastery of the moral comedy and ironic observation is apparent in every chapter. Following the intrigues of ambition and love in the cathedral town of Barchester, Trollope's work looks at the Church, that pillar of Victorian society - in its susceptibility to corruption, hypocrisy, and blinkered conservatism - as well as the behavior of the individuals within that power structure. In this novel Trollope continues the story of Mr. Harding and his daughter Eleanor, adding to his cast of characters that oily symbol of progress Mr. Slope, the hen-pecked Dr. Proudie, and the amiable and breezy Stanhope family. The central questions of this moral comedy - Who will be warden? Who will be dean? Who will marry Eleanor? - are skillfully handled with that subtlety of ironic observation that has won Trollope such a wide and appreciative readership.
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