Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth offers a multidimensional and fluid analysis of social class. Initially, Lily attempts to belong to the upper class. However, through a series of unfortunate decisions, we witness Lily's inevitable descent into squalor, poverty and death. Towards the end, Lily is completely “alone in a place of darkness and pollution” (Wharton p. 156). Although Lily's social actions are personally right, she finds that she is in a cruel and judgmental society that often seeks to oppress the lower classes. Just as Dante's classic descent into the Underworld in Inferno is intended to provide glimpses of the unknown in an attempt to point individuals towards salvation, Lily's social deterioration showcases the dangers of descending social class as well as the social chasms that separate populations. Poverty became both a metaphorical and literal death for Lily. Furthermore, Marx's superstructure of social class is explored in a context that goes beyond labor and property: one must also possess social skill, power, influence, access and adequate taste to be fully accepted into the elite. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In The House of Mirth, the biggest gap between the classes comes in the form of social competence. For example, Simon Rosedale, a wealthy Jew belonging to the nouveau riche class, repeatedly attempts to enter the social elite. However, despite attending some upper-class social events, he is largely excluded due to his lack of social skills, as he is “still at a stage in his social ascent where it was important to make such impressions” (Wharton p.16 ). Franklin delves into the importance of high social respect in his work Advice to a Young Tradesman. He explains how “the most insignificant actions which affect a man's credit must be considered... It shows, furthermore, that you are careful what you owe; it makes you appear to be a careful and honest man, and this increases your credit even further” (Franklin p. 59). If the creditor gives a favorable opinion on an individual, it is possible to obtain more credit for a longer period of time. When one individual has power over another, the more powerful person's opinion of the less powerful person matters and can have a big impact on their relationship. While Rosedale has no monetary debt, it has little to no social credit to leverage. In The House of Mirth, Rosedale's lack of respect, positive connotations, and social competence within the social elite hinder his social ascent. To make up for this shortcoming, Rosedale considers marrying Lily to increase his social capital and take his social climb to the next level. level. However, following Lily's severe social decline, he laughs at Lily's acceptance of his previous proposal as he knows she is unable to help him. Rosedale goes on to explain that he is "more in love with you [Lily] than ever, but if I married you now I'd be weirded out forever and everything, and everything I've worked for all these years would be wasted" (Wharton pg.269). Despite Lily's social aptitude, her esteem has worsened among the social elite. Therefore, he is no longer of any help to Rosedale's pursuit of social standing. Furthermore, in the final meeting between Rosedale and Lily, Rosedale offered to help Lily blackmail Bertha in an attempt to regain Lily's social standing and make her suitable for Rosedale's hand in marriage. He was starting to develop real feelings for Lily, regardless of the benefits she might haveoffer him. However, Rosedale's last offering before Lily's death remains an attempt to elevate her social standing. If Lily were to expose Bertha, the old order of social position could collapse and make room for social climbers to gain access to the elite, which primarily benefits Rosedale. This illustrates the selfish interests of the rich. However, selfish interests are not limited to the nouveau riche. The House of Mirth focuses on Lily's search for a suitable husband. However, the only desirable characteristic of most men that Lily considers for marriage is their wallet and social standing. Additionally, Lily gave money to Nettie Struther, but only to boost her own ego and feel charitable and good about herself (Wharton p. 329). Grace Stepney was also able to gossip about Lily's gambling habits to Mrs. Peniston, thus securing Grace's heir to the Peniston estate over Lily (Wharton p. 233). While both Lily and Grace cling to the wealth of others, their selfish agenda exemplifies the selfishness that infects society as a whole. A crucial understanding of social class exemplified in The House of Mirth relates to the power that wealth can purchase. The rich (both the old and the new rich) are repeatedly able to exert their will on others. For example, Trenor making sexual advances towards Lily in exchange for her debts shows how his social position and power allow him to exert his will on Lily; she can only leave when he decides to stop her advances (Wharton p.155). Furthermore, the difference in inheritance between Lily and Grace Stepney from Mrs. Peniston shows how she is able to assert her conservative beliefs on lower class individuals and show her disdain towards Lily's gambling habit (Wharton p . 