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المحك
تدور أحداث الرواية عن قصة "ستيفن غلينارد" الشاب الفقير، فبعد النزاع النفسي والتردد الكثير في أن يجعل من رسائل حبيبته السابقة الروائية المتوفاة "مارغريت أوبين" مكسبا له، إذ يقرر المتاجرة ببيع رسائلها المشحونة بعواطف الوجد إتجاهه؛ ليتمكن من الزواج بالمرأة التي يحبها!
ولكن هذا القرار أصبح عبئا نفسيا ل"غلينارد"، يجلد ذاته، كلما تذكر ما آلت إليه نفسه من فعل دنيء دون أن يستطيع إخبار أحد بذلك، حتى أقرب الناس إليه.
فهل سيتمكن "غلينارد" من العيش مع شعور الخزي والعار جرّاء متاجرته بهذه الرسائل الباذخة بأحاسيس محبوبته الراحلة؟
أم هل سيتجاهل نداء ضميره ورفضه لهذه الخيانة المضمرة؟ وما هي ردة فعل زوجته بعدما تعلم أنه اشتراها بثمن العار؟
ولكن هذا القرار أصبح عبئا نفسيا ل"غلينارد"، يجلد ذاته، كلما تذكر ما آلت إليه نفسه من فعل دنيء دون أن يستطيع إخبار أحد بذلك، حتى أقرب الناس إليه.
فهل سيتمكن "غلينارد" من العيش مع شعور الخزي والعار جرّاء متاجرته بهذه الرسائل الباذخة بأحاسيس محبوبته الراحلة؟
أم هل سيتجاهل نداء ضميره ورفضه لهذه الخيانة المضمرة؟ وما هي ردة فعل زوجته بعدما تعلم أنه اشتراها بثمن العار؟
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First published January 1, 1900
80 people are currently reading
1928 people want to read
About the author
Edith Wharton
1,432 books5,251 followersEdith Wharton emerged as one of America’s most insightful novelists, deftly exposing the tensions between societal expectation and personal desire through her vivid portrayals of upper-class life. Drawing from her deep familiarity with New York’s privileged “aristocracy,” she offered readers a keenly observed and piercingly honest vision of Gilded Age society.
Her work reached a milestone when she became the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, awarded for The Age of Innocence. This novel highlights the constraining rituals of 1870s New York society and remains a defining portrait of elegance laced with regret.
Wharton’s literary achievements span a wide canvas. The House of Mirth presents a tragic, vividly drawn character study of Lily Bart, navigating social expectations and the perils of genteel poverty in 1890s New York. In Ethan Frome, she explores rural hardship and emotional repression, contrasting sharply with her urban social dramas.
Her novella collection Old New York revisits the moral terrain of upper-class society, spanning decades and combining character studies with social commentary. Through these stories, she inevitably points back to themes and settings familiar from The Age of Innocence. Continuing her exploration of class and desire, The Glimpses of the Moon addresses marriage and social mobility in early 20th-century America. And in Summer, Wharton challenges societal norms with its rural setting and themes of sexual awakening and social inequality.
Beyond fiction, Wharton contributed compelling nonfiction and travel writing. The Decoration of Houses reflects her eye for design and architecture; Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belfort presents a compelling account of her wartime observations. As editor of The Book of the Homeless, she curated a moving, international collaboration in support of war refugees.
Wharton’s influence extended beyond writing. She designed her own country estate, The Mount, a testament to her architectural sensibility and aesthetic vision. The Mount now stands as an educational museum celebrating her legacy.
Throughout her career, Wharton maintained friendships and artistic exchanges with luminaries such as Henry James, Sinclair Lewis, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Theodore Roosevelt—reflecting her status as a respected and connected cultural figure.
Her literary legacy also includes multiple Nobel Prize nominations, underscoring her international recognition. She was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature more than once.
In sum, Edith Wharton remains celebrated for her unflinching, elegant prose, her psychological acuity, and her capacity to illuminate the unspoken constraints of society—from the glittering ballrooms of New York to quieter, more remote settings. Her wide-ranging work—novels, novellas, short stories, poetry, travel writing, essays—offers cultural insight, enduring emotional depth, and a piercing critique of the customs she both inhabited and dissected.
Her work reached a milestone when she became the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, awarded for The Age of Innocence. This novel highlights the constraining rituals of 1870s New York society and remains a defining portrait of elegance laced with regret.
