The work of Chopin, Wharton, and Gilman in the short story is more highly esteemed in contemporary critical opinion than ever before. Janet Beer illuminates their congruities as well as their diversity and demonstrates the unique, innovatory contribution that each made to the tradition of the short story. She looks at the short fiction of all three writers in terms of both genre and theme, ranging between discussions of Chopin's short stories and Wharton's novellas; between Chopin's frankly erotic writing and the homilies in which Gilman warns of the dangers of the sexually transmitted disease. Other issues addressed are ethnicity in the work of Chopin, Wharton's New England stories, Gilman's innovative use of genre and "The Yellow Wallpaper" on film. Separate aspects of the individual writers are explored, concentrating closely on subject and style and engaging in detailed readings of a range of texts. This is the first time these writers have been compared in depth in one volume.

'Beer offers an assemblage of discrete essays ( written in the spirit of the short story itself), connected by generic and thematic concerns, with the delightful result of giving us a series of lucidly written close readings from the perspective of what Virginia Woolf calls 'the common reader' - Katherine Joslin, Western Michigan University A wide range of short fiction by Kate Chopin, Edith Wharton and Charlotte Perkins Gilman is the focus for this study, examining both genre and theme. Chopin's short short stories, Wharton's novellas, Chopin's frankly erotic writing and the homilies in which Gilman warns of the dangers of the sexually transmitted disease are compared. There are also essays on ethnicity in the work of Chopin, Wharton's New England stories, Gilman's innovative use of genre and 'The Yellow Wallpaper' on film.

Wharton's late and critically-neglected novels are reclaimed as experimental in form and radical in content in this book, which also suggests that her portrayal of older female characters in her last six novels anticipates contemporary unease about the cultural marginalization of the older woman in Western society.

Introduction and Notes by Janet Beer, Manchester Metropolitan University. The House of Mirth tells the story of Lily Bart, aged 29, beautiful, impoverished and in need of a rich husband to safeguard her place in the social elite, and to support her expensive habits - her clothes, her charities and her gambling. Unwilling to marry without both love and money, Lily becomes vulnerable to the kind of gossip and slander which attach to a girl who has been on the marriage market for too long. Wharton charts the course of Lily's life, providing, along the way, a wider picture of a society in transition, a rapidly changing New York where the old certainties of manners, morals and family have disappeared and the individual has become an expendable commodity. The House of Mirth was published in October 1905 to widespread critical acclaim. It became an instant bestseller and is regarded today as one of Edith Wharton's most accomplished and compelling social satires.

Although she enjoyed only modest success during her lifetime, Kate Chopin is now recognised as a unique voice in American literature. Her seminal novel, The Awakening, published in 1899, explored new and startling territory, and stunned readers with its frank depiction of the limits of marriage and motherhood. Chopin's aesthetic tastes and cultural influences were drawn from both the European and American traditions, and her manipulation of her 'foreignness' contributed to the composition of a complex voice that was strikingly different to that of her contemporaries. The essays in this Companion treat a wide range of Chopin's stories and novels, drawing her relationship with other writers, genres and literary developments, and pay close attention to the transatlantic dimension of her work. The result is a collection that brings a fresh perspective to Chopin's writing, one that will appeal to researchers and students of American, nineteenth-century, and feminist literature.

Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth (1905) is a sharp and satirical, but also sensitive and tragic analysis of a young, single woman trying to find her place in a materialistic and unforgiving society. The House of Mirth offers a fascinating insight into the culture of the time and, as suggested by the success of recent film adaptations, it is also an enduring tale of love, ambition and social pressures still relevant today. Part of the Routledge Guides to Literature series, this volume is essential reading for all those beginning detailed study of The House of Mirth and seeking not only a guide to the novel, but a way through the wealth of contextual and critical material that surrounds Wharton's text.

First published in 1899, "The Awakening"'s engagement with taboo issues of female sexuality and infidelity prompted a flurry of damning reviews that sent the book out of print and int obscurity for several decades. However, it is now hailed as a key early feminist text and has become one of the most widely studied works of American literature.
This" Sourcebook "combines accessible commentary with reprinted documents to provide the ideal introduction to the novel. Its first section, "Contexts" provides biographical information on Chopin and explores 1890s American society to reveal the contextual backdrop to her work. The editors pay particular attention to Chopin's Louisiana Creole heritage and to the expectations of women in this era. "Interpretations" begins with an overview of the critical reception of the novel and then introduces extracts from important early reviews and contemporary criticism. Readers are carefully guided through a range of crucial issues from Chopin'streatment of female sexuality to the influence of Darwinism on her writing. The following section, "Key Passages," reproduces selected chapters fof the original text, along with extensive commentary. These commentaries equip readers to make connections with the critical and contextual issues raised earlier in the Sourcebook and to initiate engaged, informed, individual new analyses of Chopin's text. A concluding "Further Reading" section is provided for those wishing to extend their work on the novel.
Offering a perfectly judged selection of reprinted materials and insightful, refreshingly clear commentary, this volume will greatly enrich any reading of "The Awakening,"

