The Age of Innocence

Written by Edith Wharton

Narrated by Joanne Woodward

A masterful portrait of desire and betrayal that takes place during the sumptuous Gilded Age, The Age of Innocence questions the morals and assumptions of elite 1870s New York society when "scandal was more dreaded than disease." Newland Archer, gentleman lawyer and heir to one of New York City's best families, is happily anticipating a highly desirable marriage to the beautiful but conventional May Welland—until May's exotic European cousin, Countess Ellen Olenska returns to New York society. Scandalously separated from her husband, the countess bears an independence and awareness of life which stirs the educated sensitivity of the charming Newland Archer, and he falls deeply in love with her. Torn between duty and passion, Archer struggles to make a decision that will either courageously define his life—or mercilessly destroy it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phoenix Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 1, 1996
• ISBN: 9781597779739

Edith Wharton

Edith Wharton (1862–1937) was an American novelist—the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for her novel The Age of Innocence in 1921—as well as a short story writer, playwright, designer, reporter, and poet. Her other works include Ethan Frome, The House of Mirth, and Roman Fever and Other Stories. Born into one of New York’s elite families, she drew upon her knowledge of upper-class aristocracy to realistically portray the lives and morals of the Gilded Age.

Reviews for The Age of Innocence

[beauxarts79 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

As soon as I reached the last line of the last page, I wanted to go back to the first and start reading all over again. It was that good. I could offer a feminist critique by calling Wharton's a more watered down feminism than, say, Chopin's or even Austen's because Ellen is only a hero insomuch as she has a male protagonist to advocate for her; but that is too small a judgment compared to the lushness of the prose and the compelling social commentary.

[zoes_human · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I was astonished to find that a book published in 1920 which focuses on the wealthy of New York "Society" in the 1870s is still so relevant in this time and in society as a whole.While the needless, arbitrary, and sometimes harmful rules of "proper" decorum have changed a great deal, current ideas of propriety are still enforced with ostracism and judgement. Individuals still struggle to find genuine happiness in a society where media and culture rigidly define what one should want and need to be happy.Ms. Wharton puts forward the notion that a woman has the same right to sexual experience without judgement as a man does. I find it mildly depressing that we still aren't there yet.

[juva_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lively, witty, haunting and beautifully written this novel follows the conflicted love life of a turn of the century man who is struggling against the rigid expectations of his family and social circle. On the eve of his engagement to May, a boring but conventional young woman, Newland Archer meets the Countess Ellen, a married women who has finally left her abusive husband and is seeking a divorce. Despite his better judgement, Archer finds himself attracted to this surprising and fearless woman with a checkered past.

[bsiemens_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This amazing novel makes me want to read more of the Pulitzer fiction winners. At the beginning, I actually thought about dumping it, but quickly caught on after I read the character description and synopsis by Cliff's Notes.

[markm2315 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There is more blushing in this novel than I have encountered elsewhere. The blush seems to be the main mode of expression, since the characters cannot say anything clearly to each other. Newland Archer often "starts" and then says 1/3 to 1/2 of a sentence in anger that quickly evaporates. I'll have to see the movie now to see if Daniel Day Lewis says anything. I also found Newland's attraction to the Countess to be quite mysterious. It is the central undiscussed mystery of the story. I know that life often works that way, but if you are writing a novel you could say something about the crush besides that she doesn't mind living in the same city block as artists do, and that she can decorate a room with only a single feather and blown flowers.

Here is my favorite quote, a description of Boston:

"The streets near the station were full of the smell of beer and coffee and decaying fruit and a shirt-sleeved populace moved through them with the intimate abandon of boarders going down the passage to the bathroom."