Wharton’s literary achievements span a wide canvas. The House of Mirth presents a tragic, vividly drawn character study of Lily Bart, navigating social expectations and the perils of genteel poverty in 1890s New York. In Ethan Frome, she explores rural hardship and emotional repression, contrasting sharply with her urban social dramas.
Her novella collection Old New York revisits the moral terrain of upper-class society, spanning decades and combining character studies with social commentary. Through these stories, she inevitably points back to themes and settings familiar from The Age of Innocence. Continuing her exploration of class and desire, The Glimpses of the Moon addresses marriage and social mobility in early 20th-century America. And in Summer, Wharton challenges societal norms with its rural setting and themes of sexual awakening and social inequality.
Beyond fiction, Wharton contributed compelling nonfiction and travel writing. The Decoration of Houses reflects her eye for design and architecture; Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belfort presents a compelling account of her wartime observations. As editor of The Book of the Homeless, she curated a moving, international collaboration in support of war refugees.
Wharton’s influence extended beyond writing. She designed her own country estate, The Mount, a testament to her architectural sensibility and aesthetic vision. The Mount now stands as an educational museum celebrating her legacy.
Throughout her career, Wharton maintained friendships and artistic exchanges with luminaries such as Henry James, Sinclair Lewis, Jean Cocteau, André Gide, and Theodore Roosevelt—reflecting her status as a respected and connected cultural figure.
Her literary legacy also includes multiple Nobel Prize nominations, underscoring her international recognition. She was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature more than once.
In sum, Edith Wharton remains celebrated for her unflinching, elegant prose, her psychological acuity, and her capacity to illuminate the unspoken constraints of society—from the glittering ballrooms of New York to quieter, more remote settings. Her wide-ranging work—novels, novellas, short stories, poetry, travel writing, essays—offers cultural insight, enduring emotional depth, and a piercing critique of the customs she both inhabited and dissected.
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August 28, 2021
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Having read a few works by Edith Wharton, I’ve become familiar with her beautifully articulated style. Still, I was nonetheless impressed by just how accomplished The Touchstone is considering that it is Wharton’s first published novella.
The story revolves around Stephen Glennard, a New York lawyer, who doesn’t have enough money to marry his sweetheart, Alexa Trent. It just so happens that Glennard comes across an advertisement seeking information relating to a figure from his past, the famous and recently deceased novelist Margaret Aubyn. Because Margaret was once in love with Glennard, and the two kept a correspondence, he's accumulated hundreds of her letters. Although Glennard is fully aware that to sell these private letters would be to betrayal to Margaret, he worries that Alexa won’t wait for him much longer. After editing his name out of the letters and with the help of an acquaintance of his, who happens to be a rich collector, Glennard sells them. The money from the publisher, and from Glennard's own subsequent investments, enables him to marry Alexa.
This being a work by Wharton however we know that marriage does not equal happiness. Guilt, shame, and endless waves of remorse mar Glennard's days. Unable to reconcile himself with his actions, knowing that his wife, and the rest of his social circle, would condemn him for the sale, Glennard finds uneasy solace in his memory of Margaret.
Through her elegantly precise prose Wharton renders all the nuances of Glennard’s disillusionment—with himself, his wife, his marriage—as well as evincing his inner turmoil. Wharton complements this character study with a piercing social commentary (focusing on the customs and niceties of the so called 'polite' society'). I particularly appreciated the narrative’s engagement with notions of privacy. Why should an author’s private life be made ‘public’? Can one retain a degree of privacy or autonomy over one’s life if they are considered ‘public’ figures? Glennard’s story seems a cautionary tale. He infringes Margaret’s privacy, exposing her personal letters—which were written for the audience of one—to the world. When he comes across people, mostly women, discussing Margaret’s letters, he’s sickened, as much by them as by himself.
Wharton is a master of the trade and The Touchstone is as sophisticated as her later and more celebrated works. In spite of its historical setting The Touchstone is also a strikingly relevant novella (a public figure’s right to privacy vs. the public's interest) one that explores the ethical and moral repercussions of Glennard’s violation of Margaret privacy and trust.
Having read a few works by Edith Wharton, I’ve become familiar with her beautifully articulated style. Still, I was nonetheless impressed by just how accomplished The Touchstone is considering that it is Wharton’s first published novella.