233). The wealth you have is almost directly related to the influence you are able to exert. With this power, the wealthy are able to construct a personal alternative reality. When Bertha Dorset removes Lily from Dorset's yacht, Bertha promotes her reality of being able to have relationships and exert power over those of a lower class (Wharton p. 227). The only reason he is able to control the construction of his reality is because he has the wealth and influence to do so. Therefore, the reality she constructs is one in which society's accepted truth is whatever Bertha says the truth is or whatever angle Bertha chooses to exploit. However, the first example of self-constructed reality occurs in the case of Selden. He has made a habit of excluding individuals based on class and insignificant deviations from their common character, whether at Wellington Brys' party or when he discovers that Lily has changed hotels (Wharton p. 286). In Selden's reality, each misinterpreted action "did indeed seem to take her further from the region where, once or twice, he and she had met for an enlightened moment" (Wharton p. 285). The emotional chasm that forms between Selden and Lily is a direct result of the walls Selden builds based on misinformation. Even after Lily's death, Selden was unable to accept the emotional failure he experienced with Lily and his own weakness due to the mental walls and alternate reality he had built. For Selden, the truth has become whatever you think it is. Although Selden is professional working/middle class, he is just like the rich in the sense that he is able to construct his own reality and exclude individuals based on his misinterpretation of their actions. Furthermore, The House of Mirth exemplifies the implicit connection between wealth, power, and freedom. Wealth bringsboth in power and in freedom, as members of the apex of social levels experience an unprecedented degree of freedom compared to the lower classes. For example, many elite people can sail to Europe on their yachts (Wharton p. 192). Gerty, however, is not invited and is condemned to work in the squalor of America. On this trip, Bertha invites Lily to distract George while Bertha has an affair with Ned Silverton (Wharton p. 197). With Lily aboard the Dorset yacht, Bertha is able to set Lily up in a relationship with George if she wishes. Therefore, Bertha's wealth gave her great influence over Lily and the freedom to exert her will over Lily. Bertha's relationships with both Selden and Ned Silverton remain out of the social spotlight. Her wealth and power have given her the freedom to do what she wants. However, Lily is unable to escape Rosedale's spotlight when she leaves Selden's apartment in the opening chapter, thus putting Rosedale in a position of power over Lily (Wharton p. 14). Lily is not rich, so she has no power and is not free to do as she chooses. Wealth leads to influence, which can then be used later to further one's personal goals. To ascend to the top of the social elite, one must also possess impeccable taste for material goods. This perceived lack of taste in a hypercritical society is what keeps Wellington Brys from the elite. At their party, Trenor avoided the fact that the cigars tasted of soap and might have been selected by the chef, and that the soup and champagne were not at the correct temperature (Wharton p. 146). Trenor noted these irrelevant details as society, and the ruling class in particular, seeks to preserve the status quo. To move up in class you must always maintain a pristine aesthetic. This is a big reason why Lily often has new clothes made; Mrs. Peniston understands the importance of impeccable aesthetics in maintaining or improving one's social standing (Wharton p. 180). Even Lily's name speaks of the level of pleasant appearance that must be maintained. Lilies are a beautiful flower with a very specific environment needed to thrive. Marx explains the meaning of new goods in his work Alienated Labor. Through his concept of commodity fetishism, the intangible aspects of one's work become tangible products with physical value. This valuation comes from the separation between what workers produce and where wealth flows (Marx p. 254). The manufacturer and product have been obscured. Therefore, individuals are taught to desire and consume products as a commodity. Individuals like Mrs. Peniston need and desire new goods, such as clothes. For Mrs. Peniston, as well as for society as a whole, clothes serve as an external material indicator of success and wealth. This property, in turn, helps the owner of the asset appear wealthy, thus allowing him to ascend socially. Lily explains this belief in her conversation with Mrs. Peniston where Lily tried to explain the "expenses a girl has to bear nowadays" (Wharton p. 180). For Lily, the appearance of material wealth may be more important than wealth itself, as in the case of Lily's mother's attempt to preserve the status quo after their financial ruin (Wharton p. 34). Commodity fetishism drives their appearance habits, thus influencing their perceived wealth and class within society. Interestingly, the final chapters of the novel exemplify the cyclical nature of class actions and wealth. Lily enters Selden's apartment in one of the final chapters, just as she did in the scene.