[jonbrammer-788089 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wharton's unsparing portrait of late 1800s upper class New York shows a society crumbling under the weight of its own pretense and conservatism. The senseless and hypocritical rituals of the upper classes and their tribal persecution of outsiders and nonconformists is portrayed here humorously but also as making many of the most privileged members bear the misery of its burden.
I find it hard to sympathize with Newland Archer, the novel's protagonist, because he seems so much in denial of his feelings throughout the first part of the novel that when he finally admits that he is in love with the Countess Olenska, he is far too enmeshed in the demands of his role as son and fiance to do anything about it.

[arubabookwoman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wharton's most well-known book invokes the typical Wharton theme of the strictures of society that the wealthy live under: Does one really have any free choice to live one's life as one pleases? Newland Archer thinks he can escape, to ignore the rules of the New York wealthy society in which he lives. He is engaged to be married to May, a girl deeply embedded in New York society, with the correct and proper breeding and education to fit the requirements for a wife. But then Archer meets Countess Ellen Olenska, a woman who has recently returned from Europe after leaving her husband under scandalous circumstances. He believes he has fallen in love with Ellen, and wants to give everything up, his place in New York society, his fiancée May, and run away with Ellen.In Archer's mind, May is an innocent, unaware of how bound up in society's rules she is. But who is the real innocent here--is it Archer who thinks he is brave enough and strong enough to give up everything he has ever known? He can't even recognize that behind the scenes May is manipulating people and events so that her life goes exactly the way she wants it to. In the end, innocent May, may have been the most successful at living life exactly as she chose to.This is a book everyone should read.5 starsFirst line: "On a January evening of the early seventies Christine Nilsson was singing in Faust at the Academy of Music in New York."Last line: "Newland Archer got up and walked back alone to the hotel."

[kukulaj · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Newland Archer... OK, when I was working at IBM, I took my modified guitar in to a music shop. The proprietor asked me if I would like a job there. I could have become a guitar tech, instead of sticking with my corporate software career! It's not as heart throbbing as running off with an exotic beguiling woman, but... conventional security versus taking the leap into adventure and some kind of deeper meaning....This deserves its status as a classic. There is this relentless tension... a masterwork!

[debbie13410 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A few days ago I finished The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and though I liked it I didn't love it. It was a well written book with a nice story. I didn't understand the really high rating. I didn't think it was psychologically deep. The Age of Innocence went deep. It was about the role of women in society. It was about how much of yourself do you lose if you try and fit it. I gave both books the same rating because even though Innocence went deep it liked itself too much.

[ghost_boy-691444 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I actually enjoyed this book. I loved the fact that she really made New York part of this novel. I originally got this because it's a well-known book, but I really like New York City literature for some reason. In my option this is one of the best New York fiction books. Another plus for this book is the historic value. Keep in mind this is the 3rd book to win a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and Edith Wharton is also the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. She was nominated for the Nobel Prize too (I don't think she won though). Wharton is one smart lady and her writing shows that I think. I'm not so much a fan of her writing though, but I do find her as a person very interesting. No complaints for this book except from the size I thought it would be a light read, for a short novel it was a little difficult.

[alisony-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I thoroughly enjoyed The House of Mirth, but boy oh boy this was a drear fest by comparison. The characters were so dully portrayed I couldn't have cared less what romantic choice the protagonist did or didn't make. The whole thing just seemed to go on and on yet never really get anywhere.This novel might have been scintillating when it was written 100 years ago, but for me it paled in comparison with so many other classics from that time. 3 stars - an almost DNF, but I'd given it so many hours of my time I felt compelled to finish it.

[p_s_patrick · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Classic American novel charting the courses of upper-class New York families in 1870's. Love triangles, longing, black sheep, social maneuvering, and scandals are woven together here to create a never-tiring tale that brings to times to life. The characters are excellently realised, as are the situations which they rotate through with often more spatial volume and apparent cogitation than the colleagues we see every day. As the introduction, let alone the writing suggests, much of this tableau vivant was based on the experiences of the author and those who she knew. Not all the characters are likeable, but this only adds to the interest.

