House Of Mirth Individualism Analysis

Good Essays

Open Document

Open Document

View Writing Issues

519 Words

Grammar

Grammar

Plagiarism

Plagiarism

Writing

Writing

Score

Score

House Of Mirth Individualism Analysis

In the novel The House of Mirth, author Edith Wharton depicts protagonist Lily Bart’s struggle to maintain individualism and find herself while conforming to society’s expectations. Lily is a strong individual in the way she leads life, as shown in her rejecting proposals because she is looking for both wealth and a happy life of love and true understanding of herself. However, this individualism Lily believed would bring her true self-realization also served as her downfall, casting her into poverty, cast out of her social circles, and depressed.
Lily desired to have her own independence or her own republic of the spirit. She wanted to be free “from money, from poverty, from ease and anxiety, from all the material accidents” (Wharton 81). Lily wanted …show more content…
She was unable to do this due to the way she was raised. Lily was raised to live for the luxurious offerings of life and not for the value of life and finding of one’s true self. This upbringing caused Lily to be confused about how to achieve her own republic of the spirit without clashing with her desire to be wealthy. Lily does not have a chance for freedom because she was expected to always be consumed into her looks and outer appearance by the society in which she was raised and lived in. Lily was constantly self-sabotaging herself with her indecisiveness. Her indecisiveness streamed from her not allowing herself to fully conform to what society expected of her. This caused her to pass up several good marriage opportunities in hopes that she could always do better. Lily’s desire to marry clashes with Selden, a man of modest means who she truly loved. Yet Lily could never marry Selden because he only represented the

Continue Reading

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

Better Essays
The Myth of Individualism
- 1193 Words
- 5 Pages
The Myth of Individualism

America is famous for the reputation of being the land of opportunity, and for generations immigrants have fled to the United States to experience the freedom and equality our government lays claim to. The fundamental of this reputation is the American Dream, the belief that life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each by hard working regardless of social class or circumstances of birth(by James Truslow Adams). The American Dream is different for everyone, though it is most commonly associated with success, freedom, and happiness. The concept of the American Dream seems to have dwindled from where it was in the past few generations. It has gone from success, freedom, and happiness to having lots of money and the nicest possessions. Also, it is believed to be blind to race, sex, or socio-economic status. In today’s society we all hope and strive for this dream, but how many actually achieve the American Dream? Is it a reasonable goal that Americans should strive for, or is it a myth that only leads to self-destruction? Repeated examples and statistics of the lower-classes, those continually facing the harsh reality that opportunity and equality are empty promises, only prove the opposite. The countless stories of failure to reach the American Dream significantly override the few success stories that keep the myth alive. However, these few success stories keep Americans, as well as the rest of the world, believing in the false opportunities the American Dream puts forth.…
- 1193 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays

Read More
Satisfactory Essays
Chapter 4-2: Triangular Trade in the Colonies
- 359 Words
- 2 Pages
Chapter 4-2: Triangular Trade in the Colonies

A spirit of independence was growing. Freedom provided a better life and a desire for more independence.…
- 359 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Society's Inevitable Pressures In Ethan Frome By Edith Wharton
- 690 Words
- 3 Pages
Society's Inevitable Pressures In Ethan Frome By Edith Wharton

Society’s inevitable pressures and ones own moral standings can affect life greatly. In the novel Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton social pressures and personal morals affect Ethan’s chance at happiness. This theme plays a prominent role in Ethan’s unfortunate circumstances during the novel. Ethan cannot leave his sickly wife Zeena due to the prejudice that would be placed by his community, and his own personal beliefs. Stemmed from social constraints Ethan lacks the mental strength to continue forward.…
- 690 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Better Essays
LILY BART 1
- 1120 Words
- 3 Pages
LILY BART 1

And she throws them all away. One of Lily's biggest issues is pride, which we can blame for these failed marriage opportunities. She's too proud to talk to Rosedale, to let Bertha think that Selden came to Bellomont to visit her, to explain her side of the story regarding the Monte Carlo affair, or to marry a man like Selden who isn't dripping hundred dollar bills out of his pores. She can't even allow herself to be true friends with a caring woman like Gerty because she's too "dingy." Time and time again, Lily recoils from any sign of poverty (or anything that isn't elaborate or doesn't represent extreme wealth) as though it were physically contaminating.…
- 1120 Words
- 3 Pages
Better Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Ethan Frome Theme Essay
- 656 Words
- 3 Pages
Ethan Frome Theme Essay

