The House Book 2: 13 and 14

Nearing the end of Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth in chapter 13, we see something very interesting happen to Lily that fully manifests itself many times.  It had been a long time coming and was truthfully no surprise, but we see that Lily has realized that her once grand vision of life was not the right one.  "And as she looked back she saw there had never been a time when whe had any real relation to life.  Her parents too had been rootless, blown hither and thither on every wind of fashion without any personal existence..."(Wharton,259). To me, she’s reached the final ending point on her spiral downward.  Shes realized that on her pursuit of what she assumed was greatness, she had passed up all real opportunities available to live a content and good life.  She looked at some of the poor working ladies and realized they had something that she never really had.  They had the grounded and secure life that Lily never head.  
And finally, as we see that Lily has passed away.  We see the true result of a life that was never finished searching.  Lily never rested it seemed, to slow down and see the man right in front of her.  I really do not know if Lily committed suicide but we saw a totally different side of Lily towards the end and especially the night before she died.  We saw that Lily was done with the money and wanted to make it even between the people regardless of it leaving her as poor as the people she once looked down upon.

The House Book 2: 11 and 12

After being fired from her job at Regina's, I began to loosen up my annoyance on Lily and what I perceived as an unchanging attitude.  Wharton wants the readers to know something so we might feel a little pity for Lily: she's trying. "She had been fashioned to adorn and delight"(Wharton 245). To be honest, I feel like this also is one of the underlying issues in this novel.  It is not solely her fault for all of these issues that she is in. To be frank and to agree with what Mr. Rosedale says, she is not supposed to work or handle money.  That just is not her and when she has to, she is obviously in trouble.  And as chapter eleven of Whartons’ The House of Mirth concludes we see that Lily feels like she has a definite plan on what to do!  However, like everything else, I believe her underlying longing for Selden prevents her from carrying out the blackmail that her plan required.  
"...and two tears gathered and fell slowly from her eyes"(Wharton,249).  Based on her previously admitting that she does not cry, Selden coming to see her and give her advice meant a great deal to her. This is obviously a big part in the story line because we actually are able to see Lily genuinely apologize and thank someone in their most sincere form. And then BANG! What I was predicting the entire time! From what I read, it seems that Lily longs to love Selden and that because of her faults and failings, they cannot be together! This is arguably the biggest part in the novel and in the end, we see Lily's new direction is a complete mystery by how she burns the letters.

The House Book 2: 9 and 10

A job! Lily actually has a meager job as a secretary!  And of course, the unrevealed crush makes a visit at some point.  Lily actually admits that the bitterness that she has been suffering these past few months have been in part due to not seeing Selden at all. Seriously, why cant they just get married and call it a day? I want to focus on one part of their initial meeting that really struck me as interesting but not surprising.  "She was very near hating him now; yet the sound of his voice, the way the light fell on his thin dark hair..."(Wharton, 225-226). This part in Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth kind of alludes to me the underlying sadness of this entire novel.  She genuinely likes the guy a lot, but because of her being the way she is. She sees it as impossible for them to be together.  Its her own undoing that is causing her such despair, even though as Wharton states, she does not know shes in.  Its her underlying characteristics that prevent even the consideration of Lily seeing them together and that's what truly stinks! I feel like if she would just let go a little, she would be quite a bit better off.

The House Book 2: 7 and 8

Early in chapter seven of Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth, it seems that Lily is welcome to the idea of marrying Rosedale! However, I see one main reason for doing this- to triumph over the hated Bertha. But! As Rosedale and Lily talk, Rosedale admits that he cannot marry her.  Honestly, how frank they both are surprises me quite a bit. Were people in the 20s really like that? As reasoning for him not being able to marry her even though he loved her, he said that by marrying her, he would essentially be throwing away everything that he had every worked for! As she’s walking away, Rosedale suggest plotting against Bertha with the use of the letters.  However, he states that she needs a strong backing-husband for this to work! At the end of the chapter though, Lily pretends as though she is clueless as to what Rosedale means.
Okay, seriously, is Gerty a maid or is she legitimately Lily's friend? I mean in the middle of chapter eight when Lily and Gerty are talking, it seems like Lily is being serviced by Gerty! "...while her friend busied herself with the tea cups." "...how beautifully one does have to behave in a small flat."  "...let me give you this cushion to lean against." And also, with Gerty's friendly gesture with the cushion Lily replies "Dont give me that! I don't want to lean back..."(Wharton,215). I mean I am fully aware that Lily is struggling through tough times, but I honestly do not know why she has not adjusted her attitude for a more simple lifestyle!  I think that this story is supposedly about Lily's triumphs but she’s starting to annoy me greatly!

