The Role Of Motherism In Edith Wharton's Summer

For a young women, the idea of motherhood means taking on the ultimate responsibility of caring for a defenseless child in spite of the youth and inexperience. To complicate matters, include the social norms of the 19th century that young women should not have children out of wedlock and a lack of personal independence since most young women do not have livable income and a space to call her own. These norms are enforced upon young women so much that typically their only hope of survival is with the help of a patriarchal figure. Thus, we are introduced into the struggle of Charity, the young female orphaned protagonist of Edith Wharton’s Summer, who is faced with how to make the best “decision” on how her child should come into her world. The

Royall became the ideal “decision” for Charity after she had finally left her town home to “return” to the Mountain to seek the help of people outside of the patriarchal norms. The perceptions given the Charity of the Mountain people included, “No school, no church-and no sheriff ever goes up to see what they’re about” (Wharton 25). The Mountain is also a place where Charity feels she should belong since she was brought down from the Mountain by Mr. Royall as a child. The Mountain then is a “haven” for anyone needing to get way to a place that is accepting of outcasts from the constraints of society. Thus, Charity is faced with the decision to remain within a society that will judge her harshly for her pregnancy, or have her baby outside of these norms, protecting it from the constraints she had felt within a more “civilized”

She realizes it was an act of great kindness and understanding by her mother to take advantage of the opportunity to have her own daughter be taken away from the harsh reality of her world: “What mother would not want to saver her child from such a life? Charity thought of the future of her own child, and tears welled into her aching eyes, and ran down over her face” (Wharton 92). However, upon seeing the terrible condition of the Mountain, Charity once again makes a choice to leave the Mountain and try to find a solution elsewhere. Yet, this is also when Charity realizes that good mother may have taken extreme measures to ensure the safety of her children. Charity’s lifelong attempt to understand her mother’s ability to relinquish her care over to Mr. Royall was satisfied when she realized it was not a lack love from her mother that instigated the act. Before this moment, Charity still held the belief that maybe there was something wrong with her, or her mother was making a selfish decision. Charity realized her mother had done her best as a mother when she gave her to Mr. Royall. Therefore, this moment then helped solidify Charity’s resolve to do what she could, no matter how undesirable, to continue that theme of a mother’s sacrifice for the sake of her