The House of Mirth
Edith Wharton
Rosedale comes back to one more time try to help Lily. However, his standards of living did not change; his social status remained his top priority. "...and it touched her oddly to see that his new passion had not altered his old standard of living" (Wharton, 244). Just when you think he has changed, we go right back to square one. Rosedale does not appear to be an option for Lily anymore, so we once again go back to Selden. (I would gladly say "I told you so," but that would imply that I feel this book should have been over with 200 plus pages ago.)
"She had a vision of his (Selden's) quiet room, of the bookshelves, and the fire on the hearth" (Wharton, 247). Flashbacks play an important role in the second part of this section. Lily recalls different conversations she had in the past with Selden that lead her to make the decisions she had. The flashbacks act as a means of revelation of how she truly feels about Selden. (Not that any of us readers were fooled by her constantly turning her head) However, due to Lily previously turning him down, twice, Selden could not find the courage to again express his love for her, which I would say is understandable based on the circumstances; but we are all thinking to ourselves, "Just tell her!" However once again we are led along this journey where once again the two go their separate ways.
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