Summer | The Divided Conflict of Edith Wharton’s Summer
In the following essay, Wershoven argues that Summer is “both Charity and Lawyer Royall’s story, a dual conflict and . . . a dual growth. . . .”
When Bernard Berenson complimented Edith Wharton on her latest novel, Summer, and expressed admiration for its predominant male character, Lawyer Royall, Wharton replied, “of course he’s the book.”
Wharton’s statement has been largely ignored by critics who view the book as Charity Royall’s story, and who classify Lawyer Royall as an old windbag, a pompous drunkard, or worse. The popular interpretation ignores not only Royall’s central position in the plot, but Royall’s central role in the novel’s subtle and unfolding themes. For Summer is not just...
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