The Old Maid (The 'Fifties)

Name: The Old Maid (The 'Fifties)
Author: Edith Wharton

By Edith Wharton

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American Literature

About This Book

In a tightly ordered mid-19th-century New York society, two female relatives negotiate a fraught relationship as social expectations collide with private loyalties. The narrative traces their intertwined lives through domestic detail and social ritual, showing how secrecy, constrained choices, and competing claims of family and motherhood direct actions and alter fortunes. Episodes reveal the workings of reputation, duty, and suppressed desire, exposing the moral hypocrisies of the community and the personal costs exacted by conformity.

About the Author

Edith Wharton

Edith Wharton (1862-1937) was an American novelist, short story writer, and designer, known for her keen observations of the American upper class and her exploration of social mores. Her most celebrated work, "The Age of Innocence," won the Pulitzer Prize in 1921 and reflects her critical perspective on the constraints of society. Wharton's literary contributions extend to various genres, including novels, poetry, and travel writing, with notable titles such as "Ethan Frome" and "A Motor-Flight Through France." Throughout her career, she adeptly navigated themes of love, betrayal, and the complexities of human relationships, establishing her as a significant figure in American literature.