Edith Wharton in Context

Edith Wharton was one of America''s most popular and prolific writers becoming the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1921. In a publishing career spanning seven decades Wharton lived and wrote through a period of tremendous social cultural and historical change. Bringing together a team of international scholars this volume provides the first substantial text dedicated to the various contexts that frame Wharton''s remarkable career. Each essay offers a clearly argued and lucid assessment of Wharton''s work as it relates to seven key areas: life and works critical receptions book and publishing history arts and aesthetics social designs time and place and literary milieux. These sections provide a broad and accessible resource for students coming to Wharton for the first time while offering scholars new critical insights.