The Age Of Innocence Analysis

Newland Archer seems to be reaping the benefits of upper class New York society. He was born into and shaped by the elegant customs of his surrounding society, and was set up for a life of wealth, popularity, and success. But in her novel, The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton’s protagonist’s, Newland Archer, world is shook when he meets and ultimately falls in love with the exotic and beautiful Countess Ellen Olenska. Once Countess Olenska enters his life, she opens Newland up to a whole new world of possibilities, which ultimately isolate Newland psychologically from conventional 1870’s New York society. Outwardly, Newland can never let go of his status and admit his deepest feelings, because he is incapable of allowing himself to be ostracized

He is even fashionably late to the Opera because “it was ‘not the thing’ to arrive early to the Opera” (24). When Countess Ellen Olenska first arrives on the scene, Newland is horrified, along with the rest of the community that Ellen referred to as the “black sheep” is being seen in public. In addition, he is terribly embarrassed that his future family was “producing her in public, at the Opera of all places, and in the very box with the young girl whose engagement to him, Newland Archer, was to be announced within a few weeks” (32). But it does not take long until Newland is fascinated by Ellen and realizes he wants to learn more about her, and subsequently, her lifestyle. It is due to his fascination with Ellen and the life that she leads that Newland’s internal self-alienation from society begins. The first case of this is seen as early as at dinner with Mr. Jackson when “The case of Countess Olenska had stirred up old settled convictions and set them drifting through his mind” (62). Countess Olenska brings out a new side in Newland; Newland says at the dinner table, “Women should be free--- as free as we are” (63). This is a very unconventional thing to say in his neighborhood. Soon after, Newland proposes the idea of eloping with May, which is totally taboo for that society. When May declines and calls the act of eloping “vulgar”, Newland shows his desire to challenge society when

Newland feels stifled in his ability to be a free thinker. He feels the need to conform to the proper and elegance of his surrounding family and friends. He goes on the “betrothal trip” to all of his family members’ houses with May because “The New York ritual was precise and inflexible in such matters” (46). He remains married to May until he dies because that is the right thing to do He continues to play a part in the show he is an integral part of. The ultimate depiction of the affects of the society that Archer lived in is once May passes away due to pneumonia and Archer can be with Ellen. When he and his son Dallas go to visit Ellen in France, he displayed the ultimate self-restraint by choosing not to go upstairs and tells his son to “Say I’m old-fashioned: that’s enough” (376). Newland is old fashioned; he is a slave to his surrounding society and to his status. He cannot be with Ellen because he cannot break free of the restrains that he has been raised