Family Allegiance in Edit Wharton's The Age of Innocence
It is a cliché to say that a picture is worth a thousand words. But I will state it anyway: a picture can truly be worth a thousand words. Therefore, any frame that contains the picture and alters the interpretation or viewing of the picture also affects these thousand words. This analogy pertains to the wide world of literature, in which certain frames can affect our perceptions of women and gender-related roles within families, marriages, and cultures. Edith Wharton had the unique ability to see her New York culture in a different light than her contemporaries. As she reminisces about “Old” New York, Wharton can put her picture (in this case an analogy for her novel, The Age of Innocence) in the frame of family allegiances in order to show how this frame affected women’s relationships including marriage and families, and how these relationships were perceived by the culture of “Old” New York through the characters in her novel.
The plot of The Age of Innocence revolves around Countess Olenska, who while being raised in New York is considered an immigrant to the “Old” New York society because she married and moved to Europe. Upon separating from her husband who was very cruel to her, she reunites with her cousin May and her family, and May’s new husband Newland Archer (whose family she thereby also inherits). This is where the frame of family allegiance is initially encountered in the novel. May and Newland wanted to hold off announcing their engagement until the standard cultural time period passed, but decided to go ahead with it in order to put the full force of two families behind the Countess instead of only May’s family. This cultural frame shows how the society was limited; in order to confront the taboo of possible divorce, the character’s options were restricted. Edith Wharton does a nice job of highlighting the irony of this frame: by viewing the situation and responding through this cultural frame, the characters squelched another cultural norm (the customary waiting period). Viewing it through this frame, Countess Olenska seems meek because she needs the help of her family to pull her through the situation. She is powerless to fight off an entire society who frowns on divorce, even if it is in her best interests. But Wharton does not leave it at that, because she uses her irony within the context of this frame to show that her sufferings come from this intra-family allegiance that does not give her any options.
The setting of a novel aids in the portrayal of the central theme of the work. Without a specific place and social environment, the characters are just there, with no reason behind any of their actions. The Age of Influence centers around the Old New York society during the 1870’s. Most of the characters are wealthy upper class citizens with a strict code to follow. The protagonist, Newland Archer, lives in a constant state of fear of being excluded from society for his actions. Archer’s character is affected by standard New York conventions as well as the pressure to uphold his place in society, both of which add to Wharton’s theme of dissatisfaction.
Stanton, Michael N. “Ray Bradbury.” DISCovering Authors. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Gale Power Search. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.
A privileged lifestyle is only legitimate for the privileged people. When an outsider makes amends with insiders, there is a sense the outsider doesn’t belong. As insiders become more aware and attentive to the fact that the person doesn’t belong, acts of cruelty are formed to keep their social class structure balanced. The Age Of Innocence by Edith Wharton displays these acts of cruelty on a character named Ellen Olenska. She was the granddaughter of Mrs. Manson Mingott, Ellen was adapted to European culture since her upbringing was in Europe. She was married to a Polish nobleman, although their marriage was considered conventional and perfect for her, it was a false assertion. The Count had cheated on Madame Olenska and their marriage was
In "The Veldt," Ray Bradbury portrays his message through the use of multiple devices. The story takes place in an ideal home equipped with technology to take care of chores, eliminating the need for parents. Inside lies a nursery, a room that created a virtual reality, that would eventually lead to the destruction of the family. The series of events occurs during the Cold War, a time where the development of technology quickly rose. Bradbury sought for the end of the Cold War with his resentment towards technology, leading towards the creation of this short story (Milne). In the short story, "The Veldt," Ray Bradbury sets the theme of restricted use of technology through tone, foreshadowing, and characterization.
Caldwell, Tracy M. "The Negative Effects Of Parent And Child Conflict." Literary Theme: The Negative Effects Of Parent & Child Conflict (2006): 1-5. Literary Reference Center. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.
The lives we lead and the type of character we possess are said to be individual decisions. Yet from early stages in our life, our character is shaped by the values, customs and mindsets of those who surround us. The characteristics of this environment affect the way we think and behave ultimately shaping us into a product of the environment we are raised in. Lily Bart, the protagonist in Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth, is an exceedingly beautiful bachelorette who grows up accustomed to living a life of luxury amongst New York City’s upper-class in the 20th century. When her family goes bankrupt, Lily is left searching for security and stability, both of which, she is taught can be only be attained through a wealthy marriage. Although, Lily is ashamed of her society’s tendencies, she is afraid that the values taught in her upbringing shaped her into “an organism so helpless outside of its narrow range” (Wharton 423). For Lily, it comes down to a choice between two antagonistic forces: the life she desires with a happiness, freedom and love and the life she was cut out to live with wealth, prestige and power. Although, Lily’s upbringing conditioned her to desire wealth and prestige, Lily’s more significant desires happiness, freedom and love ultimately allow her to break free.
