Its a pity showdown
“In the affairs of love, a young heart is never in more danger than when attempted by a handsome young soldier” (Rowson, pg. 22).
This quote is a perfect example of foreshadowing of Charlotte’s eventual doom, leading the reader to take a sympathetic approach when reading her character. From the get go, Charlotte is painted as being “in danger.” She is a passive character that seems destined to be doomed some way or another. A doom that she would be led to by virtue of her foolish heart; hence leading the reader to take a sympathetic approach to reading her character.
This is contradicted with Lily, whose character is portrayed early on as an active actor--as someone who is moving the chess pieces of her life, which allows the reader to hold her more accountable for her actions. The portrayal of Lily in the beginning can be likened to that of Scarlett O'Hara from Gone with the Wind"she still had the art of blushing at the right time"
"he could never be a factor in her calculations" (Wharton, pg. 6).
This calculating characteristic could be why her eventual doom comes as much more of a shock.
Yet Lily’s character develops through the course of the novel- and is shaped by the events of her life- to become someone who deserves the pity of the reader.
"I have tried hard- but life is difficult, and I am a very useless person... I was just a screw or a cog in the great machine and when I dropped out of it I found out I was of no use anywhere else" (Wharton, pg. 308).
We can see that, by the latter part of the book, Lily focuses her powerlessness in the larger machinations of society. She becomes apathetic and complacent, very much like Charlotte Temple. She has succumbed to the cruelty of her world.
References:
Rowson, S. (2011). Charlotte Temple. W. W. Norton & Company. New York
Wharton, E. 1985). The House of Mirth. Penguin Group. Hudson street, New York.