[edwinbcn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

For more than 20 years Henry James suggested to Edith Wharton to write about the social circles she grew up in. DO NEW YORK, he told her. When finally she did, she produced The age of innocence, about, in American upper-class parlance "Old New York", the upper crust oldest and wealthiest families or the "Old Money" families in New York, the Rockefellers of the 19th century.The age of innocence is about the moral values of these Old Families. The moral dilemma in this novel is the same as that in James's The portrait of a lady, published 30 years earlier, but Wharton's style is much lighter, and the treatment of this theme much more frivolous.Countess Olenska is a still young American woman, who left the US to get married to a Polish Count. Unhappy in her marriage she shows up in New York, in an attempt to return her family in America. There she meets Newland Archer, who is engaged to get married with her cousin May Welland.Written from the point of view of Newland, Countess Olenska is the young, exotic new belle on the block, making his newly-wed wife May look dull. It isn't until the very last part of the book that the conservative, conventional morals of Old New York, the family and all their friends become clear. A married woman should stay with her husband, no matter what.The age of innocence is much drawn out and rather unfocussed, with its main theme not becoming fully clear until the end. It would probably have been much more forceful if it was a novella, of less than half its number of pages.

[eosch1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton – a 1920 novel that won the Pulitzer prize for fiction – Ms. Wharton was the first woman to win the prize.I always keep in mind that reading is both subjective and situational. In my current “situation” (older, busy, having just read Don Quixote! Ahhhh!), I may have DNF’d this one, had it not been for an Instagram challenge.The beginning was too tedious and a mental struggle . Too many names dropped all at once and no immediate connection to any of the characters or the society they lived in.However, the longer I read, the more I became invested in understanding the character’s behavior within the restrictive societal convections and expectations of the 1870’s New York society that “dreaded scandal more than disease.”They “all lived in a kind of hieroglyphic world, where the real thing was never said or done or even thought, but only represented by a set of arbitrary signs…” – this “society” was comprised of upper class white people with their own intrinsic set of acceptable behavioral rules that have in many ways trickled down to modern society. By page 14 (in my quirky edition), I had come across my second reference to “white” being preferable to anything else or more valuable: “Her hand is large (re: engagement ring) – but the skin is white.” In other words, her paleness was valued and trumped the size of her hand.One of the things that I found interesting was how these society “rules” were in a way restrictive for both men and women of the time. Of course it has always fallen harder on women, but Newland felt just as trapped by them.SPOILERS ahead Newland feared marriage and believed women “should be free,” yet conformed and paid the price of happiness. From the beginning he saw what marriage to May would be like: “becoming what other marriages about him were: a dull association of material and social interests held together by ignorance on the one side and hypocrisy on the other.” He was not married yet, and was already mourning his freedom and feeling he “were being buried alive under his future.”Women were seen as entrappers and how they can derail a man because of course young men cannot be at fault because they are “foolish and incalculable.” Some women “are so ensnaring and unscrupulous – that it was nothing short of a miracle to see one’s only son safe past the Siren Isle and in the haven of a blameless domesticity.” Therefore the fear of Countess Olenska and her unwillingness or inability to completely conform to their world.In my view, May, was not very well fleshed out as a character because she was a representation of that society and how it forced both Newland and Countess Olenska to conform. Just when there might have been a chance for those two, May pulled the pregnancy card and that was that! (not quite as innocent our little May…she knew how to play the game of her society)For a great section of the book I had my doubts about Countess Olenska and her motives. I saw her as a woman that simulated learned helplessness type behaviors and exuded vulnerability to invoke stereotypical hero complexes in men that fell over themselves to “help” her. But then I hit the part where it was obvious she was not aware they (meaning society) was sneering at her and her “foreign” behavior, the fact that she had left her husband, and the suspicions she was having affairs. She did not betray May, who did not think much of her. She did not want to destroy their lives. She left.By the way….that part where Newland felt so asphyxiated by his marriage that he considered the notion of May being dead…and that she could “die soon” to “leave him free” while he was standing by the window had me at the end of my seat!! I for sure thought he was going to throw her out the window!! (page 136 in my book)And the ending…well… “It’s more real to me here than if I went up” encapsulates the regret but also the acceptance of the life he lived. The longing for what was that would never match the reality of the passage of time and the different lives they lived. I will never forget this ending.Other:On feeling the need to be alone and in one’s own space: “I like the lithe house…the blessedness of its being here, in my own country and my own town; and then, of being alone in it.” – Countess Olenska.On reading: The literary allusion to Middlemarch made me chuckle: Newland mentioned he “had declined three dinner invitations in favor of this feast” – we can all relate!lol