In the past, families lived a technology- free life: waking up by the sounds of birds, communicating face-to-face, and walking in order to travel. Today, it is almost impossible to find means of entertainment not involving a colored screen. This demonstrates how modern technology has corrupted society. Despite the advantages of technology, it has contributed to an inactive population that is unable to think for themselves. Ray Bradbury was born on August 20, 1920 in Waukegan, Illinois. Bradbury won the Pulitzer prize in 2004 for his literary work, like “The Veldt.” The overall theme of Bradbury’s short stories and novels is that the world is undergoing a "too rapid and pervasive technological change"(Bradbury). “The Veldt” discusses a family of four living in a house in which everything is done for them. There is not one task that the “Happylife Home” cannot complete with its advanced technological aspects. Twins Peter and Wendy Hadley that live in the “Happylife Home” cannot even brush their own teeth without it being done for them. A technologically based society removes sense and common actions of humans; thus removing the original aspects of humanity that originated at the dawn of time. Ray Bradbury develops his theme that with the desire of technology comes suffering within his short story "The Veldt" through the use of irony, foreshadowing, and imagery.
McGee, Glenn, (2001). Primer on Ethics and Human Cloning. ActionBioscience.org. Retrieved October 3, 2004, from: http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/mcgee.html
As young children grow up, their attitudes dramatically transform. They change from loving their parents to disliking them, which is a universal process. When technology adversely affects their lifestyle, this universal process accelerates. Ray Bradbury, an acclaimed writer and a known opponent of Silicon Valley, has published books in order to enlighten the world on the inadequacies of technology. Bradbury says, “People are walking around the streets with phones to their heads talking to someone ten feet away. We've killed two million people with automobiles. We're surrounded by technology and the problems created by technology" (HarperCollinsPublishers). Some of the bestselling science fiction novels he authored are Fahrenheit 451, Martian Chronicles, and Something Wicked This Way Comes (HarperCollinsPublishers). In the year 2000, he was conferred with the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters by the National Book Foundation. In 2007, he was presented with the Special Citation by the Pulitzer Prize Committee, honoring his prolific career as a science fiction writer (HarperCollinsPublishers).
In The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton, the narrator describes Archer and Ellen’s need for freedom in order to show their desire to escape the abuse of society. Newland Archer wishes death on his wife because he believes if she dies so will societies pressures. And Ellen Olenska rejects Archer’s proposal for freedom to find her own independence. Ellen Olenska rethinks her divorce in order to become less of an outsider
Rimer hooks the reader immediately in the opening paragraph by describing a transforming moment in an older woman’s life. The woman was leaving her life and beginning anew; she was going back to college. The women in Rimer’s essay range in age from 37 to 85 years old. Getting married after high school or discouragement by their families to attend college was a reality faced by these women. Colvard’s parents “opposed her going to college” (para.3.). Legare was “married at 19” (para.10). Martindell’s father forced her to withdraw from college (para.17). Previous negative familial attitudes concerning women attending college is a theme throughout the essay.
When we talk about projects, we usually assume they result in tangible products and are usually engineering projects such as constructing a metro system, building a bridge or tunnel, a dam or even making a new aircraft, whilst these examples are projects, they are not all encompassing. Projects also have intangible results like Disneyland’s Expedition Everest, the Apollo 11 Moon Landing, the iPhone 5 launch ceremony, the inauguration of President Obama and even the wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton.
Lawson, David "History Of Renaissance Clothing - How Today's Fashion Is Affected." 6 Jul. 2011 EzineArticles.com. 16 Nov. 2011
"Human Cloning and Human Dignity: An Ethical Inquiry." The President's Council on Bioethics Washington, D.C. N.p., July-Aug. 2002. Web.
In the early 1800s, France was the sole fashion capital of the world; everyone who was anyone looked towards Paris for inspiration (DeJean, 35). French fashion authority was not disputed until the late twentieth century when Italy emerged as a major fashion hub (DeJean, 80). During the nineteenth century, mass produced clothing was beginning to be marketed and the appearance of department stores was on the rise (Stearns, 211). High fashion looks were being adapted and sold into “midlevel stores” so that the greater public could have what was once only available to the social elite (DeJean, 38). People were obsessed with expensive fashions; wealthy parents were advised not the let their children run around in expensive clothing. People would wait for children dressed in expensive clothing to walk by and then they would kidnap them and steal their clothes to sell for money (DeJean, 39). Accessories were another obsession of France‘s fashion; they felt no outfit was complete without something like jewelry or a shrug to finish off the look and make it all around polished (DeJean, 61). As designers put lines together, marketing began to become important to fashion in the nineteenth century; fashion plates came into use as a way to show off fashion l...