In the novella, Summer by Edith Wharton, Charity Royall is depicted as a naïve and self-involved woman who dreams of escaping the small town of North Dormer. Only when Charity journeys to the Mountain does she abandon her big city aspirations and gain a new perspective on her life in North Dormer and on herself as a woman.
Charity shows her disdain for North Dormer throughout the novella. She says, “How I hate everything” (102) in reference to the humdrum goings on of the town. In order to escape the fate of the average woman in North Dormer, who “engaged in languid household drudgery” (100), Charity takes a job at the local library. She initially refuses to be forced into the average role of a woman. She especially resists the role of wife and mother. This is clear when she turns down Mr. Royall’s first marriage proposal and asks him, “Do you suppose anybody’d stay at North Dormer if they could help it?” (112). Charity is resentful of women’s roles in North Dormer she craves from independence from the town and from Mr. Royall.
When Charity becomes pregnant with Harney’s child she decides to go to the Mountain. She arrives on the night of her mother’s death and begins to see things in different perspective. “She had seen poverty and misfortune in her life; but in a community where poor thrifty Mrs. Hawes and the industrious Ally represented the nearest approach to destitution there was nothing to suggest the savage misery of the Mountain farmers” (228). Once Charity sees the awful state of the Mountain people, she realizes that North Dormer is not as horrible as she believes. With this realization Charity loses her naivety becomes more selfless. When Charity takes a piece of bread from the deprived family that she stayed with “her glance fell on the thin faces of the sleeping children, and filled with compunction she rummaged in her satchel for something with which to pay for what she had taken” (230). Before this moment, Charity never did anything for anyone unless it served her own interests as well. Her newfound compassion for people less fortunate than her demonstrates her recognition that her life in North Dormer was privileged.
Charity’s realization that she is going to be a mother and her ambition to provide a better life for her child ultimately lead her back to North Dormer where she marries Mr. Royall. Charity resigns herself to the role of wife and mother. With the acceptance of her role as a woman in North Dormer she must surrender her ambitions to be independent and live in a big city.
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteYour response has a good focus and clear organization. I like the idea of looking at Charity's loss of independence but from your title I was looking for you to define more specifically one moment where you think this happens, or identify if it is a gradual process. Other than this I think your response is great! The textual evidence used is very well thought out and supports your argument. They are valid moments in the text that I personally forgot about but are very important! Nice work!
I think your piece has a great focus and all of your evidence and paragraphs work toward that focus. I agree with you that Charity is desperate to escape North Dormer, but I wonder if she is really trying to avoid the typical roles of being a woman. I say this because when Charity first meets Harney, she envisions marrying him and from this stand point, obviously she is not opposed to that aspect of typical women's roles. I do think it plays into the idea of escape from North Dormer though, since Harney is an outsider and marriage to him would ensure her leaving North Dormer.
ReplyDeleteThis is a well written piece, one thing that I would like to see more of is to focus on when Charity loses her independence. I think that when she marries Royall she is giving into something that she doesn't believe in and it results in her loss of independence. You can develop on your argument of focusing on having a child and no longer being naive when she marries Royall and starts to see the reality of her situation. I think that you used great examples, I would just like to see your argument developed further.
ReplyDeleteGreat job at a close reading, all of the evidence is explained very well. I like the focus on her switch from independence to becoming a mother, but I feel that you could have a transition in between the two body paragraphs because I was very surprised when I got to the second body paragraph. Other than that great job!
ReplyDeleteGreat job pulling quotes and an even better job explaining them. I love the focus and the support you give it. Something I think may be a point of improvement could be the idea of "herself as a woman" as you introduce in the first paragraph. Are you using "woman" and "mother" as interchangeable words here?
ReplyDeleteVery good job in the development of your argument and your quotes were utilized well and flowed with the paper. Only thing I would like to see is why Wharton illustrates this and incorporates this in the novella. Good work!
ReplyDeleteSarah--i think your response is focused, logical and cohesive. Like others have said, i think defining womanhood would strengthen your argument--does woman=mother? I understand what you're saying, and there is a part in the first two chapters where Charity's lace-work is discussed, which could help you support the argument that Charity has no patience for the gender roles in North Dormer. Also, another poster mentioned Harney, and i think you would do well to include a rebuttal paragraph dealing with his impact on Charity. Overall, this paper is well-written and extremely convincing.
ReplyDeleteThere is a typo or left out word in the last sentence of your second paragraph and the second and third paragraph do not seem to have a clear link; you jump from one idea to another without connecting the two in between. Other than that I really enjoyed your argument; that Charity disliked and resented women's role in society. One thing that isn't clear is that if she wants independence and gains it firstly by gaining a job as a librarian, then why does she not tend to the libraries needs and even closes shop early and regularly? If she enjoyed her independence I feel like she would have taken better care of her new position in society. Likewise, why then does she attach herself to the first man who pays attention to her since lawyer Royall? These thoughts might help you develop your close reading or could pursuade you to a new argument.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea and your unpacking of it. I think maybe a slightly better argument than Charity losing her independence would be that she lost her hope for independence. You bring up in the beginning that Charity dreamed of moving to a big city, but here's an idea that you could consider exploring: this dream existed while she lived under the roof of Royall. She may have had certain authorities within her relationship with the lawyer, but she also did depend upon him for support. She had the dream/hope to move away and live for herself while existing in dependency, but then at the end of the novella, she loses that hope in submitting to the inevitability of her dependence.
ReplyDeleteJust something to think about.