The House Book 2: 5 and 6

From reading the novel The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton, I am able to attain from the reading how bad being rejected is cutting Lily right now.  She was literally born and raised to be in the social loop of popularity and fame. To marry a rich man, show off that wealth, and to sit on that wealth to do whatever she wants.  Lily needs to escape because at this point with Mrs. Peniston out of the picture, she has nowhere to go, no money to spend, a currently pathetic social presence, and no consideration for marrying a man.  However, just as she seems to be hitting rock bottom, the Gormers party appears to fix her social issue.  Through Mattie Gromer, Lily,"...had thus formed, in the tumult of her surroundings, a little nucleus of friendly relations which mitigated the crudeness of her course...”(Wharton,192). At once, she is pounded with the underlying issue though.  She must marry a man sometime soon.  And as Wharton says,"Much as she dislike Rosedale, she no longer absolutely despised him"(Wharton,194). I am not sure if Wharton is saying that Lily is getting back into the loop or what but to me, Lily is getting a little desperate if she is considering that.  A roller coaster is the only adequate term I can use to describe whats happening at this point.  

As chapter six continue, Lily and George run into each other and George seems to be desperate about something and is yearning for the friendship of Lily claiming that she was one of his closest.  I am confused as to why Lily so bluntly turns him down and rejects his plea for even a little talk.  Then, as though bad luck follows Lily, Mrs. Dorset makes a visit to the Gormers and acts suspiciously neighborly.  No doubt, shes planning something. Then as the chapter concludes. it seems Rosedale is becoming for infatuated with Lily and Mrs. Farish continually suggest that Lily marry.

The House Book 2: 3 and 4

So after reading into chapter 3 of Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth, I have concluded that Mrs. Dorset is a witch. As the poor Lily literally turned to exit the dinner to leave for the yacht, Bertha broke the news.  Wharton did an excellent job at presenting Lily as both petrified internally but also composed on the outside. "She had paled a little under the shock of the insult, but the discomposure of the surrounding face did not reflected in her own"(Wharton, 176).  It seems that Bertha wanted to entangle Lily in everything bad that was happening on that bad! Lily had reached a whole new level of hard headedness while on this trip because of her experience with new people, but after this embarrassing rejection, I feel as though Lily may be in some emotional trouble and only reading more of The House of Mirth will reveal what is going on!  
Chapter four also yields some rather interesting surprises as Lily return to the states through the help of Seldon and his connections. So the book says the Mrs. Peniston has passed away, but for some reason, people seem to be putting on the show of mourning, only looking for the contents of the will.  "Whispered emotionally to Mrs. Herbert Melson: "I couldn't bear to see the Niagara anywhere else"(Wharton, 179)!  It seems that all of this mourning is just a facade.  Lily, it seems, is continuing to have problems based on money.  It seems that the women at the gathering to announce the will would not touch or acknowledge Lily based on who they assumed as the sole inheritor of the will. But after the contents of the will were disclosed, they treated her like she had some sort of disease.  

