Lily Bart in The House of Mirth. A Swamp-hatched Butterfly

Abstract

En su novela The House of Mirth Edith Wharton expone y a la vez acusa a la sociedad del papel represor y distorsionador que ejerce con respecto a la sexualidad, especialmente la femenina. La heroína de la novela, Lily Bart, aparece como un producto de consumo, un artefacto al que se le da un valor, se le etiqueta y vende al mejor postor. Sin embargo, su rol es luchar contra esa comercialización y conseguir la dignidad personal. De este modo, su desafío a la hipocresía moral de la clase social a la que pertenece la convierte en un adalid de la nueva mujer. Incluso su suicidio final no se debe considerar una derrota patética, sino como una opción consciente que simboliza la victoria del autoconocimiento y de la autenticidad con el fin de llegar a ser ella misma.

In The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton exposes and indicts society’s suppression and distortion of sexuality, especially female sexuality. Lily Bart, the female hero of the novel, is viewed as a commodity, an artifact that is to be evaluated, ticketed, and sold to the highest bidder. However, Lily refuses to barter her body for security. She fights against her society’s false claims and struggles for her dignity. In every crisis, Lily resists the moral hypocrisy that defines her genteel class, and it is her rebellion against her stultifying, inimical world that makes her an unconventional figure, the true embodiment of the New Woman. Her suicide is not a pathetic defeat but a conscious choice reached through her achievement of selfawareness. Her death symbolizes a victory of self-knowledge and authenticity as she becomes herself.