The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Genre: Classics
Blurb (on back of book):
Winner of the 1921 Pulitzer Prize, The Age of Innocence is Edith Wharton’s masterful portrait of desire and betrayal during the sumptuous Golden Age of Old New York, a time when society people “dreaded scandal more than disease.”
This is Newland Archer’s world as he prepares to marry the beautiful but conventional May Welland. But when the mysterious Countess Ellen Olenska returns to New York after a disastrous marriage, Archer falls deeply in love with her. Torn between duty and passion, Archer struggles to make a decision that will either courageously define his life—or mercilessly destroy it.
MY OPINION: ***
I've been trying to get through more of Edith Wharton's novels, and I feel like I've now officially completed her biggest ones. I have heard a lot about this one, considering it literally won a Pulitzer Prize, and I was super excited to start this one.
I think this is one I need to reread in paperback to fully understand and appreciate its merits. I listened to this one on audiobook and I do not think that was the best decision for this particular book. It was hard to follow and sometimes I would find myself tuning it out, which is unfortunate because I definitely missed the spark that makes this book such a classic and a masterpiece.
I personally did not love this one this time around. I feel like in a couple of years I can fully appreciate this one but for right now, it wasn't my favorite. It felt very Austen-esque but in a less dramatic way and I personally love the drama of Austen's novels, so it was hard not to compare the two.
It's set in 1870s New York, which is definitely a very unique setting that I feel like I do not generally read about. I mostly stick to European settings when it comes to classics so it was interesting to read about old America. Even though Wharton wrote this much later than the book was set, it definitely felt like she knew exactly what she was talking about and what she wanted to illustrate for her readers.
I also found it extremely interesting to read from a man's perspective, although this book was written by a woman. I feel like that is a perspective we almost never get to see in female-written classics and while I do not necessarily love learning about the male psyche, I thought it was a very unique take on what could have been a remake of an Austen novel.
The book follows Archer and the love triangle between his wife, May, the proper and socially-perfect woman, and her eccentric and unconventional cousin, Ellen Olenska. It was an interesting dialogue on social class, societal expectations, what is and is not an acceptable marriage, and an almost feminist view on marriage but from the refreshing eyes of a man. I really liked the plot line and overarching themes within this book and enjoyed reading about how the story would unfold.
I just think that because of the format I read it in and the lack of knowledge I had about the book before going into it made it not the most appealing to me. I also finished it in a day, so I feel like I missed all of the core snippets that everyone raves about. However, this is definitely something I want to reread as soon as possible when I have more time and am in the mindset to sit down and fully imbibe this book. For now, I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a beautifully-written classic.
Main Character: Archer
Sidekick(s): May, Ellen, etc
Villain(s): Marriage, society, etc
Classics Elements: This book is an established classic.
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