The House Book 2: 1 and 2

As the second book of Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth begins, I notice one thing.  It seems that Seldon has taken Lily's advice from earlier in the novel to set aside work and take a vacation like his friends do! I don't exactly know if that has any real importance yet, but it is an interesting event.  Later, it seems that Seldon slips his big boy pants on and stops himself from fleeing like what he states as,"flying like an emotional coward from the infatuation his reason had conquered"(Wharton,157).   Finally,  Seldon and Miss Bart see each other in the train station, but something is different about Lily.  She is described as new and more positive about who she is.  Her being is more defined now.  Also, I noticed while reading the Wharton is now calling Lily, Miss Bart.  I feel that this is because of Miss Bart's new found self.
Okay so chapter two is starting to feel like some sort of modern TV show with all of these affairs and issues going on.  Lily is caught up in between these rumors and is confronted about them by Carry Fisher.  She states that the fact that her and George came back alone together from the station was odd, but Lily refutes that by saying that Mrs. Dorset never showed up and that's why they did.  Also, I am fairly lost as to what Lily was to tell Mrs. Dorset while they were alone on the ship.  I feel like it was about what George plans to do with Seldon-divorce his wife-but that seems a little odd for a friend to do.  I feel some animosity brewing up!

The House Book 1: 15

After the incident at the Trenors and Lily's crashing in on Gerty, we see that Lily is headed home.  It seems that she is quite content with that based on what she says after she realizes that Gerty has hastened her return home. "It was a relief to her that Gerty was obliged to hasten away"(Wharton,137).  The beginning of chapter fifteen in Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth shows even more issues that poor Lily is facing when it comes to money. I'm beginning to think that money may end up being her undoing. But anyway, as she arrives home, she encounters and annoyed Mrs. Peniston.  Lily angers her by admitting her poor use of money and Mrs. Peniston states the Lily is old enough to handle her own money without having to bother others with it.
I'm almost getting annoyed by Lily's refusal to consider marrying Seldon.  She was so anxious to see him when she wrote him the note that she started making excuses such as bad penmanship to excuse him being late.  But, once she gets a glimmer of hope that Seldon maybe did not forget about her she bolts downstairs to see who it is.  Unfortunately,  her Seldon is not to be seen. Instead, its Mr. Rosedale, and as  I predicted, he was going after her and eventually asks to marry her!  And as she still awaits her secretly beloved Seldon, she receives notice that Seldon has left for a cruise to Havana.  She truly seems perturbed at this point.  

The House Book 1: 13 and 14

From the beginning of Wharton's The House of Mirth, she made known that the deal made between Gus and Lily would turn out poorly.  As seen in chapter thirteen, just that occurred.  We could see as soon as Lily met Gus that something was odd about him.  He took on to Lily too quickly and as I just read, it manifested itself when Gus attempted to keep Lily from leaving the room.  I thought this part was especially odd and probably put things in perspective for Lily and made her think about what kind of business she was in. “ I’ll tell you what I want: I want to know just where you and I stand”(Wharton, 117).  I'm just kind of confused as to why this creepy guy was trying to seduce Lily.
At the end of the chapter we see Lily's struggle and confusion on what to do for the night, but she then remembered Gerty.  As surprising as it is due to the previous thought toward Gerty and Gerty's thought toward Lily, Lily is welcomed in after Gerty hears what happens.  Gerty was presented as the dirty and low-life independent woman that Lily knows of.  While Lily is the wanna-be princess and rich girl, they seem to mingle very well in the end.  It is good to see that through the tough times that people go through, there is always someone there that is willing to help.  One example of that is my uncle.  Though he does live pretty far away, if I ever need anything it seems like he is right there to help me out.  

