| In the rarefied world of 1870s upper-class New York society, young Newland Archer, who is engaged to the lovely and suitable May Welland, meets and falls in love with Countess Ellen Olenska -- May's "scandalous" cousin, fresh from Europe and seeking a divorce. On one level, this novel is the story of Archer and Ellen's intense, hopeless love affair, constrained by the social mores of old New York; on another, it is Edith Wharton's anthropological study of a vanished world, ruled by birth, class and honorable appearance, governed by surprisingly ancient tribal rituals and taboos. Wharton won the Pulitzer Prize for 'The Age of Innocence' in 1921 - and it still wields immense power today. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of book? - thoughtful Time/era of story - 1600-1899 Romance/Romance Problems Yes Kind of romance: Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Unmarried Love Triangle? Yes Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Nationality Main Adversary Identity: - society Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 8 () United States Yes The US: - Northeast City? Yes City: - New York - wealthy Misc setting Writing Style Sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references only - impregnation/reproduction Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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