Edith Wharton
Introduction Grounding
"There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it"
Vesalius in "Zante" (Bartlett 700).
Edith Wharton's outside appearance in no way reflected the inner struggles she dealt with her whole life. She was born into a wealthy, affluent, socially prominent family. On the outside it appeared she had everything, yet the reader will come to find that she had struggles like everyone else, possibly worse than the average person. Edith Wharton rose above society's walls to overcome barriers such as equality that existed for young women in the late eighteen hundreds. Edith Wharton was an author in the Age of Realism who stood out to me. I selected to research her because of her societal rank and how she led two lives. One life was an author who rebelled against the very society that brought her up and the other life was the wealthy socialite. I also was intrigued in her interest in New York City fashion as she was amongst some of the most socially prominent families in the country.
What I know; assume or imagine I know Edith Wharton was born in to a very wealthy family in New York City. Her writings are based upon the high societal rank she was raised in. My assumptions of her writings consist of her speaking well about the elite group she socialized with. I assume that Edith Wharton's beliefs are that she is above the average person and is out of touch with the real world. I feel that based upon the society she was born into that she was also very fashion conscience. I imagine her life was full of money and greed, and unfortunately never caught on to the little things in life that make it so special.
The Search (two main parts) My first step in the research of Edith Wharton was going to the library on February 22, 2005. Not knowing much about her, I found four books which were as follows: Classic Love and Romance Literature, A Reader's Guide to Twentieth Century Writers, The
"There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it"
Vesalius in "Zante" (Bartlett 700).
Edith Wharton's outside appearance in no way reflected the inner struggles she dealt with her whole life. She was born into a wealthy, affluent, socially prominent family. On the outside it appeared she had everything, yet the reader will come to find that she had struggles like everyone else, possibly worse than the average person. Edith Wharton rose above society's walls to overcome barriers such as equality that existed for young women in the late eighteen hundreds. Edith Wharton was an author in the Age of Realism who stood out to me. I selected to research her because of her societal rank and how she led two lives. One life was an author who rebelled against the very society that brought her up and the other life was the wealthy socialite. I also was intrigued in her interest in New York City fashion as she was amongst some of the most socially prominent families in the country.
What I know; assume or imagine I know Edith Wharton was born in to a very wealthy family in New York City. Her writings are based upon the high societal rank she was raised in. My assumptions of her writings consist of her speaking well about the elite group she socialized with. I assume that Edith Wharton's beliefs are that she is above the average person and is out of touch with the real world. I feel that based upon the society she was born into that she was also very fashion conscience. I imagine her life was full of money and greed, and unfortunately never caught on to the little things in life that make it so special.
The Search (two main parts) My first step in the research of Edith Wharton was going to the library on February 22, 2005. Not knowing much about her, I found four books which were as follows: Classic Love and Romance Literature, A Reader's Guide to Twentieth Century Writers, The
Cited: Bartlett, John. Familiar Quotations. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1980. Bolton, Sarah K. Famous American Authors. New York: Vail-Ballou Press Inc., 1954. Brackett, Virginia. Classic Love and Romance Literature. California: ABC-CLIO, Inc. 1999. "Edith Wharton". Prentice Hall Literature Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes: The American Experience. Ed. Ellen Bowler et al. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall Inc., 1999. 758. Liukkonen, Petri. "Edith Wharton." Author 's Calendar: Books and Writers. 9 Mar. 2005. . Parker, Peter, ed. A Reader 's Guide to Twentieth Century Writers. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996. Stringer, Jenny, ed. The Oxford Companion to Twentieth-Century Literature in English. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.