The story revolves around Stephen Glennard, a New York lawyer, who doesn’t have enough money to marry his sweetheart, Alexa Trent. It just so happens that Glennard comes across an advertisement seeking information relating to a figure from his past, the famous and recently deceased novelist Margaret Aubyn. Because Margaret was once in love with Glennard, and the two kept a correspondence, he's accumulated hundreds of her letters. Although Glennard is fully aware that to sell these private letters would be to betrayal to Margaret, he worries that Alexa won’t wait for him much longer. After editing his name out of the letters and with the help of an acquaintance of his, who happens to be a rich collector, Glennard sells them. The money from the publisher, and from Glennard's own subsequent investments, enables him to marry Alexa.
This being a work by Wharton however we know that marriage does not equal happiness. Guilt, shame, and endless waves of remorse mar Glennard's days. Unable to reconcile himself with his actions, knowing that his wife, and the rest of his social circle, would condemn him for the sale, Glennard finds uneasy solace in his memory of Margaret.
Through her elegantly precise prose Wharton renders all the nuances of Glennard’s disillusionment—with himself, his wife, his marriage—as well as evincing his inner turmoil. Wharton complements this character study with a piercing social commentary (focusing on the customs and niceties of the so called 'polite' society'). I particularly appreciated the narrative’s engagement with notions of privacy. Why should an author’s private life be made ‘public’? Can one retain a degree of privacy or autonomy over one’s life if they are considered ‘public’ figures? Glennard’s story seems a cautionary tale. He infringes Margaret’s privacy, exposing her personal letters—which were written for the audience of one—to the world. When he comes across people, mostly women, discussing Margaret’s letters, he’s sickened, as much by them as by himself.
Wharton is a master of the trade and The Touchstone is as sophisticated as her later and more celebrated works. In spite of its historical setting The Touchstone is also a strikingly relevant novella (a public figure’s right to privacy vs. the public's interest) one that explores the ethical and moral repercussions of Glennard’s violation of Margaret privacy and trust.
March 8, 2024
I bought a special edition of this short fiction at Edith Wharton's home, The Mount, a couple of years ago. When I returned home, I realized someone had also gifted me this copy. My edition from The Mount is not on Goodreads (at least not from what I saw) and this copy is not shelved properly, as it does not even link to the correct Edith Wharton on Goodreads.
In any case, I'm happy (I think?) to also have received this copy because of the chilled, but enlightening response I had after reading Salley Vickers's introduction to Wharton's elegantly written novella. According to Vickers, Wharton's "reputation stands in the shade of her more famous male contemporary and friend, Henry James." Vickers not only states that Wharton's "taut" novella has "reverberations of two of James's finest novels, The Wings of the Dove and The Golden Bowl", but she also states that a disparaging statement the main character makes in the book is "clearly Wharton's own tart voice and not her protagonist, Glennard's." If that's not enough, Vickers insinuates that the statement is directed towards George Eliot. Ouch. Really? One only imagines the hurdles Wharton had to overcome in order to receive the credit she rightfully deserved for her refined prose style and luscious stories.
The statement Vickers refers to is when Glennard, the untenable main character, says this of the famous writer, Mrs. Aubyn, who deeply loves him, but whom he cannot seem to love because of her intelligence: "genius is of small use to a woman who does not know how to do her hair." Glennard feels "his inferiority" when he is around Aubyn. It is a story of unrequired love. Mrs. Aubyn is a famous writer who is in love with Glennard. Her husband has died, and she returns home to live. When she realizes that nothing will happen between them, she decides to live abroad as she becomes increasingly famous. They remain friends and she writes to him. Years later, when she is dead, Glennard sells Aubyn's letters for a fortune, so that he can have money to marry the woman he loves.
The letters are private. The letters are revealing. The letters are from a woman revered. The public is shocked that they are published, and they think the person who released them is despicable. Glennard remains an anonymous donor of the letters, even trivializing his friendship with Mrs. Aubyn in order to keep his secret. But deep inside, his disloyalty to her gnaws at him and threatens his friendships and relationships:
I'm a fan of Edith Wharton's novels and I've also been captivated by her short fiction (The Muse's Tragedy," for instance), so it's no surprise that I was able to complete this in one sitting. As usual, the art of the short form is emphasized, with stellar story transitions, intentional dialogue, and character changes that all happen within less than 100 pages.
