Edith Wharton led one of the most privileged lives of any major American novelists. She lived free of money worries because of inherited income. She had houses in rich areas, passions for gardens and interior decoration, toured Europe in cars and yachts, and despised second-class hotels (Franzen). Wharton lived a high profile life unlike any other authors, a comfortable life that most people today want to live. She came from a long line of important names in the American, specifically the New York, society that had led the social life of New York in the past (“Edith Wharton, 75, Is Dead in France”). Wharton used her unique background to craft stories portraying “the upper-class New York society in the 1870s” or her observations of “the grimmer
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Realism and naturalism both depict a reasonable and pragmatic plot. Realism focuses on literary technique, but naturalism applies “scientific principles of objectivity and detachment to its study of human beings” (Campbell). In naturalism, characters and their relationships to their surroundings are an important piece. The surroundings in most of Wharton’s novels, the urban New York society, are not necessarily the “outdoors nature”, but they are an extremely critical part of the stories she tells. Naturalistic writers, such as Wharton, looked at how human beings were governed by instincts and passions, as well as forces of heredity and environment. Wharton’s writing showcased the diversity of naturalism as she did not write about ill-educated or impoverished characters, but rather the rich and well-off members of society. This inside look into the reality of the old money New York society intrigued readers. In Wharton’s novel The House of Mirth, an example of the use of naturalism can be found in the following quote: “She was so evidently the victim of the civilization which had produced her, that the links of her bracelet seemed like manacles chaining her to her fate” (The House of Mirth). This quotation describes the main character, Lily Bart, and is a description of how she is controlled by her heredity and environment, a feature of the literary movement
Realism and naturalism both depict a reasonable and pragmatic plot. Realism focuses on literary technique, but naturalism applies “scientific principles of objectivity and detachment to its study of human beings” (Campbell). In naturalism, characters and their relationships to their surroundings are an important piece. The surroundings in most of Wharton’s novels, the urban New York society, are not necessarily the “outdoors nature”, but they are an extremely critical part of the stories she tells. Naturalistic writers, such as Wharton, looked at how human beings were governed by instincts and passions, as well as forces of heredity and environment. Wharton’s writing showcased the diversity of naturalism as she did not write about ill-educated or impoverished characters, but rather the rich and well-off members of society. This inside look into the reality of the old money New York society intrigued readers. In Wharton’s novel The House of Mirth, an example of the use of naturalism can be found in the following quote: “She was so evidently the victim of the civilization which had produced her, that the links of her bracelet seemed like manacles chaining her to her fate” (The House of Mirth). This quotation describes the main character, Lily Bart, and is a description of how she is controlled by her heredity and environment, a feature of the literary movement