In The House Of Mirth by Edith Wharton, money is the most obvious and most fundamental value held by the characters who populate New York at the beginning of the century of the author. Essentially, money is valuable for only one reason: it provides the means by which those who possess it can do whatever they want. But it is valued as such in two distinct ways, by two distinct types of people: those who think about money and those who don't. "I know there's one vulgar thing about money, and that's thinking about it," Simon Rosedale tells Lily Bart in chapter fifteen of the first book, before adding: "My wife would never have to demean yourself in this way." Rosedale is one of those people who is in such a position that they don't have to think about money; Even though he has climbed the social ladder and gradually increased his wealth, he is at a point where, financially, he no longer needs to track every last dollar in his bank account. If he wants to wear new clothes or flaunt new rings on his fingers, he can buy these items without worrying about the amount debited from his savings. Lily, on the other hand, cannot afford such luxury. She tells Gerty Farish in chapter eight of the second book: "I always understand how people can spend a lot more money - never how they can spend less!" Lily, unlike Rosedale, must constantly be wary of her money. Deeply in debt but just as deeply attracted to high society, she finds herself in a position where she must pay close attention to her ever-dwindling finances; in fact, this predicament is the driving force that drives the entire novel. But neither Rosedale nor Lily appreciates money as money, as a mere physical object. In this society, money is seen as a means to an end: depending on the amount of money held by a particular individual, money has the power to liberate them or bind them to a standard lifestyle. considerably lower. plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay These standards are, themselves, valued both separately and in conjunction with money. At one level, a person's standard of living is representative of the amount of money they have, and the quality of their standard of living indicates how rich or poor a person may be. But on another level, a person's standard of living is seen as a sort of "passport" to the business of their choice. These standards are therefore only valued by the individual who holds them, and not by any third party, because this individual is the only one who can reap the benefits of their own standard of living, which has no impact on anyone outside. of the world. themselves. It is this pressure to maintain a high standard of living that pushes Lily Bart to act as she does, because she fears that if her standard of living falls (as it ultimately does), she will be rejected by the society whose she is part (as she is). Lily doesn't value her standards themselves so much as the company they allow her to associate with. So this is a society driven by appearance. A person's worth is determined by their exterior: who they keep company with, who they are married to, the clothes they wear, the places they travel. Notice how other inner qualities such as humor, intellect, or kindness toward strangers are not valued by Wharton's characters. On the contrary, in chapter thirteen of the second book, Lily remembers how horrified she was to witness Gerty Farish's preference ofdevote one's time and money to helping the poor and unfortunate - "superfluous fragments of life destined to be drawn prematurely into this field." pile of social garbage that Lily had so recently expressed her fear of. Such qualities require finding companionship among people whose appearance is ragged, substandard, low class, perhaps undernourished. On the other hand, Carry Fisher's comments to Lily in the fifth chapter of the second book indicate how the importance of the company one keeps can influence one's decisions: "Though I prefer the Gormers, there are more of profit for me to [keep company with] Bry,” says Fisher. "The fact is, they want to try Newport this summer, and if I can make it a success for them, they...well, they'll make it a success for me." Success itself is also a value of this company. . This is perhaps the most essential value of all, as success is what defines the individuals in the class Lily is initially a part of. Success can be financial wealth, a solid marriage, a respectable inheritance, or even luck at gambling. Without their success and the lack of success achieved by those below them, they would have no basis for their indulgence in extravagance, nor for their air of superiority. Ironically, this notion is explained to us and to Lily by Nettie Struther, a member of these lower classes, in chapter thirteen of volume two. “I always thought of you like you were so high up, where everything was just great,” Nettie tells Lily. "Sometimes, when I was feeling really naughty and wondering why things were so strangely arranged in the world, I remembered that you were having a nice time anyway, and that seemed to show that there was some sort of justice somewhere." Lily's contemporaries are unlikely to be so kind in their judgments of someone from Nettie