In any case, I'm happy (I think?) to also have received this copy because of the chilled, but enlightening response I had after reading Salley Vickers's introduction to Wharton's elegantly written novella. According to Vickers, Wharton's "reputation stands in the shade of her more famous male contemporary and friend, Henry James." Vickers not only states that Wharton's "taut" novella has "reverberations of two of James's finest novels, The Wings of the Dove and The Golden Bowl", but she also states that a disparaging statement the main character makes in the book is "clearly Wharton's own tart voice and not her protagonist, Glennard's." If that's not enough, Vickers insinuates that the statement is directed towards George Eliot. Ouch. Really? One only imagines the hurdles Wharton had to overcome in order to receive the credit she rightfully deserved for her refined prose style and luscious stories.
The statement Vickers refers to is when Glennard, the untenable main character, says this of the famous writer, Mrs. Aubyn, who deeply loves him, but whom he cannot seem to love because of her intelligence: "genius is of small use to a woman who does not know how to do her hair." Glennard feels "his inferiority" when he is around Aubyn. It is a story of unrequired love. Mrs. Aubyn is a famous writer who is in love with Glennard. Her husband has died, and she returns home to live. When she realizes that nothing will happen between them, she decides to live abroad as she becomes increasingly famous. They remain friends and she writes to him. Years later, when she is dead, Glennard sells Aubyn's letters for a fortune, so that he can have money to marry the woman he loves.
The letters are private. The letters are revealing. The letters are from a woman revered. The public is shocked that they are published, and they think the person who released them is despicable. Glennard remains an anonymous donor of the letters, even trivializing his friendship with Mrs. Aubyn in order to keep his secret. But deep inside, his disloyalty to her gnaws at him and threatens his friendships and relationships:
The Letters confronted him everywhere. People who had never opened a book discussed them with critical reservations; to have read them had become a social obligation in circles to which literature never penetrates except in a personal guise."
I'm a fan of Edith Wharton's novels and I've also been captivated by her short fiction (The Muse's Tragedy," for instance), so it's no surprise that I was able to complete this in one sitting. As usual, the art of the short form is emphasized, with stellar story transitions, intentional dialogue, and character changes that all happen within less than 100 pages.
September 19, 2020
Edith Wharton read #1
Published in 1900, The Touchstone is a novella that takes readers to the city that Wharton would most enjoy setting her tales-New York City. As always Wharton puts the lives and morals of upper class on display.
To give up things in order to marry the woman one loves is easier than to give them up without being brought appreciably nearer to such a conclusion.
Our main protagonist, Stephen Glennard wants more than anything to stop his beloved from leaving for London, but he is too poor. When he decides to anonymously publish the letters of a former lover, a deceased author, it gains him the riches he desires, but what will his wife do, if ever she were to find out what he's done?
he had lived beside his wife unaware that her individuality had become a part of the texture of his life, ineradicable as some growth on a vital organ; and he now felt himself at once incapable of forecasting her judgment and powerless to evade its effects.
Although I have watched a few films based on her books, I have never actually read an Edith Wharton novel. Over the next few months, I hope to change that and have set out to read fourteen works written by the author. The Touchstone was a good place to start as it shows the promising future that Wharton would have as a novelist.
You will notice based on my description that the novella passes from courtship to marriage, given that it's only 124 pages, Wharton had to be swift in carrying the tale along. As much as I wanted to give our protagonist a good shake, I did enjoy the tense atmosphere of the novel. But what's even more interesting is the discussion of public versus private sphere. Does the public really have a right to read the letters that a person means to be private? I think I am going to enjoy the Wharton journey!
Goodreads review published 23/08/20
Published in 1900, The Touchstone is a novella that takes readers to the city that Wharton would most enjoy setting her tales-New York City. As always Wharton puts the lives and morals of upper class on display.
To give up things in order to marry the woman one loves is easier than to give them up without being brought appreciably nearer to such a conclusion.
Our main protagonist, Stephen Glennard wants more than anything to stop his beloved from leaving for London, but he is too poor. When he decides to anonymously publish the letters of a former lover, a deceased author, it gains him the riches he desires, but what will his wife do, if ever she were to find out what he's done?
he had lived beside his wife unaware that her individuality had become a part of the texture of his life, ineradicable as some growth on a vital organ; and he now felt himself at once incapable of forecasting her judgment and powerless to evade its effects.
Although I have watched a few films based on her books, I have never actually read an Edith Wharton novel. Over the next few months, I hope to change that and have set out to read fourteen works written by the author. The Touchstone was a good place to start as it shows the promising future that Wharton would have as a novelist.
