Monday, July 7, 2008

Wharton's Summer

"The haze of the morning had become a sort of clear tremour over everything, like the colourless vibration about a flame; and the opulent landscape seemed to droop under it."

The heat is rising in Charity Royall's life just as in this summer day. Edith Wharton's 1917 novel follows a young girl's romance amidst the backdrop of the lush New England landscape in summertime. I like Wharton's use of words such as haze and tremour which help us see the heat. Both nature and the heat are elements which enhance this story of first love. If you're in Massachusetts, you can visit Wharton's home The Mount Estate & Gardens to see how passionate she was about landscape design.

I'm only half way through and am worried the flame might burn too hot for Charity! Better go make iced tea so we can stay cooler than Wharton's heroine in the heat of this afternoon.
Posted by Susan from Sisters, Oregon at 7:54 AM
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This beautiful sentence describes a summer day we've probably all seen, but could never put into words. I've read it several times and will read it several more. It's perfect.
Thank you.

July 7, 2008 8:50 AM
Jim Chen said...

I'm delighted you're reading Summer, Susan. Here's a snippet from the Wikipedia abd Wikimedia pages on Summer:

"Summer is a novel by Edith Wharton published in 1917 .... The story is one of only two novels by Wharton to be set in New England, who was best known for her portrayals of upper class New York society. The novel details the sexual awakening of its protagonist, Charity Royall, and shares many plot similarities with Wharton's better known novel, Ethan Frome. Only moderately well-received when originally published, Summer has had a resurgence in critical popularity since the 1960's."

I love Ethan Frome. Summer, as Edith Wharton's other "New England novel," tells a similar story from a woman's point of view, and in the heat of summer as opposed to the absolutely frozen depths of winter. Something about the rural New England of Ethan Frome and Summer resonates with me in a way that high New York society, the main focus of Wharton's work, never has. Ethan Frome, Mattie Silver, and Charity Royall are very real. I hope someday to meet them all -- and to shed a tear or two on their behalf.

July 7, 2008 2:28 PM

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