The House of Mirth- Book One

Chapter Ten

The House of Mirth

By Edith Wharton

Money causes division and unity, sadness and happiness, anger and friendship. In The House of Mirth, money becomes more than a piece of paper. Money symbolizes a living and untamed beast in American society. Money symbolizes success, opportunity, and power.

Throughout the course of the book, one of the most prevalent themes has been money. Money in the sense of power and luck as well as methods of possession and methods of use. In Chapter Nine, Lily, for the first time, discovers the full aptitude of money as she discovers its ability to help others. "Lily felt a new interest in herself as a person of charitable instincts: she had never before thought of doing good with the wealth she had so often dreamed of possessing, but now her horizon was enlarged by the vision of a prodigal philanthropy (Wharton, Page 90)." This new discovery re-inspires Lily with a false confidence of heirarchy. Thus, money becomes a characteristic of the possessor and a defining quality in each owner. 


Today, money continues to be an object of immeasurable power. As I read this section, I was constantly reminded of the song, "For the Love of Money" by The O'Jays, for in the song, money becomes a praised object with power beyond control. Like in The House of Mirth, money is more than just an object, it is the "Almighty Dollar." 

Chapter Nine

The House of Mirth

By Edith Wharton

"...The poor has got to live as well as the rich (Wharton, Page 86)." The House of Mirth, so eloquently composed by Edith Wharton to present the social problems of the time addresses many themes including love, the power of money, social expectations, freedom, and luck. From the story of this elite and diverse group of characters, a message of love, community, and social acceptance is presented.

For most of the novel, Lily Bart has been focused upon a process of achieving marriage and wealth for herself. In Chapter Nine, though, Lily suddenly experiences and shares emotions of compassion. Struggling with her own poor luck, Lily acts sympathetically with Mrs. Haffen who has come bearing letters by Bertha Dorset which had been written to Mr. Selden. Additionally, despite the fact that Mrs. Dorset had been greatly influential in ending any prospects of marriage between Lily and Mr. Gryce, Lily buys the letters from Mrs. Haffen to prevent them from being spread further. This act, mostly to protect Selden, gives Mrs. Haffen the money needed to keep her house and keeps proof of Mrs. Dorset's desires for Selden a secret. Such actions present a message of overcoming the pressures of society to aid those most in need. In the end though, Lily decides to keep the letters as a weapon to be used against Mrs. Dorset if needed. Thus, the struggle begins once more. 

Rather than seeing how the rich can help the poor and the poor the rich, each fights for their own piece of the puzzle making it impossible to solve in the end. Through such analogies of Social Darwinism, Wharton craftily presents the need for using wealth for the betterment of all society as in the Social Gospel Movement. Yet, only the future can tell of the success of such advice.