[lauralkeet · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Age of Innocence explores the mores of New York society in the 1870s through the lives of Newland Archer and May Welland, who become engaged at the beginning of the novel. Newland’s world is rocked by the arrival of May’s cousin Ellen, now Madame Olenska, who recently left an unhappy marriage to a European count. Society is simultaneously shocked and fascinated by Ellen’s behavior; most feel it is her duty to return to her husband. When Ellen approaches a law firm to begin divorce proceedings, Newland is asked to intervene and convince her not to take this step. Newland is sympathetic to Ellen’s situation, and becomes obsessed with her, seeking every possible opportunity to spend time together. Told from Newland’s point of view, it’s easy to miss the developing game of chess being played by May and her family, as they manipulate the lives of both Ellen and Newland to outcomes they consider more favorable. May and Newland’s relationship appears highly dysfunctional by modern standards, as the couple are completely unable to communicate directly with one another. But May turns out not to be as naive and oblivious as she first appears, and demonstrates surprising strength in her quiet, determined response to Newland’s behavior. This book was my introduction to Edith Wharton many years ago. Having now read most of her novels it was time for a re-read. This is a magnificent book, right up there with The House of Mirth and The Custom of the Country.

[japaul22 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A reread for me, I think the third time I've read this. Every time I find myself noticing something new. This time I was thinking the entire time of what the book would have been from May Welland's point of view. I would love to read a retelling of that - is there one??For those who haven't read this, [Age of Innocence] follows Newland Archer, a young man on the cusp of marriage to May Welland and into the stifling, closed off New York society of the 1870s. When worldly, exotic (well, to their small circle) Ellen Olenska returns home to escape a bad marriage, Archer becomes enthralled. This is a love triangle but also a study of what happens when people are caught in a shifting society and whether they'll stick with the old rules or forge a new path. The book is written from Newland Archer's perspective which wildly annoyed me the first time I've read this. Subsequent readings have made me so impressed with how Wharton manages to make this about the women, particularly about May, without giving them a direct voice. I love this book and highly recommend it.

[jbd1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another of those classics I probably waited too long to read, and spent mostly wanting to dope-slap many of the characters. But the "old New York" world-building is excellent.

[pilgrimjess · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

"The real loneliness is living among all these kind people who only ask one to pretend."Newland Archer and May Welland seem to be the perfect couple. He is a wealthy gentleman lawyer and she a beautiful, sweet-natured girl. On the verge of announcing their engagement all seems set for success until May’s cousin returns from Europe to escape from an ill-fated marriage to a Polish Count. Countess Ellen Olenska was a playmate of Newland's as a child now as a young woman she raises eyebrows in polite society who seems either oblivious or uncaring of society's rules of civility in 1870s New York.Despite long periods of time apart, a romantic bond grows between Newland and Ellen Olenska.Alienated from most of her relatives and their circle of acquaintances who consider divorce distasteful Ellen is lonely and unhappy. Newland appears to be her only champion. In contrast Newland wants to escape from the limitations he feels have been placed on him by that very society. Ellen becomes an unattainable object of desire because he knows deep down that a future with her would be impossible. In fact it is the forbidden nature of his feelings for her that stokes his passion.Newland experiences a romantic love for Ellen that feels untethered by the concepts of duty and tradition; whilst his feelings for May are dictated by propriety and decorum. Newland believes that May is sheltered, naive and inexperienced and he often makes unfavourable comparison between her and the Countess whom he regards as more worldly. However, her later actions suggest that May is more intuitive than he gives her credit for.The novel looks at how desire is influenced by social conventions and duty (what Newland wants for himself vs. what society wants for him). Yet, Newland appears to draw more pleasure from the yearning than the possibility of an actual union with Ellen meaning that it is difficult to dislike him as you soon realise that he will only ever be disloyal to May in thoughts rather than deeds. In contrast Ellen quickly realises that any possible union is doomed from the outset as Newland will never leave May. Alienated heroes and ill-fated lovers aren't exactly a rarity in literature, however Wharton’s elegant prose provides an modicum of irony that gives a certain poignancy to this particular tale and lends itself well to the serious nature of it. Yet despite all of this, the story ultimately failed to really grab me meaning that I found it an OK read rather than a particularly memorable one.

