If you have a serious scholarly question about Edith Wharton that you
would like to have posted on this page and to Wharton-L, or if you would
like to respond to one of the questions on this page, please use the Query
and Reply Form.
Dickens
I wonder if someone would be kind enough to point me to Edith Wharton's
reference to New York society's refusal to receive Charles Dickens. I
thought it was in Old New York, but was unable to locate it.
Many Thanks,
Barclay Johnson
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The Dickens reference in _Old New York_ is in the novella "The
Spark:"
"[T]hey breathed a joint sigh over the vanished 'Old New York'
of their youth, the exclusive and impenetrable New York to which
Rubini and Jenny Lind had sung and Mr. Thackeray lectured, the
New York which had declined to receive Charles Dickens, and which,
out of revenge, he had so scandalously ridiculed."
Tess Avelland, tess@midnight-muse.com |
| "Roman Fever" a Satire?
Would it be proper to call "Roman Fever" a satire?
Barb Roosevelt |
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| Twelve Poems and Verses
QUESTION: Is there any readily available source for Twelve Poems
(1926) and Verses (1878)?
robert louis, rlouis@saul.com |
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| Edith Wharton and the Erotic
QUESTION: I'm writing an article on women and the erotic; I
remember reading about a year ago that Edith Wharton had written
some erotica and that it was being published. Anyone got a clue
about where/when/how that erotica was published?
Thanks so much.Moira Muldoon, mmuldoon@covad.net
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This would probably be a reference to her fragment "Beatrice Palmato." The
fragment is reprinted in Cynthia
Griffin Wolff's A Feast of Words . |
| The Story of Mary MacLane
QUESTION: The book "The Story of Mary MacLane," by Mary MacLane,
was a sensation in 1902. Supposedly MacLane's book was highly
praised by Wharton. Can anyone verify this and direct me to the
source? Thanks.
N. Casady, ncasady@yahoo.com |
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| Title of The House of
Mirth
QUESTION: While there is much discussion of "A Moment's Ornament" as
a working title for _The House of Mirth_, I also recall, from
a lecture several years ago, that "Costs" was another working
title. Yet, I have not seen any mention of this title in
the biographies and criticism I have read. Can anyone direct
me to a source in order to confirm "Costs" as a working title?
Thanks,
Lori Harrison-Kahan, lbh15@columbia.edu |
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| Public Transportation to The Mount?
I would like to visit the Edith Wharton's home in Lenox, MA.
Please let me know how I get there by Public transportation from
Boston, MA. I will appreciate your cooperation in this matter.
Cordially, Penelope Morel
morelpenelope@hotmail.com |
The Mount may have information
about this, but if any readers of this page have used public transportation
to get there, please send the
information so that it can be posted here. |
| Edith Wharton and Norah Lindsay
I am researching the life and work of the English garden designer,
Norah Lindsay. I have found in the Lindsay family letters reference
to the fact that Edith Wharton was staying with Mrs. Lindsay
while she was "engaged in finishing her sixteenth or seventeenth
novel." What was her sixteenth and seventeenth novel, and what
year might she has been working on or finishing that novel? Thank
you.
Allyson Hayward, amhayward@attbi.com |
|
| NAME: Jana Dominke
QUESTION: I'm interested in Edith Wharton's biography. I know
there have been written very informative books about her biography
but I would be interested in finding her personal estate.
Any help would be great because I need this information for my MA thesis.
Thanks in advance. |
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| Source for
Quotation on "Overarching Views"
QUESTION: I have lost a copy of short paragraph by Edith Wharton
on the subject of marriage. It is her definition of what
a good marriage requires: primary a shared view of irony. The
phrase "overarching views" is part of one sentence. Unfortunately
I never knew the title of the work from which this paragraph
came and can't find it anywhere. I would be very, very grateful
if someone recognized the quotation and could give it to me.
Thank you in advance. Joan McDonell, jmcdonell@nyc.rr.com
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|
"Mountain" or "mountain" in Summer?
In her novel's Chp. 16, Wharton apparently does not capitalize the "m" in
the phrase "the Mountain" that follows the reference to Charity's
child in paragraph 5. Was this intentional on Wharton's part
or is this just an adopted typo that has made it into several editions
of her book?
Does this appear in Wharton's original manuscripts of "Summer" and is
there any explanation for it in Wharton's own hand should it be the case
that it was deliberate on her part?
I would be very interested to learn as much about this as possible as
it would seem to lessen the Mountain's importance to Charity in light
of her expected child.
Thank you for any assistance you may be able to provide me on this question.
Sincerely, Elizabeth A. Smith eas@world.std.com
12/10/02 |
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