You will notice based on my description that the novella passes from courtship to marriage, given that it's only 124 pages, Wharton had to be swift in carrying the tale along. As much as I wanted to give our protagonist a good shake, I did enjoy the tense atmosphere of the novel. But what's even more interesting is the discussion of public versus private sphere. Does the public really have a right to read the letters that a person means to be private? I think I am going to enjoy the Wharton journey!
Goodreads review published 23/08/20
January 15, 2023
2023/04
Elizabeth Klett is, in my opinion, one of the best narrators you can find on LibriVox, and fortunately, she has recorded a lot of classics over there; authors such as Jane Austen, Henry James, E. M. Forster, and of course, Edith Wharton, are only some of those writers whose books you can pick up on the App, so to speak, and let Klett read them for you. She is also, along with Nicholas Clifford and Bruce Pirie, one of my all-time favorite narrators due to her clear voice and her perfect pace. So then, this year I'm planning to listen to as many novels narrated by her as possible; in short, it doesn't matter the genre, or the author, or the length of the book, I'll be trying to read those books narrated by her since I tend to enjoy them. Besides, even though I don't care about the titles, she is almost always narrating books written by my favorite authors, therefore, my experience should be successful in the end.
So, The Touchstone has been my first pick and I can tell you it is an enjoyable, beautifully written story; albeit its length, it was profound, with a few characters that are not superficial, though they are not palpable either; let's say, they are something in between. The novel is about a man who is willing to get married to a woman, but he doesn't have enough money to do so. When he sees the opportunity to publish the letters of a former lover who was a famous novelist in order to receive money, and knowing that he will have to deal with the possible consequences, he does not hesitate to make such a risky decision. As you can see, the storyline sounds very Jamesian, and in fact, I would say it was Jamesian-ish, but much more readable, less verbose, and not ambiguous at all. In conclusion, it is definitely worth giving it a try.
My rating on a scale of 1 to 5:
Quality of writing [4/5]
Pace [4/5]
Plot development [4/5]
Characters [3.5/5]
Enjoyability [4/5]
Insightfulness [4/5]
Easy of reading [4/5]
Photos/Illustrations [N/A]
Total [27.5/7] = 3.92
Elizabeth Klett is, in my opinion, one of the best narrators you can find on LibriVox, and fortunately, she has recorded a lot of classics over there; authors such as Jane Austen, Henry James, E. M. Forster, and of course, Edith Wharton, are only some of those writers whose books you can pick up on the App, so to speak, and let Klett read them for you. She is also, along with Nicholas Clifford and Bruce Pirie, one of my all-time favorite narrators due to her clear voice and her perfect pace. So then, this year I'm planning to listen to as many novels narrated by her as possible; in short, it doesn't matter the genre, or the author, or the length of the book, I'll be trying to read those books narrated by her since I tend to enjoy them. Besides, even though I don't care about the titles, she is almost always narrating books written by my favorite authors, therefore, my experience should be successful in the end.
So, The Touchstone has been my first pick and I can tell you it is an enjoyable, beautifully written story; albeit its length, it was profound, with a few characters that are not superficial, though they are not palpable either; let's say, they are something in between. The novel is about a man who is willing to get married to a woman, but he doesn't have enough money to do so. When he sees the opportunity to publish the letters of a former lover who was a famous novelist in order to receive money, and knowing that he will have to deal with the possible consequences, he does not hesitate to make such a risky decision. As you can see, the storyline sounds very Jamesian, and in fact, I would say it was Jamesian-ish, but much more readable, less verbose, and not ambiguous at all. In conclusion, it is definitely worth giving it a try.
My rating on a scale of 1 to 5:
Quality of writing [4/5]
Pace [4/5]
Plot development [4/5]
Characters [3.5/5]
Enjoyability [4/5]
Insightfulness [4/5]
Easy of reading [4/5]
Photos/Illustrations [N/A]
Total [27.5/7] = 3.92
July 4, 2018
Only her second published work, The Touchstone shows all the promise that Edith Wharton would later realize in her longer novels and short-stories. The central character, Stephen Glennard, sells for publication the private letters of a former, deceased lover, who had become a famous writer, so that he can finance his marriage to the girl he loves. What follows is an emotional and moral reckoning for this act of baseness and betrayal.
What struck me most was how society’s values have changed. I do not think most people would blink an eye today at such an action. Most would be pounding the man on the back and congratulating him on first his conquest of the famous woman and then his ability to capitalize on the relationship. It was quite interesting to see how others reacted and the degree to which it affected his life.