[lethalmauve · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Age of Innocence is a quick and piercing read. A heavyset and challenging critique of 1870s New York; its stifling social conventions and very traditional expectations on marriage, classes, and women themselves. Betrothal and betrayal are the chief troublemakers and, fascinatingly, also the peacemakers throughout this whole debacle of a repressed romantic pursuit complicated by familial relations and reputations. Heartbreaking and infuriating, the short breaths of rebellion dies out in place of a mundane yet secure life; a bittersweet sacrifice.This novel pulls you in: you join the dinners, listen to the town gossip, gets annoyed and terrified by Beaufort and his investments, judge the prejudiced yourself, and looks on with pity from afar as Newland Archer gets off the carriage, snow all over, the harsh wind upon his face as the tears fall whilst May Welland-Archer is at home playing with ignorance. Sometimes passionate love does not suffice. Each time you happen to me all over again. Sometimes late is too late.Edith Wharton was really on another level during her time. What a woman. (

[drbrand-271246 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The worst of doing one's duty was that it apparently unfitted one for doing anything else. At least that was the view that the men of his generation had taken. The trenchant divisions between right and wrong, honest and dishonest, respectable and the reverse, had left so little scope for the unforeseen. There are moments when a man's imagination, so easily subdued to what it lives in, suddenly rises above its daily level, and surveys the long windings of destiny.Brutal gut punch. Everyone is constrained by social pressure. I found myself thinking of Emerson and his exhortations to resist conformity. If only Newland Archer had read Emerson!

[techeditor_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

THE AGE OF INNOCENCE is about the silly manners followed by the very rich New York society in the 1870s. While the book is romantic, the romance serves to show the absurdity of the “rules” they lived by. Newland Archer is a part of this society yet sees the absurdities. But he’s a young man in his 20s and just goes along with it. He becomes engaged to May, a girl from another wealthy New York family. May is an innocent who follows the rules and believes in them. She is not a snob; she knows no other way.Then Newland meets May’s cousin, Ellen. Ellen disregards many of the rules. And that attracts Newland. He falls in love with her.Although I’d like to see this movie, a book about romance and wealthy New York society can sometimes bore me nowadays. I found myself rereading paragraphs because I would forget what I read immediately after I read it. My mind wandered while I was reading, not a good sign.

[charrlygirl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved the story, but I didn't care for the narrator very much.

I can't add to the reams that have already been written about this novel. I adore Edith Wharton, at least-what I've read so far, and I admire her powers of observation and her wit. I wouldn't have lasted five minutes in what passed for high society in New York City in the mid 1870's. There was so much gossip, so much repressed emotion and so much...phoniness. UGH.

I enjoyed this book even though I saw the movie many years ago, because as usual, the book has more depth and in this case, more scathing commentary hidden between the lines. As compared to The House of Mirth, The Age of Innocence at least has a happier ending, though I guess it depends on how you look at it. Society was definitely happier, but I'm not so sure that Newland Archer or Mrs. Olenska were.

