Lily as the Goddess Diana in The House of Mirth Essay -- House Mirth E

Lily as the Goddess Diana in The House of Mirth ace of the tragedies in The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton is that Lily baronet is unable to bind Laurence Selden and thereby secure a safe position in society. Their kin fluctuates from casual intimacy to outright love depending on how and where Selden perceives Lily. Selden sees a beautious tone of voice in Lily Bart that is not present in any of the another(prenominal) women in the novel. This mysterious beauty that is so often alluded to, in access to her attraction for the other men, is best understood when Lily is conceived of as the goddess Diana. As Diana, Lily Bart hunts for the perfect husband further cannot marry, remains separate from the dinginess of society, and in the end is crushed by a remorseless rejection that can even pulverize a goddess. Diana, the goddess of the hunt and of maidenhood, perfectly combines the traits that Lily Bart exhibits. Although never explicitly affiliated with the goddess, Wharto ns first rendering of Lily notes her wild-wood grace and sylvan freedom She paused before the mantelpiece, examine herself in the mirror while she adjusted her veil. The attitude revealed the long slope of her slender sides, which gave a kind of wild-wood grace to her outline, as though she were a captured dryad subdued to the conventions of the drawing-room and Selden reflected that it was the same streak of sylvan freedom in her nature that lent such savour to her artificiality (15). Not only the description invokes the image of Diana, but also Lilys name. The lily-of-the-valley is Dianas flower. Lily Bart later chooses to wear a plain white dress for her part in the Reynolds painting, thereby choosing the touch of Diana. ... ...Wharton brilliantly interprets through Lilys downfall. Seldens unrealized love for Lily Bart hinges on his fruition that it is her Diana-like qualities that set her apart yet it is this same distinct quality that allow bring about her demise. Li lys inability to resurrect her reputation and use the earn against Bertha Dorset is intimately tied to her inability to marry her pattern of running external from each man that proposes to her plunges her into a downward spiral from which she cannot recover. It is not morals, but rather her qualities as the virgin goddess that ultimately doom her. By devising Lily into a form of Diana, Wharton is able to condemn her society even to a greater extent fiercely. She shows us that the society Lily lives in has the ability to destroy even a goddess. Works Cited Wharton, Edith. The House of Mirth. Signet Classic New York. 1964.