I read it without a break...a very short 120 pages. It certainly held my interest and had that elegant, sophisticated style that is Wharton’s hallmark. Webster says a touchstone is a “standard or criterion by which something is judged or recognized.” What an apt name for this novella.
What struck me most was how society’s values have changed. I do not think most people would blink an eye today at such an action. Most would be pounding the man on the back and congratulating him on first his conquest of the famous woman and then his ability to capitalize on the relationship. It was quite interesting to see how others reacted and the degree to which it affected his life.
I read it without a break...a very short 120 pages. It certainly held my interest and had that elegant, sophisticated style that is Wharton’s hallmark. Webster says a touchstone is a “standard or criterion by which something is judged or recognized.” What an apt name for this novella.
July 4, 2023
I enjoyed listening to this novella, only Wharton's second book and my first of hers. Early on, New York attorney Stephen Glennard sells for publication a large collection of letters he'd received from the late Margaret Aubyn, a literary giant who'd loved him in spite of his indifference to her, and the proceeds allow him to propose to and wed his beloved Alex Trent. Although they are published without identifying him as the recipient, the rest of the story explores his increasing sense of guilt for betraying Aubyn's confidence, a topic of much discussion in Glennard's social circle, as the two-volume collection becomes a best-seller, and how his shame impacts the marriage. This book reminded me of The Aspern Papers, by Wharton's close friend Henry James, and I'd recommend reading them both to compare and contrast.
September 28, 2021
Free download at Librivox, here: https://librivox.org/the-touchstone-b...
Short books demand short reviews.
A man has had a long term relationship with a woman that adored him. She loved him more than he loved her. How does she bind him to her, even after her death? () That is the gist of the story. The idea is clever.
However, I do not like Wharton’s prose in this novella. Ideas are expressed in an overly complicated fashion. She uses fancy words where simpler words would have done just as well. Too many words, convoluted postulations and posh language. I prefer simple, clear language and clarity! My low rating reflects my personal dislike of the prose.
Elizabeth Klett reads this at Librivox. Her narration I have given three stars. It is relatively good. You can easily hear all that is said, but she reads too fast and the intonations are mediocre.
*********************
*The Old Maid: The 'Fifties 5 stars
*Bunner Sisters 4 stars
*False Dawn 4 stars
*Summer 4 stars
*The Shadow of a Doubt: A Play in Three Acts 4 stars
*The Marne 3 stars
*The Reef 3 stars
*The House of Mirth 3 stars
*The Glimpses Of The Moon 3 stars
*Coming Home 3 stars
*Xingu 3 stars
*The Touchstone. by: Edith Wharton 2 stars
*The Eyes 2 stars
*The Age of Innocence 1 star
*Ethan Frome 1 star
*Madame de Treymes TBR
*The Custom of the Country TBR
*The Fruit of the Tree TBR
Short books demand short reviews.
A man has had a long term relationship with a woman that adored him. She loved him more than he loved her. How does she bind him to her, even after her death? () That is the gist of the story. The idea is clever.
However, I do not like Wharton’s prose in this novella. Ideas are expressed in an overly complicated fashion. She uses fancy words where simpler words would have done just as well. Too many words, convoluted postulations and posh language. I prefer simple, clear language and clarity! My low rating reflects my personal dislike of the prose.
Elizabeth Klett reads this at Librivox. Her narration I have given three stars. It is relatively good. You can easily hear all that is said, but she reads too fast and the intonations are mediocre.
*********************
*The Old Maid: The 'Fifties 5 stars
*Bunner Sisters 4 stars
*False Dawn 4 stars
*Summer 4 stars
*The Shadow of a Doubt: A Play in Three Acts 4 stars
*The Marne 3 stars
*The Reef 3 stars
*The House of Mirth 3 stars
*The Glimpses Of The Moon 3 stars
*Coming Home 3 stars
*Xingu 3 stars
*The Touchstone. by: Edith Wharton 2 stars
*The Eyes 2 stars
*The Age of Innocence 1 star
*Ethan Frome 1 star
*Madame de Treymes TBR
*The Custom of the Country TBR
*The Fruit of the Tree TBR
April 20, 2020
We live in our own souls as in an unmapped region, a few acres of which we have cleared for our habitation; while of the nature of those nearest us we know but the boundaries that march with ours.
