Indeed, Winterbourne's views on good girls and bad ones come through very clearly in the manner in which the narrator describes his frame of mind, when he is reflecting on Daisy's budding relationship with Giovanelli: "Nevertheless," Winterbourne said to himself, "A nice girl ought to know!" And then he came back to the dreadful question of whether this was in fact a nice girl. Would a nice girl - even allowing for her being a little American flirt - make a rendezvous with a presumably low-lived foreigner? (p. 50-51)
Of course, two other factors must be taken into consideration before conclusively determining whether Winterbourne did, in fact, possess a Madonna-Whore complex. The first of these is the social conventions of the time the story is situated in. While the second must inevitably be an analysis of Daisy's sexuality and behavior.
It is evident from the narrative that Daisy Miller is situated in an era, which was governed by very strict social mores on female sexuality and behavior with men. Winterbourne worries over whether he could be bold enough to speak to Daisy without a proper introduction. Eugenio disapproves of Daisy's trip to the castle with Winterbourne as "not proper." and, finally, Mrs. Walker tries to persuade Daisy to get into her carriage to prevent people from commenting on her being alone with Giovanelli in a public area. Thus, Winterbourne's reactions to Daisy's unconventional behavior could well be justified by his being merely a product of his times.
However, the prevalent social norms do not explain Winterbourne's continued pursuit of Daisy. for, if...
Winterbourne is no doubt attracted to Daisy and is proud to be seen with her on the way to the Chillon. He simply cannot allow himself to be with her because he is too concerned with what others might be thinking. For example, he considers what others are thinking as they look at her "hard" (111) but is overcome with "satisfaction in his pretty companion's distinguished air" (111). However,
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now