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Society of an age of innocence
The age of innocence analysis novel
Society of an age of innocence
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In The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton depicts and contrasts New York and European society during the 1870s. This period was termed the “Gilded Age” due in part to Mark Twain’s portrayal of the social problems of the era as disguised by a thin layer of gold in his 1873 novel The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today. Wharton establishes a stark divide between the attitudes and outlooks on society of the main character, Newland Archer, and a love interest and his fiancee’s cousin, Countess Ellen Olenska. Though Archer disagrees with some norms and expectations in New York society, he feels a need to conform, while Ellen denounces these norms and stays true to herself. Newland Archer was a traditional and upstanding man in New York Society. Wharton
The novel’s use of contrast between East Egg, West Egg, and the Valley of Ashes begins to explore the differences between social classes. East Egg houses the most wealthy and aristocratic members of the nearby area. It contains many “white palaces” (Fitzgerald 10) that are quite “fashionable” (Fitzgerald 10). This description paints an image of purity and untouched standards of wealth that are translated into the book’s time period. Due to the pristineness of the village, the homes “[glitter] along the water,” (10) further supporting the idyllic qualities East Egg appears to have. West Egg, on the contrary, is home to people of near equal affluence, but of less social establishment. It is described by the narrator as “less fashionable,” (Fitzgerald
In the late nineteenth century known as the Gilded Age (or the Reconstruction period) and the early twentieth century known as the Progressive era, the nation went through great economic growth and social change. Beginning from the 1870s, there was rapid growth in innovations and big businesses. This could be because there was population growth and when there is population growth, there is a high demand of products and other necessities in order to strive in society. Many immigrants from Europe, mostly from the eastern and southern Europe, and Asia moved to American cities. Additionally, farmers from rural America desired to increase economically in society and since corporations ruled and political problems occurred, they decided to move into the cities. Afterwards, the 1900s started with the dominance of progressivism which many Americans tried to improve and solve the problems that were caused or had arisen because of the industrialization of the Gilded Age. It was basically the time when progressives fought for legislations like regulation of big businesses, end of the political corruption, and protection of the rights of the people: the poor, immigrants, workers, and consumers. Thus, between the periods 1870 to 1920, big businesses had arisen and taken control of the political and economic systems through corruption and innovations. In response, American citizens reacted negatively and formed labor unions and political systems to diminish the power that large corporations had in America.
The Gilded age and the Progressive Era are time periods that played an important role in the development of the American society. The Gilded Age is a period of American history between 1870 and 1900. This term was coined by Mark Twain in the late 1800s. By this, he meant that this period was glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath ("Learn About the Gilded Age"). The Gilded Age is well known for its political scandals and extravagant displays of wealth. At the same time, this was an era of major achievements in the industry and economy, which significantly changed life of American people. The Gilded Age was followed by the Progressive Era which lasted from the 1890s to the 1920s. Progressive Era is well known for its economical, political, social reforms and technological inventions. In my opinion, The Gilded Age had a more significant impact upon the United States than the Progressive Era because it gave rise to new industries, created transportation and communication networks which provided the infrastructure for further development of technology in the Progressive Era.
Silence has been described as "a category of intelligence of the twentieth century," a response to the modern experience of "alienation from reason, society, and history." Silence has also been designated a feminist issue, one not confined to any historical moment but "a form of imposed repression" which enforces the traditional view of the "appropriate condition for women” (Hurvitz). Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence, a novel poised between the American Victorian and modern eras which examines the potential for women's freedom and independence through a male center of consciousness, encourages a close analysis of its many silences.
Expansive growth was the moniker which expressly defined the Gilded Age. Industry in all sectors, witnessed massive growth leading to the creation of an American economy. Due to the rapidly changing nature of industrialization important men of both the public and private sectors attempted to institute their own controls over it. However this transforming landscape integrated both economic and political changes, but also cultural and social interactions. In turn, those who controlled the flow of business would also steadily impact the American social scene by extension. Alan Trachtenberg, professor of American studies at Yale and author of The Incorporation of America, argues that the system of incorporation unhinged the idea of national identity that all American’s had previously shared. As a result incorporation became the catalyst for the great debate about what it meant to actually be American, and who was capable of labeling themselves as such. Throughout his work Trachtenberg consistently tackles the ideas of cultural identity and how those ideas struggled against one another to be the supreme definition of Americanism. This work not only brings to life the issue of identity but it attempts to synthesize various scholarly works into a cohesive work on the Gilded Age and demonstrates that concepts developed during the incorporation of the time period have formed the basis for the American cultural, economic, and political superstructure. The Incorporation of America sets a high standard for itself one in which it doesn’t necessarily meet; however the work is still expansive and masterful at describing the arguments of the Gilded Age.