Recommended for fans of Edith Wharton's work, stories of the gilded age and high society, or just plain fans of a good story.

[scottjpearson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This tale spans 20-30 years, two continents, and the hearts of two women and one man. Newland Archer is engaged in pre-World-War-One New York City to May Welland. However, he falls for May's cousin Ellen who is fresh off a separation from her marriage in Europe.

Ellen seems to respond (however subtly) to Newland's flirtations and overtures. Newland seems torn between his two lovers and seems to prefer Ellen over May. May sees the two and responds not with anger but with passivity. She seems to say, "What will be, will be."

After a couple of years of drama, the final chapter approaches the story over twenty years later after the die has been cast. In one fell swoop, Wharton shows her literary marvel in leaving enough unsettled to make the reader unsettled about the outcome. Just enough ambiguity begets questions and speculation.

This story is well worth the read, especially for its visage into early 1900s New York City. The City seems to then be run by a few powerful families, almost in-grown in their society. Rank, scandal, and social rules seems to govern the day, and freedom - at least for those on top - seems fleeting at best. Newland's choice is not only whom to love but whether to rebel. This situation is much like that in any smaller, in-grown community like a church or a small town.

[danielstj · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't really understand why this novel is so recommended and highly rated. It is a character study of several people, in the vein of the different classes and societal concerns that beset them, but I did not feel engaged or enraptured with the story or the developments that occurred during it. To me, it seemed a bit archaic in form and style and did not seem to age well. The prose was a bit stale and uninspired as well- largely dealing with the same sort of approach and taciturnity that I did not feel suited the novel very well.2.5 stars- worth skipping.

[deusxmachina-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The age of individualism has not yet dawned when Newland Archer, a young man from a good New Yorker family, has to make the age-old choice between an untamed true love and a marriage that fits into all the traditions he grew up and believes in. A remarkable story about love, duty, sacrifice and the power that society, its morals and traditons have over the lives of people, especially if they don't fit seamlessly into the fold. The excesses of these conventions often seems absurd to modern readers, the introspective voice of this narrative sometimes borders on melodrama, but especially as I read (listened to) it right after Pride and Prejudice, the difference how both books handle this overarching theme left a deep impression on me. Where P&P takes it with a lot of humour, optimism and exaggeration, the tone here is decidedly melancholic, introspective and much more subdued.

[carlahaunted · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A startlingly, devastatingly good book.

[jessika.c · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I'm really surprised at how much I liked this book considering how I tend to dislike what is considered classic feminist literature. This is the story of a guy named Newland Archer who wants to marry well but also wants good company from his marriage. He gets himself engaged to a young girl named Mary Welland (whoa accidental pun) who offers a nice aesthetic to his image and an increase in wealth. But then he meets her cousin the Countess Ellen Olenska who makes a grand and scandalous return to New York having separated from her husband. Newland is honorable physically but creates an intimate emotional relationship with Ellen. She, being the older and more mature one does her best to keep her distance to not hurt her cousin but things happen when you allow yourself to get emotionally close to someone. Eventually, that isn't good enough for one or both parties involved.Because of my personal conditioning and life experiences, I'm always frustrated with the portrayal of women in classic literature. Not because I'm naive enough to think that women didn't face sexism or am shocked to see men demeaning women but because their feelings don't seem genuine to me. But again it could be that I don't consider myself to be a sensitive type, I'm a very closed off feelings type of person so to see a woman behaving so over-the-top sometimes makes it seem fake to me. In this case, I really enjoyed Mary and Ellen's portrayal because both had feelings and reactions that seemed real. Mary gave Newland an out of their engagement and behaved exactly like that young teenager that I imagined in my mind. Ellen was a quiet but powerful point in every scene she was in. It was clear to me how tied she felt to the arrangement she made with her marriage but she didn't let herself be weighed down by it. Ellen was a kind and respectable woman who knew what she wanted and knew when to back away at the appropriate times. Both women were ones I sympathized with and wanted the best for both.Newland was a hoe, he knew exactly what he was doing and I rolled my eyes at his underestimating Mary's value other than a beautiful trophy wife. He is the kind of man that I truly despise but this book wouldn't have worked for me if he had been a nice guy (TM) who just happened to fall in love with the wrong person. I probably wouldn't have finished the book at all. But in the end he isn't a villain at all, he's just a guy who had feelings for someone and made the wrong decision because he was young and stupid.

