the age of innocence analysis


posted on: October 19, 2020

Newland marries May, and Ellen returns to Europe. ELLEN: Time to give her up for another woman? [...] Isn’t it you who made me give up divorcing? Newland envisions ways to bring Ellen into the fold; he reminds her of the importance of the van der Luyden’s dinner party; he instructs Ellen to allow her family to guide her decisions. They find themselves in a situation where social etiquette must be obeyed at all costs. Mrs. Archer and Newland passionately present Ellen’s disintegrating social situation to the van der Luydens; the couple invite Ellen to their prestigious dinner party that bolsters Ellen and her family’s prospects for the future. She was the first woman to be awarded this honor. When I’m in Paris or London I never miss an exhibition. It was her twelfth novel, and was initially serialized in 1920 in four parts, in the magazine Pictorial Review. ): Then it occurred to him that she might die. Ellen begins to comprehend just how she’s viewed by her family: ELLEN: Perhaps I’ve been too independent. You can test out of the p 101) This society lives by strict codes of conduct, any possible hint of “unpleasantness” or scandal is viewed as the worst disgrace resulting in complete social banishment. Isn’t that why you always admired Julius Beaufort? ARCHER: I’m not going. Although born an American, Ellen has traveled Europe with her mother, married a Polish count, and has acquired European sensibilities and manners. When Newland is determined to run off with Ellen, saying that he’s beyond caring about hurting May and his family, Ellen forecasts an unhappy future for them. If we act any other way I’ll be making you act against what I love in you most. The Age of Innocence. Dallas confides to his father May's deathbed confession that Newland sacrificed the one thing he loved because of duty and honor. That night as he and May retire, she announces that she thought she was pregnant and told Ellen earlier, before she was really sure. People did. To discourage gossip, Newland decides to announce his and May's engagement at the Beaufort's ball that night. Both works deal with unhappy marriages and have male protagonists who fall in love with their wives’ cousins. In all our feelings. Newland believes that using his knowledge of how to conduct oneself in society will solve his problems: He does the right thing to consult society’s reigning couple, the van der Luydens, on New York’s boycott of Ellen; he sends lilies-of-the-valley to his fiancee every day to show his devotion to her; he knows which neighborhoods are “fashionable” for Ellen to live in, and which are not. A year and a half later, Newland is unhappy with his marriage and he seeks out Ellen. Mrs. Mingott suffers a stroke and sends for Ellen to nurse her; during the two-hour carriage ride with Ellen from the train station, Newland suggests they have an affair. credit by exam that is accepted by over 1,500 colleges and universities. Published in 1920 but set in 1870s New York, the novel explores the labyrinth of high society in America's Gilded Age. Newland and May enjoy a brief period of premarital joy, their union celebrated by the crème-de-la-crème of New York, who see in the marriage the perpetuation of the storied lives of the elite. What is the novel The Age of Innocence about? Not in the least arranged. Society is a force to be reckoned with because it determines who we are, what we do, and how we see ourselves. Ellen has returned home a dazzling, determined young woman who shows up her cousin, May, without even trying. But everybody is not. Slowly she comes to understand how her family truly feels about her and is distressed: ARCHER: All the older women like and admire you. And I did what you asked me. Later, when the family plans a dinner to introduce her to society, no one accepts. It never really seems to occur to May or to Newland to question this arrangement. Newland prefers to internalize his problems instead of resolving them externally. She is aware of her husband's feelings and understands when the relationship turns sexual between Newland and Ellen, though her deeply engrained sense of decorum and breeding would never permit her to acknowledge it. ELLEN: Shall I come to you once, and then go home? Can’t you and I strike out for ourselves, May?” (Wharton, p. 82), Newland ponders the propriety of pursuing Ellen during her stay in New York to nurse her grandmother. May senses a change in Newland’s affections toward her and confronts him when he visits her in Florida. Get the unbiased info you need to find the right school. {{courseNav.course.topics.length}} chapters | Even though Newland is betrothed, he sees Julius Beaufort as a rival for Ellen’s affections: He sees Julius and Ellen at Mrs. Mingott’s coming in from a walk together; Ellen is late for their appointment when Beaufort takes her house hunting; Newland sees Julius Beaufort walking toward the remote cottage to see Ellen: ARCHER: Ah! She urges Newland to follow through on his engagement, ultimately destroying the chance for them to ever be together. May voices a similar idea concerning where Ellen might best be happy. The Age of Innocence is a 1920 novel by American author Edith Wharton. Understanding that Mrs. Mingott and the family won’t approve of her taking Newland away from May, Ellen distances herself by traveling with an aunt instead of attending the wedding, and keeps on the move afterwards. The characters are successful in maintaining the status quo of the past: Through the successful marriage of Newland and May they have joined two leading families in a effort to perpetuate their class and social hierarchy; through the joint efforts of the families they were able to keep Ellen’s past relatively quiet. After his father died, Newland became the head of the household, caring for his mother and his sister, just as expected of him. The Age of Innocence is thematically connected to the novella Ethan Frome, one of Wharton’s most famous works. While he waited, soul and body throbbing with the miracle to come…” (Wharton, p. 134). Theirs is a love that could shatter their families and make them both social outcasts. She’s often coming up with ideas on how to set the members of her family on course. ELLEN: Then I must count on you for warnings, too. Ellen promises to stay in America only if they do not hurt May with a clandestine affair. As a thematic counterpoint to his true self, Newland considers himself to be intellectually above his peers in pursuing an understanding of the arts. In this way they introduce the exotic Countess, and she finds New York society charmingly narrow and provincial compared to Paris. ELLEN: Possible? Ellen’s focus on arranging things to please herself, causes Newland problems. Do you see me marrying May now? ARCHER: ... What could you possibly gain that would make up for the scandal?

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