House of Mirth
Although The Awakening by Kate Chopin and The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton have different narrative methods, both novels are demonstrating the restraints and limited options that women had at the turn of the 20th Century. Kate Chopin uses the means of the tragedy to tell us the story of Edna Pontellier, a woman unsatisfied and unhappy in her marriage whereas Edith Wharton uses a satirical tone to criticize the society Lily Bart lives in where a single woman's main objective should be to marry well if not wealthy herself. Both novels end with the suicide of these main characters, which is a blatant statement of the impossible situation women found themselves in during this time. For the majority of women marriage was the only, and definitely the most accepted way, of earning a living. Women had the respected roles of being wifes and mothers, and although there were women who made a life for themselves the possibilites were limited and both novels use minor characters to demonstrate the "eccentric" flavour given to the single women of that time. My aim is to show how similar these novels are, bringing out these factors on both novels, not concentrating on the plot of the stories themselves, but rather
186)An obvious statement to Lily, of course. But there must be some one with the requisite qualifications. And so why not take the plunge and have it over?" She shrugged her shoulders. Seldon says:"Isn't marriage your vocation? Isn't it what you're all brought up for?" She sighed. First she tries being a personal secretary and then tries her skills in a hat-making shop. Edna Pontellier is a Protestant who married a Catholic. She isn't wealthy herself and society frowns upon this kind of behaviour. Gerty Farish is Lily's cousin, a poor woman by Lily's standards but quite content with her life. But what about the non-married women in the book? How do they live in that society? Madame Reisz is a character in The Awakening.
Common topics in this essay:
Awakening Edna,
Lily Bart,
Seldon Isn't,
Pontellier Protestant,
Carry Fisher,
Farish Lily's,
Lily January,
Edith Wharton,
Madame Reisz,
Remember NAtAL,
kate chopin,
edith wharton,
women found themselves,
women found,
situation women,
edna pontellier,
society lily,
edna's friend,
found themselves,
situation women found,
own living,
lily bart,
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Acceptance Essays