[justagirlwithabook · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I am not a fan of Edith Wharton. This book was required reading and bored me to tears. For the most part it felt that nothing was really going on, and while I don't remember specific details nearly 10 years later, I remember that by the time I finished it I was relieved and also hated it. I have never recommended this one to anyone and am usually surprised by those who sing Wharton's praises. It was just too exhausting.

[margaretfield · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

interesting insight into what life was like for these people but seemed dull to me

[aalyssa0714 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I was deeply mesmerized by the delicate writing style Wharton used to paint a vivid picture of old New York during a time dictated by social norms and mores set by tradition and by a group of tightly-knit select people that represented New York, keeping up appearances, and conformity to what society deemed acceptable.Newland Archer was set in the conventions that dictated and moulded his everyday life. He was so set in it that for a time, his actions and thoughts were aligned with it accordingly. His beliefs was jarred at the arrival of the Countess Ellen Olenska, a cousin of his then-betrothed, the docile May Welland. He was, at first, a typical representation of masculine vanity and he chose May as his bride, often taking note of her purity and girlish charm, for what he sees as his "manly privilege".Ellen was a mystery, a breath of fresh air, and a spark of color amidst a black and white crowd and Archer was captivated by her, although, he didn't want to be and has tried to fight it time and again but loses whenever he sees her. Without intending to, she made Archer examine his beliefs, his surroundings, and even his own thoughts and actions. And Archer fell in love, the kind of love accompanied by a deep yearning for something that will never be; a longing to reach someone a mere breadth's away from him but still beyond his reach; an agony of being close to each other but not together.Each characters has very distinct personalities-- Archer, idealistic and romantic; Ellen, "bohemian" and very realistic to the point that she has given up on her and Archer being together; Mrs. Manson Mingott, formidable and astute to the workings, dealings, and feelings of those around her. Some are even more complex, as in the case of May Welland who seemed pure, unassuming, and noble but was actually quite shrewd and cunning and knows a lot more than she lets on, much to the surprise of his husband.I have seldom been this invested to a love triangle than I did in this novel. It wasn't over dramatized and was treated delicately, effectively presenting Archer and Ellen's feelings and heavy emotions in the way they act whenever they're alone together-- the space that separates the two of them alone in a room, their stares and gestures, the desire to touch each other but still hesitating to cross the final boundary-- spoke volumes of the depth of what they felt for each other; although, to be quite honest, I'm still not certain if Ellen's feelings is as deep as Archer's. The crisp and straight prose managed to convey to the readers the pain and frustration of being under the constraints set by the people around them and the helplessness of being stealthily manipulated in accordance to those unspoken but rigid rules. The characters very much operated in almost ritualistic behaviors so ingrained in their upbringing that it even accomplished to stifle their personalities and desires, and heavily influenced their actions and conduct. It was depressing to read about people who would've flourished and lived fuller lives if they only had the courage to break from their restraints, some of which are even self-imposed.One cannot help but be enraptured by the novel's atmosphere of subtle melancholia hiding deeply under guise of twinkling lights and the sparkle of the rich. It amazed me how Edith Wharton worked her prose beautifully to present humorous and ridiculous details, and gradually transform them to something dark and malevolent. Her writing itself can be mistakenly described as seemingly innocent if one will not care to examine it closely.I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I aim to reread it before the year ends, just so I can see whether I missed a few more details that weren't directly stated. I hope to get my hands on a copy of Edith Wharton's other prominent works as I'm really a fan of her writing style.