Wharton, Edith

This novel centers on how the power of a person's culture can smother an individual's growth; Ethan Frome is a man tormented by a passionate love for his ailing wife's young cousin, and he is ultimately destroyed by that which offers him the greatest chance at happiness.

Beautiful Lily Bart depends on marriage for economic survival in turn of the century New York city.

A guide to reading and understand Edith Wharton's "The Age of Innocence" that includes an annotated edition of the novel, plus critical essays examining the novel's themes, structure, literary significance, and characters.