Edith Wharton

Paper Summary:

This paper briefly summarizes the plots of two of Edith Wharton's stories and then examines the social statement Wharton was making about the times in which she lived. The paper looks at Wharton's treatment of the gender roles, class roles, and relationships in Victorian society and how her stories depict people of the Victorian era as having a dualism of behavior ? the outer personification of conformity, and the inner, private life that allows for deviancy and experimentation.

From the Paper:

"It's a natural part of life to question the past as one looks into the future, however, there are certain regrets that mark the passing of particular lives that most people would rather not have as a part of their own lives. The stories of Edith Wharton, specifically Roman Fever and The Other Two, embrace the past in a manner that brings to light the changing social configuration of the present. The stories are imbued with aspects of Romanticism and grounded in the Victorian ethic but wander into the changing social world of the modern era. The intricacies of time, place, love and relationships have a strong influence on the best of people; however, it seems as though they are a tidal wave of authority to the weak and the superior. Wharton's characters reflect this sentiment, that strength of character is not always a matter of beauty, intelligence or social standing but, rather, a belief in oneself as the vehicle for happiness."

More papers on Edith Wharton:

• Analytical Essay # 4965 : "Edith Wharton's "Roman Fever" and Zora Neale Hurston's "The Gilded Six-Bits"
• Analytical Essay # 3836 : "Edith Wharton"
• Analytical Essay # 119726 : "Edith Wharton's Portrait of Society"

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