Subjectivity in Edith Whartons The House of Mirth Essay -- House Mirt

Subjectivity in Edith Whartons The House of Mirth Edith Whartons The House of Mirth presents an interesting study of the accessible construction of subjectivity. The Victorian smart set which Whartons characters inhabit is defined by a rigid structure of morals and manners in which ones identity is determined by apparent conformity with or transgression of social norms. What is conspicuous about this brand of social identification is its decidedly linguistic nature. In this context, behaviors themselves are rendered as text, and the incessant social idea in which the characters of the novel participate is a process of deciphering this script of behavior. Peoples actions here are read, as it were, according to the unique social grammar of this society. The novels treatment of this conception of social reading is brought to the fore through its devaluing of written texts in favor of legible behaviors. The novel signals this pattern from its opening. In the first scen e we are introduced to Selden, engaged in what we discover is a typical activity for the novels personae, the silent, personal, interrogation of another person. If she had appeared to be catching a train, we are told, he might have inferred that he had mother on her in an act of transition between one and another of the country houses which disputed her presence(5emphases mine). Here, Selden, at his first glimpse of Lily, has taken to conjecturing all told manner of explanations for her simple presence in the train station. He, like all members of his social niche, does not shy away from judgement until he is more fully appraised of her situation. Even, the slightest air of irresolution gives him license to divert his at... ...bling Structure of Appearances Representation and Authenticity in The House of Mirth and The Custom of the Country. Modern Fiction Studies 43.2 (1997) 349-73. Gerard, Bonnie Lynn. From teatime to Chloral Raising the Dead Lily Bart. Twentieth C entury Literature 44.4 (1998) 409-27. Howard, Maureen. On The House of Mirth. Raritan 15 (1996) 23 pp. 28 Oct. 2002 <http//proxy.govst.edu2069/WebZ/FTFETCH>. Howe, Irving. Edith Wharton, a Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1962. Miller, Mandy. Edith Wharton Page. 19 Nov. 2002 <http//www.Kutztown.edu/ competency/Reagan.Wharton.html>. Pizer, Donald. The Naturalism of Edith Whartons The House of Mirth. Twentieth Century Literature 41.2 (1995) 241-8. Wharton, Edith. The House of Mirth. (1905) New York Signet,. 1998.