Book description
With an essay by Hermione Lee.
'It was characteristic of her that she always roused speculation,
that her simplest acts seemed the result of far-reaching intentions'
A searing, shocking tale of women as consumer items in a man's
world, The House of Mirth sees Lily Bart, beautiful and
charming, living among the wealthy families of New York but reluctant
to finally commit herself to a husband. In her search for freedom and
the happiness she feels she deserves, Lily is ultimately ruined by
scandal.
Edith Wharton's shattering novel created controversy on its
publication in 1905 with its scathing portrayal of the world's wealthy
and the prison that marriage can become.
The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in
English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the
beginning of the First World War.
Edith Newbold Jones (Edith Wharton) (1862-1937) was born in New
York City during the American Civil War. She enjoyed a diverse and
very successful career as interior and garden designer, short story
writer and award-winning novelist. It was The House of Mirth,
published in 1905, that made Wharton famous, and in 1921 she
became the first woman to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize.
Her great novella Ethan Frome is also published in the
Penguin English Library.
