Old Maid Delia Ralston

Paper Summary:

This paper explores the character of Delia Ralston in the Edith Wharton novel "The Old Maid". The paper discusses the novel's portrayal of the struggle between romanticism and realism. The paper shows how Delia, the novel's main character, learns a bitter lesson that her romantic visions will not survive unless they are supported by money -- aka "reality". The paper then attempts to understand whether it is society's limitations that cause Delia's heartbreak or her own cowardice. The paper concentrates on Delia's three romantic options: being an old maid (and rejected by society), being the wife of a starving artist (and rejected by society), or marrying a wealthy man she does not love (and being accepted by society).

From the Paper:

"The major focus of the novel "The Old Maid" is the main protagonist, or Delia, whose survival in the world is difficult because of her romantic nature, trials and tribulations to realize her vision of love in any way possible. Delia longs for romance in her life. Her longing for romance (with Clement Spender) is manifested in the novel with the descriptions of how Delia looks at the things she associates with the man she loves, Clement Spender. He is (to her) "her one missed vision [of love, romance], her forfeited reality [...]" (150). When Charlotte speaks about how a woman manifests her love for a man without words, she says: "[..]'A woman never stops thinking of the man she loves. She thinks of him years afterward, in all sorts of unconscious ways, in thinking of sorts of things-books, pictures, sunsets, a flower or a ribbon-or the clock on the mantlepiece', Charlotte broke off with her sneering laugh [..]" (175)."

More papers on Old Maid Delia Ralston:

• Essay # 69940 : "Ralston Cereal Decision-Making Model"
• Book Review # 140656 : "Reviewing "Maid In The Market"
• Research Paper # 96640 : "Messiah in the Old Testament"

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