John Tcooke
asked:
Why did Edith Wharton choose to end the story without Newland and the countless meeting again?
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The Age of Innocence [with Biographical Introduction],
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Boris Glebov
Very good question.
To me, I think this is the moment Newland finally acknowledges who he truly is - this is the first time his actions regarding the Countess are not simply an outburst of passion, rage, or confusion. He is an upper class New Yorker, flesh and bone of that society, including its mindset - and the Countess is not.
As I was reading the book, all his attempts at intellectual rebellion seemed childish and impotent. He goes so far as to occasionally feel indignant about the society about him, but never does anything to actually stand up to it. He goes on at length about his plans to emancipate May's mind, but gives up on it instantly. When he makes up his mind to run away with Ellen, and the plans fails, he actually feels relief.
The tragedy of Newland Archer is that he succumbs to his society's pressure. Newland has the makings of a decent man, but New York's elite breaks him. This is best exemplified by the short scene at the end of Ellen's farewell dinner - a monumental intervention of shame and pressure meant to keep Newland on the straight and narrow, which ends with Lefferts asking him to cover for another of his dalliances. This moment is utterly cruel, and Newland accepts it.
Archer Newland, looking up at Ellen Olenska's balcony, is a man who accepted his fate. He feels shame for what's become of him, but is also too bound to do anything about it. In the end, he "can't behave like people in novels, though."
To me, I think this is the moment Newland finally acknowledges who he truly is - this is the first time his actions regarding the Countess are not simply an outburst of passion, rage, or confusion. He is an upper class New Yorker, flesh and bone of that society, including its mindset - and the Countess is not.
As I was reading the book, all his attempts at intellectual rebellion seemed childish and impotent. He goes so far as to occasionally feel indignant about the society about him, but never does anything to actually stand up to it. He goes on at length about his plans to emancipate May's mind, but gives up on it instantly. When he makes up his mind to run away with Ellen, and the plans fails, he actually feels relief.
The tragedy of Newland Archer is that he succumbs to his society's pressure. Newland has the makings of a decent man, but New York's elite breaks him. This is best exemplified by the short scene at the end of Ellen's farewell dinner - a monumental intervention of shame and pressure meant to keep Newland on the straight and narrow, which ends with Lefferts asking him to cover for another of his dalliances. This moment is utterly cruel, and Newland accepts it.
Archer Newland, looking up at Ellen Olenska's balcony, is a man who accepted his fate. He feels shame for what's become of him, but is also too bound to do anything about it. In the end, he "can't behave like people in novels, though."
Randall Russell
Good question! I just finished the book, and I can say that the very end, where Newland decides to sit outside the Countess's residence and then go back to his hotel without seeing her, really annoyed me. That decision, in light of Newland's past obsession with the Countess, just didn't ring true for me, and I felt like Edith Wharton didn't really lay much groundwork for Newland to have have a basis for making that decision. To me, it felt like Wharton just left everything hanging and unresolved, and that felt very unsatisfying to me. Since May was dead, there was nothing holding Newland back from meeting, and doing whatever with Ellen.
Bridget
This answer contains spoilers…
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Ekaterina
Many years have passed, they are both not the same persons anymore. As I see it, he doesn't want to ruin his "shrine", the image of the woman he loved and have been dreaming for all these years.
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