Lily's Plight

Lily used a good image to describe her plight as a woman in her time period she says, " I have tried hard, but life is difficult and I am a very useless person. I can hardly be said to have an independent exsistence. I was just a screw or a cog in the great machine I called life, and when I dropped out of it I found I was of no use anywhere else. What can one do when one finds that one only fits into one hole? One must get back into it or be thrown out into the rubbish heap-and you don't know what its like in the rubbish heap" (327). Lily was raised in a wealthy home and never had to work. She fits this image well. She was meant to be a particular cog: a wealthy house wife who would not have to provide for herself and just throw houise parties. When she did have to work, then she had problems. She was not used to the stress of working and could not handle it. She could not hold a job for a very long time. Women of her time suffered this plight because they were not expected to work and to provide for themselves and when they had to, they couldn't. Also the women of this time probably felt under valued because they didn't have many places where they could put effort into accomplishing something that felt rewarding besides throughing a good house party or catching that rich husband.

Lily and Wealth

"...she works like a slave preparing the ground and sowing her seeds, but the day she ought to be reaping the harvest, she oversleeps or goes off on a picnic" (198). This quote references to how Lily seems to avoid completing her quest in courting a wealthy hucband. Maybe she knows deep down in side that this is not what she really wants. She denies Rosedale and she doesn't finish the job on Percy Gryce. She also tries to support herself through hat weaving. Although at the end of the story she considers marrying Rosedale, she never goes through with it just like the other times she has thought of marrying and kills herself instead. Lily seems to have wanted more in life than to just play the submissive role of a wealthy house wife. She seems to have wanted something more than the superficial wealth that she would get by marrying the rich men. Lilly wanted to accomplish something herself. "... it soon became clear to Lily that she was to enjoy only the material advantages of good food and expensive clothing; and though far from underrating these, she would gladly exchange them for what Mrs. Bart had taught her to regard as oppurtunities" (38). An oppurtunity is a vague word, but she clearly wants something above all the money, fancy homes and prestige of being wealthy; she wants something more out of life.

Gus Trenor and Lily Bart

It seemed through reading various parts of this book that Gus was using the fact that he was providing Miss Bart with monetary substinence to make advances toward her from the beginnning of their close association. In one scene, "[Lily] let her eyes shine into his with a look that made up for the handclasp he would have claimed if they had not been alone..." (96). Although holding hands may seem innocent, it is awkward for a married man to do this to a attractive, young woman without romantic thoughts in mind. Repeatedlty Gus makes remarks about how his wife is demanding and unreasonable and does not understandthe value of money, so it is understandable that after becoming disillusioned with his wife, that Gus would try and find a new women to be the object of his affections.

Rich Do Not Have Priorities Straight

Miss Farish, one of the wealthy, social elite in this novel was trying to make a charity. However, this charity did not really help those in need. The organization served to help working women becasue these women are "unfortunate" because they have to work for a living. "The object of the association was to provide comfortable lodgings...where young women of the class employed in downtown offices might find a home when out of work or in need of rest..." (116). Is this really needed for working women? They have money and they can support themselves. Working women are not suffering and homeless. If Farish really wanted to be useful and do something productive, she would help people living in slums that are having trouble putting food on the table and making a living. Unfortunately, however, the rich of this class seem to look down on people like this. For example, the woman who sees Miss Bart, Mrs. Haffen is looked down apon for her appearance and she is considered dirty.