Term Papers on The Age Of Innocence

Term Paper Title	The Age Of Innocence
# of Words	779
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	3.12

The Age of Innocence

The Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton, contains many
flat, static characters representing Old New York society.
At the apex of that society is Mr. and Mrs. Henry van der
Luyden. As the narrator describes, their appearances are
rare, but yet these few appearances provide more than
enough information for the reader to "know" the character.
This information comes from several sources. The first is the
narrator, when most of Old New York society is described.
The second reference involves Newland Archer and Mrs.
Mingott’s seeking of approval of the van der Luydens and
the exchanges that took place. The final instance is the rare
occasion of a dinner at the van der Luyden home and the
occurrences here. From the information here, readers
develop a complete picture of the van der Luydens.

At the end of chapter VI, the narrator describes the
hierarchy of Old New York. The last family described is the
van der Luydens. The narrator writes, "…the van der
Luydens…stood above all of them" (50). The narrator
blatantly tells us that the van der Luydens are the highest
"ranking" family of Old New York society. Just previous to
this, the narrator informs the reader that they descended
from both British and French aristocracy, supporting the fact
that the van der Luydens are the most revered family. Next
the narrator makes it known to readers that "[Mrs.] and Mr.
van der Luyden were so exactly alike… neither had ever
reached a decision without prefacing it by [a] mysterious
conclave" (52), this conclave being, "I shall first have to talk
this over with my husband/wife." This shows that, one, the
van der Luydens cannot be characterized separately for they
are exactly alike, and, two, they consult each other before
making decisions. Once again the narrator brings forward,
quite openly, information about said characters. The
narrator’s informing the reader of such facts sets up the
reasoning behind the character’s motivations, and the
reactions of other characters.

One of such instances involves Archer and Mrs. Mingott’s
seeking of the advice of the van der Luydens. First, it is
important to note that double-checking one’s plans, as
Archer does here, indicates the high status of the van der
Luydens. Archer and Mrs. Mingott’s having to ask another
family for the "proper" thing to do proves their dominance
over society and that they are the experts of "good form."
Archer, then, proceeds to tell his narrative of Ellen’s being
advised by her family not to divorce and his preference of
her reliev...

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