The House Book 1: 11 and 12

First off, from what I'm reading, is Mr. Rosedale going after Lily?  It seems to me that Lily is escalating her popularity among some of the more prominent people in the social scene.  Later on in chapter eleven of The House of Mirth, Wharton looks to be placing Miss Bart in a little trouble with Mrs. Peniston and the other folk.  Miss Stepany seems to have spilled the beans on her interactions with Gus.  She also reveals that the reason Gryce engaged another woman was because Lily's gambling habits scared him away.  It seems that the money issues that surround Lily's life are causing more issue for her than there are positives.  This can be said about essentially everything in modern society.  It's said that money is the root of all evils.  Look around to the materialistic outlook people have today and the way people treat others, no doubt it can be traced back to some sort of money.  
Early in chapter twelve we continue to see the haunting of money. More and more rumors regarding Lily are spread.  Normally these petty rumors would have little effect on Miss Bartl; however, because of the recent events and the interactions with Mrs. Tennor, they have been getting to her more and more.  Finally! Finally Seldon and Lily stopped leading each other on in a never ending cat and mouse game.  They finally expressed to each other how they really feel and by Lily's statement," Ah love me love me, but dont tell me so"(Wharton,112)! I feel that she wants to love him but for some reason cannot.  It seems that as she slowly slips out of her distorted view of wealth, she becomes more and more welcome to the idea of Seldon; however, there just seems to be something standing in the way that prevents them from actually being together.

The House Book 1: 9 and 10

To be completely honest, I did not get too much out of chapter nine in The House of Mirth.  We saw that Lily now has leverage against Seldon and Dorset.  Though, those letters would not be used to hurt Seldon in the possession of Lily, in other hands they could hurt him.  Because of this, Lily decides to purchase the letters and initially decides to burn them, but that does not end up happening. This obviously shows-to me at least-the Lily has some feelings toward Seldon still because she did buy those letters for a price that Wharton decides not to put into the chapter.

Wealth: a social symbol that categorized people on where they belong in society.  All of Lily's life, she viewed wealth as a symbol, not as a power to do something good with.  Her mother instilled in her the notion that with money you don’t have to do a single thing for anyone, it just states how high up you are in society.  However, Lily begins to see wealth in a different light after her newly acquired money goes to helping a young women's charity that’s being run by Mrs. Farish. I see this mindset change as being a major factor for later events because we begin to see the Lily is not flowing with the norm that she has come to accept as okay. Instead, she is beginning to really embrace the human caring virtues and begins using her money for something other than a social status.  “...and drawing out her little gold purse she slipped a liberal fraction of the amount into Miss Farish’s hand”(Wharton, 90).

The House Book 1: 7 and 8

The seventh chapter starts off a little slow beginning with the talk and chit chat of the woman, but later on we begin to find some things out when Gus and Lily are talking.  Lily admits to him that she is stuck in a place that she does not know how to get out of.  She is being pressured by Judy to marry Gryce, but we find out that she cannot make that kind of marriage. “I can’t make that kind of marriage; it’s impossible”(Wharton, 67). This comes at a very large surprise also when she says that she cannot afford anything either.  Poor Lily really is stuck between wanting money but not wanting a dull man such as Gryce as her husband.  Once again she feels as if she is in a constant cat and mouse game.  She feels a little relief after Gus suggests the stock market but I feel as though she is aware that only temporary relief awaits her at this point.
Chapter eight, ohhh chapter eight. The chapter starts out by saying she is receiving a thousand dollar check!   Lily seems to have found a good source of income for the time being, but with major drawbacks as a cost.  Mr. Trenor begins acting a little different and asks Lily to act a little "different" around Mr. Rosedale as to gain his favor.  However, what about this Gryce figure? Hes shy, reclusive, and not exactly the most social figure. He's what I describe as a lost puppy. Yet, he's still the one that Lily feels will deliver what she wants.  But at the end of the chapter, we see that this reclusive man has run off to be engaged to another woman!  Gryce is a mystery that I feel has more to reveal. So much for that shy guy!

