Effective Use Of Imagery In Edith Wharton's Summer

Victorian Literature is often characterized by decisive natural imagery. One of many authors to explore this form of rhetoric, Edith Wharton employs such imagery in several of her texts, including her 1912 novella Summer. Despite the novella being written after the technical end of the Victorian Era, Wharton transferred the influence of the time period into her work. The use and manipulation of plant symbolism, widely accepted in Victorian literature, reveals hidden meaning within the text and subtly conveys clues to the underlying meaning of the novel. Using historically and mythologically accepted symbolism for various flower and tree species, Edith Wharton effectively integrates specific plant examples to foreshadow Harney's false intentions

The plant was placed outside of Harney’s window to make a statement about his personality and prophesize the doom of he and Charity’s relationship. In The Language of Flowers, clematis means “artifice”(319). The meaning, synonymous with trickery, deceit, or deception, leads to the interpretation that Harney himself is deceptive and untrustworthy, as the plant “covered [his home]” (Wharton 69). At this point in the plot, Harney’s true character is unknown therefor Wharton attempted to foreshadow the coming plot through her use of floral symbolism. Similarly, the use of clematis foreshadows that the relationship was ill-fated from the start. By pushing away the clematis, Charity is disregarding, or refusing to acknowledge the deceptive nature of Lucius Harney. She forwent the warning signs regarding Harney’s infatuation with her and dove headfirst into the relationship. Wharton’s deliberate placement of the plant, and the clear image she created of Charity pushing it aside, work to foreshadow the reality of Harney’s unfaithful

The lily-of-the-valley is a common wildflower described as meaning “spring” and “purity” in Folklore and Symbolism of Flowers (Lehner and Lehner 120), and “symbolic of chastity” in The Language of Flowers (46). The lily is used by Wharton to capture the simplicity and purity of Charity prior to her sexual awakening. In Summer, Harney metaphorically snubs Charity as he rejected her fascination with the lily-of-the-valley pin. When Harney rejects the lily, he also rejects Charity, causing her to reevaluate the “mere trumpery” of the lily (Wharton 92), and herself. By extension, Wharton used the lily to foreshadow the coming rejection of Charity in favor of the more refined, elegant Annabel Balch. Following the encounter, Harney then suggests she choose the more refined blue pin, which can be interpreted as representing the higher class. By integrating the floral symbolism of the lily into the text, Wharton effectively foreshadows Harney’s rejection of Charity for her socioeconomic background and his abandonment of the relationship for Annabel