This essay examines the theme of marriage and female freedom through two novels of manners: Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth and Hannah Webster Foster's The Coquette. Analyzing the protagonists Lily Bart and Eliza Wharton, the paper explores how social structures in the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries reduced marriage to a vehicle for economic security and social status rather than a union of love. The essay argues that the male-dominated societies depicted in both novels punished women who delayed marriage in pursuit of independence, ultimately destroying them. By comparing these two characters, the paper reveals how class distinctions, moral double standards, and gender discrimination shaped women's perceptions of marriage and freedom.
The institution of marriage should be viewed as a consummation of love rather than as a social contract providing economic and social stability. Freedom is better sought within the bonds of love, and marriage is better understood as a strengthening relationship rather than a loss of freedom.
The prevailing social structure of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries played a vital role in shaping ideas about marriage. During these periods, a stark gender divide seriously restricted the freedom of women. From the Elizabethan era through the industrial age, women continued to struggle against the influence of a male-dominated society. Literary works by women during these periods consistently reflect this quest for freedom and define the role marriage played in determining women's social status. The following discussion examines women's perceptions of marriage and the extent to which society shaped those perceptions by looking at several novels of manners written during this time.
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton is an excellent novel of manners that depicts the social values of upper-class American society. The novel clearly portrays marriage as a means of security rather than a union of hearts. It also vividly illustrates class distinctions and their influence on women's marital choices. Lily, the protagonist, is typical of women of that period: she views marriage as a means of ascending the social ladder. Still unmarried at twenty-nine, Lily represents a deeply conflicted woman who remains undecided about marriage, always searching for a better prospect. So consumed is she by the desire to climb socially that she willfully ignores Lawrence Selden, a man she genuinely loves. The sole reason is that Selden is a man of modest means, and marrying him would not satisfy her ambitions. The impact of her social conditioning is captured in Selden's observation: "She was so evidently the victim of the civilization which had produced her, that the links of her bracelet seemed like manacles chaining her to her fate." (pg. 6)
Wharton expertly portrays the consumerist society of America, in which money was the central commodity of life. Women who were regarded as inferior and dominated by men came to see wealth as an important means of overcoming their limitations. Marriage to a wealthy man guaranteed them a position in society. This demonstrates how profoundly the social structure shaped the lives of young women. In short, marriage, money, and status were viewed as synonymous, and women treated marriage as a springboard to social success and security.
The novel also reveals Lily's lack of decisiveness. She is never satisfied with the good proposals she receives and is always looking for something better. This indecision ultimately proves to be her undoing. Blinded by the power of money and the desire for a higher social rank, Lily asks Gus Trenor, the husband of her friend Judy, to invest money on her behalf in the stock market. Her first harsh lesson from this opportunistic society comes when Trenor expects her to repay him by spending time with him. This episode illustrates clearly the insecurities and dangers that an unmarried woman faced in such a society.
Lily endures such difficulties largely because she is unmarried — though, to some extent, the situation is of her own making, since she could have accepted any number of respectable marriage proposals. In chapter six, for example, Lily and Selden draw very close to one another, and just as they are about to express their feelings, the sound of a car horn diverts Lily's attention. This moment symbolizes the instability and fickleness of the unmarried woman in New York, drawn away from genuine love by the allure of wealth. Yet fate also plays a role: when Lily is on the verge of pursuing Percy Gryce, a wealthy young man, he announces his engagement to Evie Van Osburgh. One by one, opportunities slip away, and Lily is left isolated and despairing. When her aunt dies and leaves her only $10,000 — the exact amount she owes Trenor — Lily finds herself entirely alone in a society built on false values and prejudice.
"Elite New York's moral hypocrisy and judgment"
"Class distinctions and Lily's tragic downfall"
"Eliza Wharton's pursuit of independence and ruin"
Edith Wharton, The House of Mirth, Mass Market Paperback, 2000.
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