Edith Wharton's Ghost Stories

Did you know that, in addition to her critically-acclaimed novels (Age of Innocence, Ethan Frome, and House of Mirth) Edith Wharton also wrote ghost stories, many of them written as morality tales? Some of these include:

"Bewitched," 1925

This ghost story is considered "an interesting ghostly counterpart" to Ethan Frome. Similar in some ways to Hawthorne's "Ethan Brand" -- read at your own risk!

"Afterward" From Tales of Men and Ghosts, 1910.

A vengeful spirit from the past returns to strip Ned Boyne of the fortune he has made years ago under questionable circumstances.

"The Eyes" From Tales of Men and Ghosts, 1910.

Reminiscent of Poe's "William Wilson," this short story features protagonist Andrew Culwin, who is haunted by a pair of repulsive, disembodied eyes. Only much later does he realize that the eyes are apparitions from the future, a phantasmal projection of his own wizened conscience as it looks back upon his youthful indiscretions and self-deception.

"The Fulness of Life" 1893

A woman dies and meets her soul-mate, who turns out to be....

"Kerfol" 1916

One of Wharton's best ghost stories: quasi-Gothic architecture, an antiquarian immersion in the Renaissance past, some ghostly dogs — less terror but more haunting than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic Sherlock Holmes ghostly canine tale The Hound of the Baskervilles. "Kerfol" depicts a ruined French estate haunted by the spirits of dogs, animals murdered by the previous owner in revenge for what he wrongly believed was his wife's adultery.

"The Lady's Maid's Bell" 1902

The ghost of a former maid continues to serve her mistress. Seeking to protect the woman, an invalid, from an encroaching danger, the dead maid's spirit rings her bell, but to no avail.

"The Triumph of Night"
A man becomes plagued by obsessive feelings of guilt after failing to respond to a nightmarish vision in which he sees his friend's death planned by a greedy uncle.

Extra Credit: Edith Wharton Quiz

"The Mount" -- Edith Wharton's Estate in Lenox, Mass.

Here's an end-of-the-quarter extra credit opportunity. If you can answer these ten questions about Edith Wharton correctly, I'll give you an extra 50 points. Many of you are on the bubble between grades, e.g., between an A+ and an H-. You must submit the answers to me in writing at the beginning of class on Thursday.

1 What was Edith Wharton's first published book?

2 What famous American author was Edith Wharton's good friend and traveling companion?

3 At about what age did Edith Wharton publish her first book of short stories?

4 Lily Bart is the heroine of which Wharton novel?

5 Published in 1917, this book set in the New England town of North Dormer featured a young heroine who falls in love with a visiting architect. What is it.

6 For which work did Edith Wharton win the Pulitzer Prize in 1921?

7 Wharton edited The Book of the Homeless and wrote Fighting France: From Dunquerque to Belforte to provide relief for refugees during what war?

8 In 1923, Edith Wharton was honored as the first woman to receive an honorary Doctor of Letters degree from what university?

9 The first draft of Ethan Frome was written in which language?

10 Although she traveled extensively before and after this time, after about 1913 Edith Wharton lived primarily in which country?

Edith Wharton & Ethan Frome

In her long career, which stretched over forty years and included the publication of more than forty books, Edith Wharton (1862-1937) portrayed a fascinating segment of the American experience. She was a born storyteller, whose novels are justly celebrated for their vivid settings, satiric wit, ironic style, and moral seriousness. Her characters, such as Ellen Olenska in The Age of Innocence, Ethan Frome, and the charming but ineffectual Lily Bart in The House of Mirth, are some of the most memorable in American literature. Often portrayed as tragic victims of cruel social conventions, they are trapped in bad relationships or confining circumstances. Her own life stands as an example of the obstacles that a woman of her time and place had to overcome to find self-realization.

Read more about Edith Wharton at Smithsonian...

PDF Update: I've added the most recent hand-outs to the class website. They are downloadable as PDF files, as follows:

Introduction to Edith Wharton & Ethan Frome

Ethan Frome Assignment Sheet
Please note: This PDF is updated to include the data sheet due date, March 29 -- the same day as the final test on the Ethan Frome unit. You can still download the PDF and Word versions of the data sheet (see below). I will also make some more hard-copies available in the room

Data sheet in PDF

Date sheet in (DOC) Word

The Age of Innocence -- BBC Radio Drama

BBC Radio 7 is presenting The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton in a radio drama format. BBC Radio usually produces excellent radio plays You can listen by following this link. The Age of Innocence is the novel Jennifer presented. Wharton will be the next novelist we're reading in class. The novel: Ethan Frome.