First published in 1899, "The Awakening"'s engagement with taboo issues of female sexuality and infidelity prompted a flurry of damning reviews that sent the book out of print and int obscurity for several decades. However, it is now hailed as a key early feminist text and has become one of the most widely studied works of American literature.
This" Sourcebook "combines accessible commentary with reprinted documents to provide the ideal introduction to the novel. Its first section, "Contexts" provides biographical information on Chopin and explores 1890s American society to reveal the contextual backdrop to her work. The editors pay particular attention to Chopin's Louisiana Creole heritage and to the expectations of women in this era. "Interpretations" begins with an overview of the critical reception of the novel and then introduces extracts from important early reviews and contemporary criticism. Readers are carefully guided through a range of crucial issues from Chopin'streatment of female sexuality to the influence of Darwinism on her writing. The following section, "Key Passages," reproduces selected chapters fof the original text, along with extensive commentary. These commentaries equip readers to make connections with the critical and contextual issues raised earlier in the Sourcebook and to initiate engaged, informed, individual new analyses of Chopin's text. A concluding "Further Reading" section is provided for those wishing to extend their work on the novel.
Offering a perfectly judged selection of reprinted materials and insightful, refreshingly clear commentary, this volume will greatly enrich any reading of "The Awakening,"

A wide range of short fiction by Kate Chopin, Edith Wharton and Charlotte Perkins Gilman is the focus for this study, examining both genre and theme. Chopin's short stories, Wharton's novellas, Chopin's frankly erotic writing and the homilies in which Gilman warns of the dangers of the sexually transmitted disease are compared. There are also essays on ethnicity in the work of Chopin, Wharton's New England stories, Gilman's innovative use of genre and 'The Yellow Wallpaper' on film. All three writers are still popular in US classrooms in particular. This paperback edition includes a new Preface to the material, providing a useful update on recent scholarship.

A wide range of short fiction by Kate Chopin, Edith Wharton and Charlotte Perkins Gilman is the focus for this study, examining both genre and theme. Chopin's short stories, Wharton's novellas, Chopin's frankly erotic writing and the homilies in which Gilman warns of the dangers of the sexually transmitted disease are compared. There are also essays on ethnicity in the work of Chopin, Wharton's New England stories, Gilman's innovative use of genre and 'The Yellow Wallpaper' on film. All three writers are still popular in US classrooms in particular. This paperback edition includes a new Preface to the material, providing a useful update on recent scholarship.

Although she enjoyed only modest success during her lifetime, Kate Chopin is now recognised as a unique voice in American literature. Her seminal novel, The Awakening, published in 1899, explored new and startling territory, and stunned readers with its frank depiction of the limits of marriage and motherhood. Chopin's aesthetic tastes and cultural influences were drawn from both the European and American traditions, and her manipulation of her 'foreignness' contributed to the composition of a complex voice that was strikingly different to that of her contemporaries. The essays in this Companion treat a wide range of Chopin's stories and novels, drawing her relationship with other writers, genres and literary developments, and pay close attention to the transatlantic dimension of her work. The result is a collection that brings a fresh perspective to Chopin's writing, one that will appeal to researchers and students of American, nineteenth-century, and feminist literature.

Professor Beer's study provides an introduction to the whole range of Edith Wharton's work in the novel, short story, novella, travel writing, criticism and autobiography. The opening chapter provides an overview of recent scholarship in Wharton studies including an appraisal of biographical texts, and subsequent chapters treat recurrent themes and ideas in her fiction and non-fiction, and the American and European context of her work. The major novels, as well as those less well-known, are discussed as are: contemporary reception of her work, American responses to her expatriation, her friendships with the leading artists of her day, and the influence of the First World War on her work.

Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth (1905) is a sharp and satirical, but also sensitive and tragic analysis of a young, single woman trying to find her place in a materialistic and unforgiving society. The House of Mirth offers a fascinating insight into the culture of the time and, as suggested by the success of recent film adaptations, it is also an enduring tale of love, ambition and social pressures still relevant today.

Including a selection of illustrations from the original magazine publication, which offers a unique insight to what the contemporary reader would have seen, this volume also provides:

• an accessible introduction to the text and contexts of The House of Mirth
• a critical history, surveying the many interpretations of the text from publication to the present
• a selection of new critical essays on the The House of Mirth, by Edie Thornton, Katherine Joslin, Janet Beer, Elizabeth Nolan, Kathy Fedorko and Pamela Knights, providing a range of perspectives on the novel and extending the coverage of key critical approaches identified in the survey section
• cross-references between sections of the guide, in order to suggest links between texts, contexts and criticism
• suggestions for further reading.

Part of the Routledge Guides to Literature series, this volume is essential reading for all those beginning detailed study of The House of Mirth and seeking not only a guide to the novel, but a way through the wealth of contextual and critical material that surrounds Wharton's text.