In order to be able to marry the woman he loves, our protagonist Stephen Glennard anonymously sells the private letters written to him by another woman, a famous authoress now deceased.
After the deed is done and the letters are published, he has married his beloved and has become prosperous, an extreme sense of guilt, remorse and shame overwhelms him.
Will he be able to confess and clean his conscience and lighten the weight of guilt?
We can’t always tear down the temples we’ve built to the unclean gods, but we can put good spirits in the house of evil- the spirits of mercy and shame and understanding, that might never have come to us if we hadn’t been in such great need.
In order to be able to marry the woman he loves, our protagonist Stephen Glennard anonymously sells the private letters written to him by another woman, a famous authoress now deceased.
After the deed is done and the letters are published, he has married his beloved and has become prosperous, an extreme sense of guilt, remorse and shame overwhelms him.
Will he be able to confess and clean his conscience and lighten the weight of guilt?
We can’t always tear down the temples we’ve built to the unclean gods, but we can put good spirits in the house of evil- the spirits of mercy and shame and understanding, that might never have come to us if we hadn’t been in such great need.
May 19, 2015
I vacillated between three or four stars for this novella and opted for three simply because the story didn’t stay with me after I had finished the book, thought the writing did. It was Edith Wharton’s first published novella, her second published book (her first being a short story collection).
Her writing here was every bit as accomplished, acerbic and exquisite as in her more known works, though occasionally so much so that the complexity of the sentences made me go back and look at them again, partly to savour them and partly to comprehend them.
The story is simple. A man has saved the love letters written to him by a woman who was a famous writer but who has died. The letters will fetch him a small fortune, with which he can marry the woman of his dreams, but he pays the price of a guilty conscience. Meanwhile, everyone around him (the usual Wharton-esque hypocrites) revels in the letters but finds the revelation of them a deplorable business.
Having read several of her other works, I found the ending a little bland, but I still enjoyed the novella. Read it for the gorgeous prose, the interesting insights and for Edith Wharton.
Her writing here was every bit as accomplished, acerbic and exquisite as in her more known works, though occasionally so much so that the complexity of the sentences made me go back and look at them again, partly to savour them and partly to comprehend them.
The story is simple. A man has saved the love letters written to him by a woman who was a famous writer but who has died. The letters will fetch him a small fortune, with which he can marry the woman of his dreams, but he pays the price of a guilty conscience. Meanwhile, everyone around him (the usual Wharton-esque hypocrites) revels in the letters but finds the revelation of them a deplorable business.
Having read several of her other works, I found the ending a little bland, but I still enjoyed the novella. Read it for the gorgeous prose, the interesting insights and for Edith Wharton.
July 19, 2021
Having read all of Willa Cather's novels, our Litsy group searched for a new subject, and came up with Edith Wharton. Our plan is to begin reading her published novels and novellas in the order they appear. The Touchstone was her first novella, published in 1900 when the eventually very prolific Wharton was approaching 40.
The title refers to the Philosopher's Stone, the mythological creation by late medieval French scribe Nicholas Flamel, that could turn base metals into gold. The theme echoes in a lot of ways here. Stephen Glennard, struggling financially in New York and in need of a fortune to marry, makes his fortune by publishing a collection of letters he received from a famous and very private author, Margaret Aubyn. But he tries to keep himself anonymous, even from his wife and publisher, as the letters written to him are about his spurning of Aubyn's affection. They are an especially insightful and revealing a character attack on him. When the collection immediately becomes a huge seller, talked about through upper culture New York City, Stephen goes through a personal crisis, spurning his wife and others. The touchstone could be Aubyn, her letters, the curious character who helps Stephen get these letters published, or even his wife, Alexa Trent, who, unlike Aubyn, conceals her intelligence.
This was an interesting intro. Wharton wrote this with a not quite restrained sense of anger, especially within her own frustrated version of feminism and the intolerance with which it was received. And she makes an obvious effort to express her own intelligence, including here some hidden complex philosophy that I was unable to work out. (I did learn that this is a pretty neglected part of Wharton's criticism. A typical source, like Wikipedia, will make a point of highlighting the immense amount of reading she did on religion and philosophy, and then focus entirely on her cultural criticism.) This is not, in my opinion, an amazing novella. But there is a lot here - in style, subject, complexity and in the nature of the author's presence. I'm happy to have this in mind going forward.