This was a really great close reading! Very focused and well thought out. I would maybe just tweak your thesis a little bit and directly mention somewhere that Charity loses her independence.
ReplyDeleteI think your post does a great job of focusing on what Charity considers to be the roles of women in North Dormer and how she tries time and time again to assign a different role for herself. I like how you explained her change in perspective that lead her to eventually assume the roles that she had fought against for so long. For your revision, maybe you could elaborate on why she rejects the roles of the "average woman"; what is it about those roles that she finds so undesirable, but that aren't so bad because she eventually chooses them?
ReplyDeleteCool topic and an interesting take on Charity's trip to the mountain.
ReplyDeleteMy suggestion for you would be to consider unpacking the last quote of the second paragraph and its importance. You do that momentarily, but as you suggest, that instance of the novella is a defining moment for her. Writing your response on that quote alone and reframing it into your thesis will give you a concise topic that will welcome debate.
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteGreat topic and analysis of "Summer." My one concern for your paper is the first paragraph/thesis statement of the paper. The first paragraph could use more development, and the thesis could be more argumentative. Though your body paragraphs do a good job in directing the reader, the last sentence of your first paragraph leaves one wondering how her changes of perspective on life in North Dormer and as a woman tie together, as the two seem very unrelated.
I think that your thesis is missing the "so what" component that would give it a more argumentative feel - why is it important to the reader or to the novella itself that Charity makes the transition from someone who is naive and self-involved to someone who abandons her dreams of independence and settles into life in North Dormer? I think that if you added in this component, the paper itself would be pushed to another level and would provide for a much more complete analysis of the text. Other than that, I think you do a good job in using quotations and in leading the reader through your argument.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Katie that your thesis is missing the "so what". You need to make it more argumentative. A way you could do this is by adding more analysis to your many quotes and perhaps leave out the plot summary. With a little more development, this will be a good piece.
ReplyDeleteI think you did a good job of providing multiple examples and evidence to show how Charity does not want to be like other women in North Dormer. I think a clear transition would be helpful between the two body paragraphs to have the paper flow more. Also, more development in your introduction paragraph would be nice. Overall, good work!
ReplyDeleteYour citations are very thought out and add a lot to your argument. I worry that you might summarize a bit too much in the middle. At the end you focus on the realization that Charity experiences after her visit to the mountain, expand on that. Is Charity now enlightened after the visit? Humbled? How do you think this will effect her relationship with Royall? These are just a few ways that you could expand on a already well thought out and interesting claim!
ReplyDeleteI think your piece is really well organized. I found it hard to find a thesis statement, so maybe develop the introduction a bit more. You did a good job of using good textual evidence.
ReplyDeleteI think you've found a great angle to approach this from, especially the bit about Charity developing compassion and a self-less conscience. I think if you examined the marriage between Royall and Charity you would really strengthen your thesis about how/why/when Charity loses her independence.
ReplyDeleteI felt like your thesis and following paragraphs were really focused and cohesive. This was a good topic to tackle, but I do think you summarize a lot in the middle instead of arguing for your topic. Charity finally doing something for someone other than herself seems like a really important part of your argument, so develop that more instead of having all the summary.
ReplyDeleteI got the gist of your thesis, but I think it ought to be a bit more obviously stated. It was a good idea though, and I'm sure there were ample examples you drew from within the novel. Good use of evidence. One thing you could do to improve upon it would be to expand your conclusion, perhaps asking the cliched but effective "so what?" question. Good job, though!
ReplyDeleteWith your close reading you have definitely caused me to look at Charity in a light I had not previously considered. Throughout the novella I considered Charity to be very discontent with her environment and her existence in North Dormer, but I never considered her ambitious desire to escape from the small town as a sign of her being self-involved. For me, "self-involved" has a negative connotation and it makes me wonder if it does the same for you. If so, I'd enjoy seeing you explore why Wharton would create a female character in Charity's position (one seeking independence and freedom at a time when gender norms and social construction called for her to be submissive, passive, and unambitious) and allow for her to be portrayed with such a negative trait.
ReplyDeleteI like how you analyze Charity in her progression throughout the novel. In response to your argument, I think you should particularly focus on the implications for the moment that Charity changes her viewpoints. If you added some close readings to the quotes that you pull (which are very appropriate for your argument) you could strengthen your claims and really back them up with direct evidence.
ReplyDeleteYou have a strong introduction, and your argument is valid and interesting. I like where you're going with this. However, I think you need to cut down on summary and add more of your own analysis- all of your body paragraphs are essentially summary. Make sure you only use quotes if they enhance your analysis- each quote or summary statement should be coupled with your take on why it's supporting your claim.
ReplyDeleteAlso, you use a floating quote in your second body paragraph- always incorporate your own words within any sentence that you use a quote!!
Your conclusion could be better articulated to reinforce your thesis too. I think if you clarify your thesis, better analyze the strong quotes you have, and finish strong, your paper will rock! Good job!
I really like your reading and agreed with your arguments. I think possibly stating from the beginning how the journey to the mountains directly impacts her loss of innocence could tie everything in from the starts as it continues to run through the text of your work.
ReplyDeleteI definitely liked your argument, I think if you cut out some summary and added more analysis it would make your paper a lot stronger. It did interest me how she hated North Dormer when she came from the mountains, which were supposedly a savage village. It took her visiting that to see how great she had in North Dormer and rather than being a prison it was a place of opportunity. Good job. :)
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of your post but I feel like it needs to present more of an argument. You talk about how this mountain is a catalyst for her change it you don't really argue that. Try to focus your argument more and answer the question of "why" he mountain change her
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