Do people need other people to live a joyful life? In Edith Wharton’s novella, Ethan Frome, many themes are expressed through the landscape and characters, but one recurring theme is “people need people”. Wharton used three main characters to elaborate on this theme. She created an epic love-triangle that is doomed from the beginning. The three came together because of each other's needs. Ethan and Zeena Frome are married. Zeena is a hypochondriac who is need of a caretaker. Mattie Silver, Zeena’s cousin, fills this role. On top of being a caretaker, she caught the attention of Ethan. Zeena needed of a caretaker because of her illnesses, Ethan needed human interaction, and Mattie needed the Frome household to also be her home.…
- 656 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Clueless Regency England Analysis
- 1033 Words
- 5 Pages
Clueless Regency England Analysis

Regency England displays Emma’s naivety in which her pride and vanity causes her to meddle with other characters, blindsided by her own wrongdoings. The omniscient voice “The real evils, indeed, of Emma’s situation were the power of having too much her own way, and a disposition to think a little too well of herself…” aligns the reader with Emma encouraging her own imaginative mind and vanity where her actions cause her to act in problematic ways other characters. The repetition of personal pronouns, “I have none of the usual inducements of women to marry…I never have been in love…I do not think I ever shall.” explores Emma’s belief that her wealth allows her to be financially secure with reassurance that others will not treat her like Miss Bates for her decision to remain single. The use of narrator’s anthypophora in “Why she did not like Jane Fairfax...she saw in her the really accomplished young woman, which she wanted to be thought herself.” exhibits Emma’s jealousy as she sees Jane as a threat to her ego because she may carry more accomplishments than herself which leads to her initial dislike of Jane. The prominence of pride and vanity creates problems as a consequence as it blindsides one’s better judgement. One’s importance of materialistic items continues to be a main feature in the modern…
- 1033 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Isolation In Danielle Evans's Short Story 'Jellyfish'
- 1607 Words
- 7 Pages
Isolation In Danielle Evans's Short Story 'Jellyfish'

American fiction writer, Danielle Evans, composes her short stories in such a way that the reader feels compelled to judge a character’s actions. Evans perfects the art of influencing a reader to relate to or feel strong emotion throughout a story. She centralizes the majority of her short stories on the concept of character isolation and the internal conflict caused by such isolation. This isolation stems from the rootlessness found in Evans’ characters. Her characters struggle to find a home, whether it be paternally, romantically, or internally, but they never quite make it there. The best example of this can be found in Evans’ short story “Jellyfish.” The two main characters, William and Eva, struggle with a multitude of internal issues.…
- 1607 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Myth And Feminism In Edith Wharton's The House Of Mirth
- 1433 Words
- 6 Pages
Myth And Feminism In Edith Wharton's The House Of Mirth

Money is the center theme of this novel. Lily Bart is unsure if she should marry for love or money. The display of money is shocking in this book by Edith Wharton. She most often depicted the society of "old" New York in conflict with nouveau riche capitalists of the Gilded Age, who respected only money ("Edith Wharton Biography"). Having a few servants, rather than many, is considered poverty in the eyes of the higher class. Lily has a battle with herself over whether she should live happily and in poverty with Seldon, her true love, or continue playing the game of manipulation with the other socialites in order to keep her wealth. Money controls everything in this novel. Bertha Dorset's version of George and Lily's untrue relationship is believed over Lily's only because Bertha is wealthier than Lily. Money controls Lily's fall from being in the higher society to a working-class spinster. In Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth, three main themes are society and class, wealth, and…
- 1433 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Ethan Frome Character Analysis Essay
- 598 Words
- 3 Pages
Ethan Frome Character Analysis Essay

In everyday life, people are put under many pressures and are expected to be perfect to society. In Edith Wharton’s, best-known and most popular novel, Ethan Frome, this idea is highlighted, showing the protagonist’s breakdown. Ethan Frome struggles against the customs and rules of society, fighting a battle within himself between what he wants in order to be happy and what he feels he must do to satisfy his family and society. Frome struggles between his desire for Mattie and his sense of duty toward Zeena, his wife. The pressures that come from the responsibilities in the Frome household lead to Ethan Frome’s emotional breakdown, showing how societal pressures can lead to harmful self-doubt.…
- 598 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Better Essays
Individualism Exposed In Ayn Rand's Anthem
- 1149 Words
- 5 Pages
Individualism Exposed In Ayn Rand's Anthem

