Money(18-32)

Upward and onward with The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton continues to draw me in with this story of Miss Bart. The development of the storyline of Miss Bart is very interesting. First we were thrown into what she was presently doing without understanding her motivation. Now with a little background we once again come back to the present and get to hear a little conversation between herself and this lady who isn't her mother. I might be summarizing a little but I'm just so confused as I how this story is supposed to occur. Now are we going to jump to the future and then come back to present? How common is this writing style for the era that this was written in? Often I wonder these kind of questions while reading but never get them answered because I fall into the story and realize how unimportant the questions I have actually are when considering the story. This story makes me consider the things in my life. The obsession with wealth and possessing objects bothers me. It seems that this Miss Bart was raised to eventually marry only to spend money. How ridiculous. No where in this book has there even been a mention of live. Does that matter at all to these people? her mother seemed not to even think of it, let alone care for her husband a little tiny bit. It struck me that one memory Miss Bart strongly recalled was when her mother old her, "'You'll get it all back, with your face...'"(page 22) I was confused when it spoke of Lily reviewing her life when her father announced he was ruined. How? She still seems to be so obsessed with money.