A Study Of Lily Bart’s Alienation In The House Of Mirth

Edith Wharton(1862-1937)is an important woman writer in the history of American literature in the twentieth century.Most of her works focus on women’s mental struggle and spiritual dilemma which appear in the upper class between the late nineteenth century and the early twentieth century.Her first well-known work,The House of Mirth,centers on Lily Bart and tells a story how Lily fails in hunting for a husband with wealth and a high social status in the upper class and how she falls down step by step to the bottom of society.At last,she commits suicide because she can not stand her mental suffering and spiritual torture.Erich Fromm,a well-known Western theorist in the twentieth century,introduces the concept of alienation into the field of psychology by combining Marx’s alienated labor theory with Freudian psychoanalysis theory.He analyzes man’s alienation in every aspect of the capitalist society and emphatically explains the alienated relationship of man with himself.Fromm maintains that alienation pervades everywhere and it brings serious powerlessness and isolation in man’s heart,which may lead to man’s spiritual crisis.Fromm points out that by the social revolution and the cultivation of the capacity for love can man get rid of alienation.This thesis,based on the alienation theory of Erich Fromm,analyzes Lily’s alienation in The House of Mirth,aiming for exploring the reason for her tragedy and sensing the writer’s deep concern with human beings.Besides Introduction and Conclusion,there are three chapters in the thesis.In Introduction,a general introduction is provided,including Edith Wharton,The House of Mirth,the literature review on this novel and Erich Fromm’s alienation theory.In Chapter One,the manifestation of Lily’s alienation is revealed from three aspects: her alienated experience in the ostentatious metropolitan life,the alienated relationship between her and other characters and the alienated relationship of Lily with herself,exposing her experience of powerlessness,loneliness and isolation in the metropolitan life,in social interactions and in her inner heart.In Chapter Two,the causes for Lily’s alienation are analyzed from the social,familial and personal perspectives.From the social aspect,her alienation results from the objectification of the patriarchal society,the abstractification of the consumption society and the manipulation of implicit economic laws in social interactions.From the familial aspect,it is caused by the absence of her father’s love,the domination of her mother and the indifference of her relatives.From the personal aspect,it is caused by her marketing orientation character and her lack of the incapacity for love.In Chapter Three,Lily’s resistance to alienation is explored from two aspects.Lily senses the mental suffering and spiritual torture brought by alienation and she hopes to resist the alienation by actively cultivating the capacity for love and constructing her identity.However,she fails to get rid of her alienation.In Conclusion,it is pointed out that Lily senses the mental pain and spiritual torture brought by alienation by analyzing Lily’s alienation and the causes for her alienation.She hopes to get rid of alienation by cultivating the capacity for love and constructing her identity.Although Lily is not able to walk out of her alienation and finally commits suicide with her spiritual disintegration,she makes great efforts to resist alienation.Her tragedy warns people to be alert to the powerlessness,loneliness and isolation brought by alienation and enlightens people to get rid of alienation and achieve their integrity by cultivating their capacity to love others and themselves.