He is in love with her, and when he leaves his society to go to the Uncharted forest alone, she heard of it and went after him. They were both in the forbidden and much feared Uncharted Forest together, but they were happy because they were together. Liberty tries to express her love for Equality, but she has trouble finding the right words. “Today, the Golden One stopped suddenly and said: ‘We love you,’ But then they frowned and shook their head and looked at us helplessly. ‘No,’ they whispered, ‘that is not what we wished to say.’ They were silent, then they spoke slowly, and their words were halting, like the words of a child learning to speak for the first time. ‘We are one … alone … and only … and we love you who are one … alone… and only.’ We looked into each other’s eyes and we knew that the breathe of a miracle had touched us, and fled, and left us groping vainly. And we felt torn, torn for some word we could not find” (86-87). They could not express themselves as individuals without knowing or using the word “I”. Taking away their individuality and telling them that it was an Unmentionable Word was like putting shackles and chains around everyone’s ankles. They all had the key to free themselves, but that society was too good at brainwashing them that being different was evil. So they were afraid of the freedom they should have had. After looking through books and house they found from the Unmentionable Times, Equality discovered the word “I”. As soon as he told of his discovery to the Golden One, the first thing she said was “I love you”. Living collectively, it was impossible to express oneself as an individual. Only after the discovery of the Sacred Word, Ego, could Equality and Liberty and the rest of the individuals they plan to take with them to their new house be truly individual and full break away from the controlling collectivist society and the Great WE…
- 1149 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Their Eyes Were Watching God
- 581 Words
- 3 Pages
Their Eyes Were Watching God

The conflict of man vs. society is quickly revealed from the beginning of the novel. Through a recalled account of past life events, the reader is allowed to grasp an understanding of the life of Janie Crawford. Her life’s trials and tribulations have compelled her into the woman she is, a woman of self-determination who has abandoned the idea of the need for a male presence, as a result of three unsuccessful marriages. Coming into her own, Janie battles with society’s ignorant definition of gender roles and relations versus her personal views of self progression and independence. From her financially driven first marriage to the death of her last husband, she has taken on the flaws of others, specifically a man, to help her search for personal happiness, which has only hindered her progression. Janie once took on the same views as society but due to her personal experiences that allowed herself growth, she broke free of the biased, realizing that the development of an individual identity amounts way more than simply compromising for the like of others.…
- 581 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Satisfactory Essays
Analysis of- Coming of Age in Mississippi
- 374 Words
- 2 Pages
Analysis of- Coming of Age in Mississippi

Our theme is seen when the narrator, Anne Moody gets into high school and soon develops a sense of personal growth. In doing so, Anne was capable of living her life to the fullest, her perspective on everything changing. “I was sick of pretending, sick of selling my feelings for a dollar a day, and for this I could tell I was going through an element of growth” (Moody 226) Admirable considering the time period Anne was living in. How was she able to, at such a young age, look past all of the negative and discouraging things that were in her surroundings, with all the hatred due to the color of her skin? It was at this point that Anne decided her future was hers and nobody else’s, showing she in a sense had reached her own personal growth.…
- 374 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Individualism In Into The Wild
- 900 Words
- 4 Pages
Individualism In Into The Wild

The Transcendentalists, a free-spirited group of writers who believed in individualism, intuition, and the goodness of humanity, would agree that nature can answer one’s questions and has the ability to clear one’s mind. In contrast, Transcendentalists believe that technology or a city’s atmosphere can cloud or distracts one’s mind. In the movie Into the Wild directed by Sean Penn in 2007, Chris McCandless leaves Atlanta, Georgia and heads West. He destroys all evidence of his existence, like his driver's license and Social Security, and he escapes from his self-destructive parents in order to achieve his version of ultimate freedom. As he makes his way to the West, he meets a hippy couple, Rainey and Jan Burres, he works at a wheat farm for Wayne Westerberg, he meets a young teenage girl, Tracy Tatro, and finally, he meets an old, lonely, and stubborn man, Ron Franz, who is the last person to help Chris before he begins his ultimate Alaskan adventure. Although Chris fails to exemplify self-reliance and individualism, one of the Transcendentalist beliefs, Chris excels in the Transcendentalist beliefs of nature and simplicity.…
- 900 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Tone In Kate Chopin's The Story Of An Hour
- 547 Words
- 3 Pages
Tone In Kate Chopin's The Story Of An Hour

Alone in her room Mrs. Mallard takes in the news she has just received, she sinks into the “comfortable, roomy armchair” that faces the open window and stares out into the open square. There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. (307) after hearing of her husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard ironically awaken full of life as she embraces the world around her. She imagines her life full of freedom from an unwanted marriage, she has grown out of. “Free, free, free!” “Free! Body and soul free” she kept whispering. She sees her life as being absolutely hers and her new independence as the core of her…
- 547 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays

Read More
Good Essays
Individualism Vs Collectivism Analysis
- 1496 Words
- 6 Pages
Individualism Vs Collectivism Analysis

Most governments around the world fall between the ideologies of Collectivism and Individualism. Many of the governments have struggled to find a spot between these ideologies that promotes societal growth while still maintaining peace. The source presented is saying that Individualism is the most effective way for a society to function. The speaker believes that a capitalist society is the most effective way for a society to exist. A capitalist society is a one in which the focus is on the individual and not the collective group, this can include private property, private businesses and competition in markets. This kind of societal structure can be very benefiting to successful individuals, but can also be very destructive towards lower income…
- 1496 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays

Read More

Related Topics