Struther's lower classes; after all, if their money and appearance are what give them their social status, their success is the quality that determines their attitude within that status. This is why success has such great value: it allows one to behave as one sees fit towards anyone who has not achieved an equal level of success. By extension, the values ​​of appearance and achievement are in turn supported by the twin values ​​of etiquette and courtesy; etiquette being the rules established by the social class Lily is a part of, and courtesy being certain acts of kindness, not necessarily bound by those rules, put forth by those who are also part of that class. Consider, as an example of how the value of appearances depends on the value of courtesy, the twelfth chapter of the first book, in which Gerty Farish raves about her invitation to a party: "Wasn't it dear to Lily to bring me an invitation?" she exclaims. We realize that Gerty, otherwise isolated, would not have been able to raise the level of her social appearance without courtesy (as opposed to any kind of obligation) that Lily offered her Let us now consider, as an example of how the value of appearances depends on etiquette, the third chapter of the second book, in which Lily tries to "save face" by forcing her. conversation between her and an icy Bertha Dorset: "As she tried to fan the faint flicker of words, to build, again and again, the crumbling structure of 'appearances,' her own attention was perpetually distracted by the question: ' What the hell could she be getting at? There was something positively exasperating about Bertha's attitude of isolated defiance. » Even a simple conversation is not implemented bythis society as an act of luxury, nor even as a simple communication, but as a necessity demanded by the rules established by this society; these rules of etiquette dictate that in terms of appearances, something as simple as silence can be deadly. The flip side of the niceties of etiquette and courtesy is the value of resolute stoicism, but on some level it also complements both of these qualities. As with personal standards of living, citizens of this society do not value stoicism per se; however, what it brings them is of utmost importance. Scandal also has an extremely high value, because it is the product of actions that violate etiquette or defy civility; in turn, it results in gossip and hearsay, both of which are particularly valuable commodities, as evidenced by Mrs. Peniston's propensity to keep records on every attendee at every party. She has already been (in the first volume, chapter nine). Likewise, the ability to remain stoic in the face of a broken label, to wear a facade so as not to betray one's true emotions, is extremely valuable in warding off scandal. Stoicism is therefore valued by individuals likely to attract gossip and scandal, while scandal itself is valued by those who wish to break the stoicism of these individuals: scandal is valued as a weapon, while stoicism is valued as a means of defense. , stoicism is rampant throughout the novel, particularly on the part of Lawrence Selden, but it is only when the characters dispense with it that we realize to what extent it was a part of their lives. Consider Lily's encounter with Rosedale in chapter eleven of the second book. After countless discussions in which each of them hid behind a stoic veil of manners, or courtesy, or even wit and sometimes wild words, each of them finally let that barrier fall. "[Lily] had indeed never seen [Rosedale] out of his usual lightness, and there was something almost moving to her in her inarticulate struggle with her emotions", while, a few moments later, "the Lily's blush deepened to a glow in which humiliation and gratitude mingled, and both feelings were revealed in the unexpected sweetness of her response. Ironically, this discussion between Lily and Rosedale has the effect. to "gradually break down his aversion to Rosedale." The aversion, in fact, still remained, but it was penetrated here and there by the perception of attenuating qualities in him: a certain crude kindness, a fidelity of feeling. rather helpless, who seemed to struggle through the hard surface of her material ambitions The irony here lies in the fact that the value of stoicism is intended to maintain the value of manners and etiquette, but this is only. through the breakdown of stoicism that Lily and Rosedale are able to penetrate the facade and achieve a quality that exists. at a much deeper level of value: honesty. Certainly, if the citizens of this society were caught in the act of lying, it would only result in a scandal, but by the same token, they are forced to lie every day, because they are once again bound by the rules and the values ​​of etiquette and courtesy: it is easier to lie to an opponent than to suffer the consequences of your offense. In a society where honesty is only truly considered a value if it is complementary, there is a certain poetic justice in the truly honest emotional communication that emerges between Lily and Rosedale only after they have renounced such etiquette rules. can we say about the ultimate value held by this society? It is of course.