From the period between the 1870’s through the 1890’s, it became an era known as the Gilded Age. The term was characterized by a famous American Literature author named Mark Twain. The writer tried to point out that the term means that while on the outside society may seem perfect and in order, underneath there is poverty, crime, corruption, and many other issues between American society’s rich and poor. This era’s gild is thicker than the cheaper material it’s covering. This can be shown through the countless numbers of achievements and advances America has made during the period of reconstruction and expansion, industrialization, and foreign affairs.
It is not as easy as it seems to distinguish who is innocent and who is not. Innocence is a cultural concept which is usually confusing. An act that is naïve and normal in one society can be a public disgrace in another. Then a question comes to mind: What is innocence? Challenging the norms of a society makes a person totally wicked? What spoils or preserves innocence? The word innocence is ambiguous. It has double vision because people put different masks on their faces for different occasions. Innocence is also one of the themes that can be focused on three American novels: Daisy Miller by Henry James, My Antonia by Willa Cather and the Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. These three books help the reader to see the other side of the medallion and they suggest that it is our prejudices and cultural differences which shape our view of others.
In the South at this time, morals are uncommon. Instead, a great love of pleasure, money, and fame fills the communities and inhabits its residents. This decadence exists in both “Battle Royal” and “A Rose for Emily” and plays an important role in the main character’s lives. In “Battle Royal”, The Invisible Man is forced into a brutal fight and slandered with humiliation in his attempt at pursuing a brighter future. Decadence is present in the men who prove their social and wealthy statuses by dehumanizing black men and fighting them as one would animals. The Invisible Man tries to please the white men but states that he is "not ashamed of his grandparents for having been slaves. He is only ashamed of himself for “having at one time been ashamed"(227). Slavery in the South was over at this point, but equality was clearly far from reach. In “A Rose for Emily”, Emily Grierson is raised in a sheltered manner, because her father proved decadent refusing any man to be her suitor. She was exempt from taxes because Colonel Sartoris invented a tale to the effect that "Miss Emily's father had loaned money to the town". Decadence in both of these stories proves crucial, harming both main characters at some point in life. Ho...
The Age of innocence is a novel that was written by Edith Wharton and the film adaptation was directed by Martin Scorsese. The film adaptation employs the ideas from the novel. The importance of using a film adaptation of the novel is for the audience to have a motion picture film that they can use to assess the themes, tones and other literary elements exhibited in the story. Commonly people respond to film better because it is visual. Therefore, in this paper analysis, the main point of focus will be the analysis and comparison of the book Age of Innocence alongside the film adaptation. While making comparisons, the focus will be on the plot development, thematic analysis and also an assessment of the tone used in both mediums.
rich and noble and Prejudice were the issues of the time. This is a classical love story from the eighteenth
With success, modern day culture has taken strides in illuminating the oppression perpetuated onto women, but a conversation centered on the oppression of men is nearly nonexistent. In The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton describes the life of Newland Archer set in Old New York society. Newland Archer is a man who has his life seemingly predestined given where he is born in society. In the novel, Wharton describes not only Newland’s life, but also the stringent society that dominated Old New York. Wharton phenomenally criticizes several aspects of this high society including those topics that are often obscure.
In The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton, Ellen Olenska is unmistakably alienated by the society in which she resides. Ellen not only defies traditional New York values, but those of the upper-class as well. Initially, Newland Archer is concerned that Ellen’s arrival in America will cause his future bride’s family to lose their social status. However, Newland is soon fascinated, and ultimately enamored, with Ellen because she is a breath of fresh air from the rigid and flawed society in which he lives. Ellen openly disregards the rules of the upper-class, demonstrating the distinction between the European and American cultures. Through Ellen’s alienation, Wharton reveals the shallow nature of New York society, and demonstrates
Austen’s recurrent use of satire conveys the flawed system regarding marriage and social class on which the society in the Regency Era runs, which is juxtaposed by characters who do not follow these set standards.
Commodity fetishism is a term first coined by Karl Marx in his 1867 economic treatise, Das Kapital. It takes two words, one with a historically economic bent and another with a historically religious bent, and combines them to form a critical term describing post-industrial revolution, capitalist economies. Specifically, this term was used to describe the application of special powers or ideas to products that carried no such inherent value.
A good novel teaches its readers important insights that changes their way of life or thinking. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton, takes place in Upper Class New York in the Victorian era. The novel revolves around Archer Newland and his struggle as he falls in love with a women shunned by the society despite already being engaged to another. As Archer tries to make sense of what his life has become, readers are able to experience the reality of being in the upper class. The Age of Innocence is a good book because it teaches important insights on values, freedom and gender equality.