An Analysis Of The Age Of Innocence From The Perspective Of Ethical Literary Criticism

Edith Wharton is one of the most famous female writers in the history of American literature. Most of her works describe the social custom of the upper-class society of America from 1940 s to 1970 s, because of which, she is also known as the “novelist of manners”. The Age of Innocence is Wharton?s best work, which won the Pulitzer Prize of Literature in 1921, making Wharton the first female writer in American literary history who ever won this honor.After an intensive reading, this thesis adopts Professor Nie Zhenzhao?s ethical literary criticism to probe into the deep ethical implications in The Age of Innocence. By analyzing the ethical environment of old New York, the protagonist Newland Archer ?s ethical confusion and ethical choice and the awakening of female character Ellen Olenska?s ethical consciousness, this thesis makes a research on how individuals could acquire personal happiness while ensuring the social stability when in the face of conflicts between personal desire and ethical responsibility. At the end of the 19 th century, American economy developed quickly which brought up larger numbers of newly bourgeois. With their great wealth, those bourgeois began to enter into the upper-class society by marrying girls from noble families. Facing the double challenge in both social status and benefit, old aristocrats tried to strengthen their power by reinforce social ethical order. As a representative of the young generation in New York upper-class society, Newland Archer strictly followed the traditional ethical order. However, the return of Ellen, a woman who was nurtured by European culture, inspired his deep willingness to fight against traditional ethics and step by step, his ethical morality started to degenerate. Driven by personal desire, he attempted to change his ethical identity and abandoned his ethical responsibility. But May?s pregnancy helped him to get his rational will back and he chose to return to family at last. The female character Ellen Olenska grew up in European society. Due to the loss of moral models and free atmosphere in Europe, Ellen?s ethical consciousness was defective. After returning to New York, she ignored social ethical orde r and moral conventions. But through a series of events, Ellen?s ethical consciousness gradually became mature and she realized the importance of following social ethical order. Finally, Ellen made the choice of ending the extramarital love with Newland and leaving New York for Europe.The Age of Innocence is not only a story about love, marriage and famil y, but also full of deep ethical implications. After the First World War, people were lost in moral confusion due to the destructive consequence of the war. By writing Newland?s returning to family and Ellen?s leaving for Europe, Wharton hoped to provide moral guidance for people to follow, and also warned them the importance of social ethical order. Besides this, the novel also discussed the very topic of marriage that is in marriage, husband and wife should take certain ethical responsibility. Any form of betrayal will cause great harm and should be banned. The ethical problem and marriage questions involved in this novel could be of referential value to the construction of harmonious marital relationship in any society.