Introduction and Notes by Janet Beer, Manchester Metropolitan University. The House of Mirth tells the story of Lily Bart, aged 29, beautiful, impoverished and in need of a rich husband to safeguard her place in the social elite, and to support her expensive habits - her clothes, her charities and her gambling. Unwilling to marry without both love and money, Lily becomes vulnerable to the kind of gossip and slander which attach to a girl who has been on the marriage market for too long. Wharton charts the course of Lily's ...
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Introduction and Notes by Janet Beer, Manchester Metropolitan University. The House of Mirth tells the story of Lily Bart, aged 29, beautiful, impoverished and in need of a rich husband to safeguard her place in the social elite, and to support her expensive habits - her clothes, her charities and her gambling. Unwilling to marry without both love and money, Lily becomes vulnerable to the kind of gossip and slander which attach to a girl who has been on the marriage market for too long. Wharton charts the course of Lily's life, providing, along the way, a wider picture of a society in transition, a rapidly changing New York where the old certainties of manners, morals and family have disappeared and the individual has become an expendable commodity. The House of Mirth was published in October 1905 to widespread critical acclaim. It became an instant bestseller and is regarded today as one of Edith Wharton's most accomplished and compelling social satires.
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Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $9.27, fair condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1990 by W. W. Norton & Company.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In fair condition, suitable as a study copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 450grams, ISBN: 9780393959017.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $9.45, fair condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2006 by Virago.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In fair condition, suitable as a study copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 400grams, ISBN: 9781844082933.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $9.45, fair condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1990 by W. W. Norton & Company.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In fair condition, suitable as a study copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 450grams, ISBN: 9780393959017.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $12.87, good condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1985 by Penguin Books.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. Clean from markings. In good all round condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 350grams, ISBN: 0140390375.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $12.87, poor condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1985 by Penguin Books.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. Clean from markings. In poor condition, suitable as a reading copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 350grams, ISBN: 0140390375.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $13.01, good condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1991 by Everyman's Library.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has hardback covers. Clean from markings. In good all round condition. Dust jacket in good condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 600grams, ISBN: 1857150465.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth (Collins Classics) to cart. $13.91, like new condition, Sold by Wyemart Limited rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from HEREFORD, HEREFORDSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2015 by William Collins.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $14.24, good condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1994 by Bedford.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In good all round condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 600grams, ISBN: 9780333608913.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth to cart. $14.24, fair condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1994 by Bedford.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In fair condition, suitable as a study copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 600grams, ISBN: 0333608917.
Add this copy of The House of Mirth (the Penguin American Library) to cart. $14.96, poor condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1985 by Penguin Books.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. Clean from markings. In poor condition, suitable as a reading copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 350grams, ISBN: 0140390375.
Loved the outlay. Was very fascinating. Light and fun.
Jigglyman
Aug 1, 2008
Wonderful and tragic to a point
The House of Mirth is about the tragic fall from grace of a beautiful New York socialite, Lily Bart. The story chronicles her desperate search for a husband as society gradually rejects her. Edith Wharton writes a very revealing, critical study of high-class society in the Gilded Age that is fascinating in part because it is at once unfamiliar and very similar to modern-day society. Her characters are well-crafted, she writes very well, and the subject matter is very interesting, if not at some points a bit dry and superficial.
According to Aristotle, tragedy is about making "fatal choices," and it is Wharton's exploitation of this idea that makes the book falter. Lily Bart makes so many fatal choices it's hard not to choke on them. It seems like every page, she makes a choice that is obviously (to the reader) a bad idea. No woman can possibly be this daft so often. Her character is only falling from grace because Wharton so desperately wants her to. (Oh, and she never LEARNS!) The shoddy character development brings this book down to 4/5 stars.