The House Book 1: 5 and 6

Early on in chapter five of Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth, it seems like Miss Bart is doing literally anything that could steal Mr. Gryce. It seems like everything that she wants to do or is doing is to impress or attract Gryce.  And she has full intention to do so but the presence of Seldon is hampering her because, like I stated earlier, Lily is seen as very malleable and pliable, not too headstrong.  Before I read more, I can almost assume Lily is brewing up another internal conflict in her life that will inevitably change and alter many of her opinions.  And as I predicted there is a conflict that Lily actually addresses.  Seldon had been right in front of her for years, nearly 8, but she is very confused as to why just now he is beginning to get her attention.  Gryce is still opportune it seems but by what she is saying and how she's saying it, it almost seems like Lily is going against what she has been doing, but this is just an early assumption. To her, it is a game, she is always worrying what people think and is trying to adjust it as seen when her worry of that Gryce and Seldon think of her.  
Chapter six was a very revealing and interesting chapter that, to me, is beginning to show  how Lily has more depth to her than meets the eye. Lily admits her view of freedom is getting everything she can out of life, while Seldons is a little more simple, personal freedom. “ From everything- from money, from poverty, from ease and anxiety, from all the material accident”(Wharton, 54).  One last thing truly surprises me in the end, while Lily and Seldon were alone, Lily admits that her search for a wealthy man may not truly lead to happiness in the end.

The House Book 1: 3 and 4

Early on while reading chapters three and four of The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton the reader sees something that, to my assumptions, does not surprise me. She states multiple times throughout how dull and uninteresting Mr. Gryce is, but she also says that she is fortunate to be with him because of the wealth that he has.  She is willing to sacrifice a life with a man that she loves to be with a man of riches.  One wonders how the characteristic of Lily came about and as we read through her adventures and her scare with her thought-to-be robbing, we see that her attitude should be attributed to her mothers doing.  Her mother constantly told her," You'll get it back- you'll get it all back with your face"(Wharton, 22). Her mother's focus was on the money and when her father announced that they were ruined, Mrs. Bart seemed destroyed.  Lily truly is following in her mothers footsteps it seems and one quote after the death of Mr. Bart truly sticks with me. "It was a relief to Lily when her father died"(Wharton 26). I truly am confused at why this is. Mrs. Bart treated him very poorly after they were ruined and I think that her treatment of him showed to Lily that there is little point in having a husband if he has nothing.  As the fourth chapter progresses with her aunts and cousins, we see mores sides of Lily.  At one part, regarding her cousin Jack and his ability to sit back and let the girls come, Lily becomes frustrated because she has to weave and twist and contort as to not let a rich man slip by-its restless.  At one point while observing Jack and Miss Van Osburgh, she admits that her decided future is content to her, but not ideal.  She states that to a simpler mind, the lifted burdens of financial issues and the assurance of the ability to marry Gryce could be perceived as happiness.  It seems that there is more going on that what is visible to the reader at this point.  It appears that Miss Bart is more complex and more deep than initially suspected.  

The House Book 1: 1 and 2

Early on while reading chapters three and four of The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton the reader sees something that, to my assumptions, does not surprise me. She states multiple times throughout how dull and uninteresting Mr. Gryce is, but she also says that she is fortunate to be with him because of the wealth that he has.  She is willing to sacrifice a life with a man that she loves to be with a man of riches.  One wonders how the characteristic of Lily came about and as we read through her adventures and her scare with her thought-to-be robbing, we see that her attitude should be attributed to her mothers doing.  Her mother constantly told her," You'll get it back- you'll get it all back with your face"(Wharton, 22). Her mother's focus was on the money and when her father announced that they were ruined, Mrs. Bart seemed destroyed.  Lily truly is following in her mothers footsteps it seems and one quote after the death of Mr. Bart truly sticks with me. "It was a relief to Lily when her father died"(Wharton 26). I truly am confused at why this is. Mrs. Bart treated him very poorly after they were ruined and I think that her treatment of him showed to Lily that there is little point in having a husband if he has nothing.  As the fourth chapter progresses with her aunts and cousins, we see mores sides of Lily.  At one part, regarding her cousin Jack and his ability to sit back and let the girls come, Lily becomes frustrated because she has to weave and twist and contort as to not let a rich man slip by-its restless.  At one point while observing Jack and Miss Van Osburgh, she admits that her decided future is content to her, but not ideal.  She states that to a simpler mind, the lifted burdens of financial issues and the assurance of the ability to marry Gryce could be perceived as happiness.  It seems that there is more going on that what is visible to the reader at this point.  It appears that Miss Bart is more complex and more deep than initially suspected.