The Age of Innocence.
by WHARTON, Edith
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Ink ownership signature; otherwise a very good copy with some rubbing to edges, corners and joints and some light fading to the
- Seller
-
Rochester, New York, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Synopsis
Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence is set in upper-class New York City in the 1870s, during the so-called Gilded Age. The novel, which takes its title from artist Joshua Reynolds’ 1785 painting of a little girl, focuses on impending marriage of an upper-class couple: Newland Archer, a distinguished lawyer, and the shy, but lovely May Welland. Enter the bride's cousin, Ellen Olenska, plagued by a scandalous separation from her European husband, a Polish count. The presence of Ellen, a classic femme fatale, threatens the happiness of Newland and May. However, May’s determination must not be undermined as she proceeds to use everything in her power to ensure her marriage to Newland. Though the novel questions the assumptions and morals of the Gilded Age, it never explicitly condemns the era. …And perhaps it should have. The Age of Innocence won the 1921 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, making Wharton the first woman to win the prize; however, upon being awarded the honor, the novel was praised as “best present[ing] the wholesome atmosphere of American life and the highest standard of American manners and manhood.” Many claimed that even Wharton was taken aback when reviewers failed to see the irony of the title and her social criticism of 1870s New York society. Of the many film, television, and theatrical adaptations of The Age of Innocence, perhaps most notable is the 1993 film of the same name, directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Michelle Pfeiffer as Countess Ellen Olenska, Daniel Day-Lewis as Newland Archer, and Winona Ryder as May Welland Archer. The film won an Oscar for costume design and Ryder was not only nominated for an Oscar, but won a Golden Globe Award for her portrayal of May Welland Archer. The Age of Innocence is ranked 58th on Modern Library’s “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century and 45th on The Guardian’s list of the 100 best novels.
Read More: Identifying first editions of The Age of Innocence.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 63735
- Title
- The Age of Innocence.
- Author
- WHARTON, Edith
- Format/Binding
- Publisher's red cloth in dust jacket.
- Book Condition
- Used - Ink ownership signature; otherwise a very good copy with some rubbing to edges, corners and joints and some light fading to the
- Edition
- Third printing; in a later dust jacket not seen by Garrison (the
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- D. Appleton and Company,
- Place of Publication
- New York:
- Date Published
- [1920].
- Pages
- 365 pp.
- Size
- 8vo,
Terms of Sale
Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books
About the Seller
Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books
About Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Rubbing
- Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...