History in Vogue discussion

It's a hundred years since we've met—it may be another hundred before we meet again.

The more disillusioned Archer becomes in his marriage, the more he tries to convince himself that this was the way things were intended to be. He tries to make himself think of Ellen as nothing more than a memory, and the regret of a lost chance.

Archer stopped at the sight as if he had waked from sleep. That vision of the past was a dream, and the reality was what awaited him in the house on the bank overhead

He simply felt that if he could carry away the vision of the spot of earth she walked on, and the way the sky and sea enclosed it, the rest of the world might seem less empty

But seeing her again awakens the feelings he had tried to repress, and the longing for escape from the reality that waits for him. He follows Ellen to Boston, intent on asking her to leave with him, only to find her husband is trying to make her return - with her family's support.

...for I'm of your making much more than you ever were of mine. I'm the man who married one woman because another one told him to.

You gave me my first glimpse of a real life, and at the same moment you asked me to go on with a sham one

Ellen refuses him to protect May and his loyalty to her, and her own to a family she believes wants the best for her. They would honestly love one another while remaining faithful to those they had promised.

...he had built up within himself a kind of sanctuary in which she throned among his secret thoughts and longings. Little by little it became the scene of his real life

Four months later, Ellen has refused to go back and split from her family in disgrace, along with the loss of her income. May's jealousy and the family's increasing suspicions keep Archer out of the loop over Ellen's circumstances, but create a world for the two of them in his mind.

Rumors begin of Beaufort's financial trouble, and unexpectedly he is forced to declare bankruptcy. His ruin leads to bank closures and the loss of friend's investments - including Ellen's.

For what endless years this life will have to go on!

Understanding more and more the truth of May's innocent appearance, and seeing the reality of his future and fearing for Ellen's he decides to go to her in Washington.

Mrs Mingott's stroke over the shock of Beaufort's failure and Regina's request provide the opportunity for their insistence that Ellen be brought back to New York. The family plan to use Archer's pretense of business in Washington to ensure his being unable to see her, and their chance to force her back to her husband in his absence.

• How does Julius Beaufort's financial trouble compare with our own economy.

* this novel is set in the 1870's. There was a mass banking collapse - The Panic of 1873 - that resulted in the closure of the Stock Exchange, runs on failed banks, and deadly riots in New York. It would begin a twenty year recession now known as The Long Depression. It was considered the Great Depression until the collapse of 1929.

* Apologies for this taking so long to post this, because life... Feel free to post any thoughts about this section of the story. There really aren't many points to discuss, mostly drawing down the story to the turning point. I'll be posting the final part later this evening - where there will be plenty to discuss

I really liked the Newport section of the novel. I listened to it on the bus on the way to Newport. I took some pictures in the Museum of Newport History of Newport Society in the 1870s for all of you to see. The official word is that the first of the summer "cottages" was built in the 1870s and Mrs. Astor was the first to stay on Bellevue Avenue. Her "cottage" was less grand than the others because it was he first, or so she said.

Scenes from Harper's New Monthly Magazine 1877








Tennis in Newport 1880


Croquet on the Beach 1882


Henry James wrote about Newport

The Difference Between Saratoga and Newport from Harper's New Monthly Magazine August 1854



• How does Julius Beaufort's financial trouble compare with our own economy.
I got the impression he set up a Ponzi scheme. Wharton was writing this around the time Charles Ponzi was scamming people out of their money. He wasn't the first though. Society looked askance at Beaufort to begin with and the book is from the point-of-view of one of them so it's hard to tell. He did defraud people into thinking he had money on purpose.