Roman Fever

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Roman Fever

Roman Fever" is an outstanding example of Edith Wharton's theme to express the subtle nuances of formal upper class society that cause change underneath the pretense of stability. Wharton studied what actually made their common society tick, paying attention to unspoken signals, the histories of relationships, and seemingly coincidental parallels. All of these factors contribute to the strength and validity of the story of Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley.

"Roman Fever" at first strikes the reader as the simple, rather dull story of two middle aged women sitting on a veranda. The inactiveness of the situation appears to be evident in Mrs. Slade's comment, "Well, I don't see why we shouldn't just stay here", reflecting that she and Mrs. Ansley have nothing else to do but to sit through the afternoon, overlooking Rome (779). Nothing seems to be going on in this opening sequence, yet nothing could be farther from the truth. The two women have been involved in a battle for the past twenty years, whether they were fully aware of it or not. Subtle signs, such as Mrs. Ansley's slight stress on herself with her response, "It always will be, to me" (779), and Mrs. Slade's recollection of a joke she made years ago regarding her friend's home being raided for a speakeasy express to the reader the feeling of unrest, distrust, and dislike that exists beneath the genteel surface of the relationship of the two women (780). She thinks of Jenny Slade, the child of a couple that prided themselves on their exceptional social graces own mother as "a little boring" (781), a description she also considered for Mrs. Ansley when recalling that she "had grown bored" with Mrs. Ansley's mundane life long ago (780). Barbara Ansley, on ...

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...and now is left to feel the loneliness and emptiness that accompanies that life. This is a woman who rattles around the big house, full of possessions, and with nothing else to console her. And of course, as the story progresses to its brilliant and inevitable conclusion, Wharton skillfully continues on her path of breaking down the romantic illusion of the upper class. Roman fever may be a metaphor for transgress sexuality, for sexual rivalry, or even for the hostility among women that the social pressures of courtship catalyzes. Wharton's fiction is famous for defying unitary interpretations, and this story is no exception.

Bibliography:

Petry, Alice Hall. "A Twist of Scarlet Silk: Edith Wharton's 'Roman Fever.'" Studies in Short Fiction 24, no. 2 (1987):

Pages 163-166

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