Beyond Commodification

Edith Wharton is one of the most prominent writers in modern America. The end of 19th century and the beginning of 20th century witnessed a rapid development in capitalistic industrialization. Mass consumption catches on and consumption of materials has transformed into that of human beings, which, in capitalistic age, is mainly reflected by women's commodification. In The House of Mirth, Wharton, through the protagonist Lily Bart, virtually mirrors the contemporary superficial and hypocritical New York society and how she has been commodified by men. With her resistance, Lily Bart actualizes herself and achieves spiritual triumph. Therefore, enlightened by consumerism, the present thesis purports to argue that reduced to exchangeable commodity, Lily Bart finally achieves self-actualization and spiritual success through her death.The present thesis consists of three parts, among which the main body is sub-divided into three chapters:The first part is an introduction to the present thesis, including a brief introduction to The House of Mirth, its literature review, the theoretical basis and structural layout, with emphasis on the significance and feasibility of application of consumerism in the study of the novel.The second part includes Chapter One, Chapter Two and Chapter Three. Chapter One concentrates on the direct consequences of capitalistic commodification: on the one hand, the protagonist suffers from the loss of spiritual paradise; on the other hand, woman, in a consumerist society, resorts to an expedient marriage as the resolution. Chapter Two explores how explicitly the protagonist has been commodified. In the light of economist Thorstein Veblen's consumerism theory, it points out that apart from traditionally men's commodification of women, women themselves conduct self-marketing. Chapter Three elaborates the protagonist's going beyond commodification. Through beyond publicity and beyond exchanges, Lily virtually and spiritually triumphs with her death as the finale.The third part serves as a conclusion of the present thesis. In addition to the summary of the whole thesis, it restates the importance of consumerism study on The House of Mirth and the contribution of this research.