The Age of Innocence - Wharton

The Age of Innocence - Edith Wharton

I first started reading the Age of Innocence back in the fall of 2016. It seemed fitting at the time, there was something boiling over in society that would come to a head in the November Presidential elections. My romantic life was slowly crumbling into oblivion by my own making. I was, in many ways, hopeless when it came to this romantic disarray happening before my very eyes. So, I did what any self-respecting human would do when faced with such situation, I decided to read a novel about unrequited love, unhappiness, divorce, and social class. Classic. Two pages in, I realized that Wharton was no joke. Especially given that the subject of the novel was, among many, unrequited love, poor poor May I say. Investing in a relationship is hard. Investing in an intense book in harder. I was too consumed by what was already happening in real life, to worry, or care, about some poor man in the 1800's who was in love with someone else other than his fiancée. So I placed it back in the same shelf, in the same position, where I'd found it.

The Age of Innocence was written in the early 1900s, published in 1920. According to the introduction in the edition that I read published by Collins Classics, Wharton who was 58 at the time of publication was herself divorced by 1913. Later in 1921 she would win the Pulitzer Prize in the Novel category, later renamed Fiction. The story follows the woes of three central characters, Newland Archer, a young lawyer, May Welland, engaged to Mr. Archer, and Countess Olenska, a newly arrived divorcee from Europe and surprise May's cousin. The narrative is a carefully detailed painting of New York's high society in the dusk of the 19th century. Giving way to a subject that was still taboo within the American society of the time, coupled with a love affair that never really comes to fruition between Archer and Olenska, and you've got yourself a scandal.

While I read, I tend to focus on certain aspects of that which I read. I usually pick a few passages that I particularly enjoy or that resonate with me. They can be in any form, said or described by any of the characters in the novel, or simply an observation of a character I'm particularly fond of. Given the fact that it was written in the 20th century but takes place in the 19th century the novel feels as modern as any contemporary novel published nowadays. It's safe to say that, there are still societies, in the world today where people are married off without really loving one another. Marrying who you truly love is, in many ways, a modern novelty injected into society through countless romantic movies, and much less interesting romance novels. But I digress I decided to pick up The Age of Innocence as the first book of my 2020 fifty book challenge. My new job allowed for close to three hours of commuting each day so I had to fill those three hours while I was on the train. So I dove into it.

Wharton writes, "It was not May's fault, poor dear. If, now and then, during their travels, they had fallen slightly out of step, harmony had been restored by their return to the conditions she was used to. He had always foreseen that she would not disappoint him; and he had met a perfectly charming girl at the moment when a series of rather aimless sentimental adventures were ending in premature disgust; and she had represented peace, stability, comradeship, and the steadying sense of an unescapable duty." pg 169. A common theme of the times and in Wharton's writing is the idea of duty. It is a duty that we see in all three central characters. Archer, as a young man of society, betrothed to the beautiful May is unable to escape his duty, and by extension his destiny. For Archer, this "unescapable duty" Wharton speaks of is the beginning of a loveless, and dutiful, marriage. For Archer the beginning of his duty is his marriage to May, for May, however, she's already well into her role as a dutiful fiancée and eventually wife. She would never "disappoint him," because it was her duty to be prepared to marry even if Archer, or any young men, were not so. Wharton's careful, yet succinct, criticism of women's role in society is ever clear in her treatment of May. To the point of making the character feel like a martyr.

It is with stark contrast that Wharton frames the third central character, Countess Olenska, in the sense of "duty" she's well past hers. She does not have duty left, she's as free as any woman could be at that time. She was also shunned by many, leaving to wonder amongst the bourgeoisie of New York City. Olenska by her own admission is a rebel, and by society's standard a disgrace to herself and her family. Olenska is, perhaps, a glimpse at a very early feminist. A trailblazer of sorts to those women who would eventually become part of the suffrage movement, ending with the ratification of the 19th amendment granting women the right to vote in August of 1920. In many ways Olenska is ahead of her time. Not just for her daring move divorcing from another man, but also because of her determination as a divorcee to stick to her convictions. In fact it is safe to say that the love affair between Archer and Olenska was doomed from the very beginning. Despite Archer's progressiveness for the time in which he lived, I don't think he would've been able to truly be with Olenska. She was far too smart for him and she, unlike May, would not have been able to provide what was expected of her from society, and family, and Archer.

Ultimately the quote above describes what is to happen in the rest of the novel. There is a moment in the novel where we think that Archer may leave his already written destiny. There is a beautiful scene where Archer and Olenska have dinner on a boat. Away from everyone, and for a moment, for a small fleeting moment, the reader is filled with hope that perhaps these two characters might escape their fate. But Wharton is a realist, and though not evident on the surface, a follower of social norms. Society, and her readers, were never ready for such a scandal. Archer goes on to marry May, ironically thinking that he may grow to love May like he loves Olenska. May, on the other hand, was resigned, and knew that her marriage to Archer would be loveless, but had no other choice. To the world their marriage was a success, they had children, they were married until the very end. But to the reader all that is left is a feeling of immense helplessness. Once all the niceties, and social etiquette is stripped away you're left with three unhappy people, who in the end are just keeping up appearances.

It is unfair to dedicate such a small commentary to this great piece of literature. My goal is to encourage you to read it. Formulate your own discussion, and think about what makes these characters stand out to you. I hope you read it.

Until next time.