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30. The Touchstone by Edith Wharton
published: 1900
format: 63-page Kindle ebook
acquired: June
read: Jul 5-8
time reading: 3:00, 2.9 mpp
rating: 4
locations: New York City
about the author: 1862-1937. Born Edith Newbold Jones on West 23rd Street, New York City. Spent most of her writing life in France.
The title refers to the Philosopher's Stone, the mythological creation by late medieval French scribe Nicholas Flamel, that could turn base metals into gold. The theme echoes in a lot of ways here. Stephen Glennard, struggling financially in New York and in need of a fortune to marry, makes his fortune by publishing a collection of letters he received from a famous and very private author, Margaret Aubyn. But he tries to keep himself anonymous, even from his wife and publisher, as the letters written to him are about his spurning of Aubyn's affection. They are an especially insightful and revealing a character attack on him. When the collection immediately becomes a huge seller, talked about through upper culture New York City, Stephen goes through a personal crisis, spurning his wife and others. The touchstone could be Aubyn, her letters, the curious character who helps Stephen get these letters published, or even his wife, Alexa Trent, who, unlike Aubyn, conceals her intelligence.
This was an interesting intro. Wharton wrote this with a not quite restrained sense of anger, especially within her own frustrated version of feminism and the intolerance with which it was received. And she makes an obvious effort to express her own intelligence, including here some hidden complex philosophy that I was unable to work out. (I did learn that this is a pretty neglected part of Wharton's criticism. A typical source, like Wikipedia, will make a point of highlighting the immense amount of reading she did on religion and philosophy, and then focus entirely on her cultural criticism.) This is not, in my opinion, an amazing novella. But there is a lot here - in style, subject, complexity and in the nature of the author's presence. I'm happy to have this in mind going forward.
-----------------------------------------------
30. The Touchstone by Edith Wharton
published: 1900
format: 63-page Kindle ebook
acquired: June
read: Jul 5-8
time reading: 3:00, 2.9 mpp
rating: 4
locations: New York City
about the author: 1862-1937. Born Edith Newbold Jones on West 23rd Street, New York City. Spent most of her writing life in France.
August 15, 2014
What is it with Edith Wharton and "unromantic" love? In The Age of Innocence we see love thwarted and denied; in Ethan Fromme, misguided and perverted; in Summer, disgraced and hardened. In The Touchstone, the theme of love continues to be unidealistic. It is betrayed and exposed, even sold.
Glennard, a man struggling to make ends meet, is once engaged to a woman who was a famous literary figure. Finding that there is a demand for any letters that would reveal much more of the life of the famous author, Glennard secretly sells the letters to a publisher. With the money he gets from the sale, he starts anew and marries a beautiful woman, Alexa Trent. Thinking that life would be smooth-sailing from then on, Glennard belatedly realizes the effect of his action. When the letters are published and sold like the proverbial hot cakes, he is slowly and belligerently besieged by criticism. Seen as uncallous by many readers, the letters' publication exposes many confessions so intimate that their very exposure is seen by many as downright betrayal.
Glennard is not a bad man. He didn't sell the letters for malicious reasons. He was in dire strait and the letters, being rightfully his, provides a way out of his predicament and he takes it, thinking that it wouldn't matter to his former lover as she has long died. But actions like his have ways of backfiring, and his did big time. Seeing the public's negative reactions, he begins to feel guilty. The torment escalates when his very wife reads the letters and finds out he owns them.
This is where Wharton's genius emerges: the description of Glennard's pathos and transition. Wharton worded it succinctly and graphically that Glennard's emotions take off from the pages and begin to breath. Like in her other novels, Wharton describes the process through the perspective of a tormented soul. She does it so well you'd think she was in the know.
Glennard, a man struggling to make ends meet, is once engaged to a woman who was a famous literary figure. Finding that there is a demand for any letters that would reveal much more of the life of the famous author, Glennard secretly sells the letters to a publisher. With the money he gets from the sale, he starts anew and marries a beautiful woman, Alexa Trent. Thinking that life would be smooth-sailing from then on, Glennard belatedly realizes the effect of his action. When the letters are published and sold like the proverbial hot cakes, he is slowly and belligerently besieged by criticism. Seen as uncallous by many readers, the letters' publication exposes many confessions so intimate that their very exposure is seen by many as downright betrayal.
Glennard is not a bad man. He didn't sell the letters for malicious reasons. He was in dire strait and the letters, being rightfully his, provides a way out of his predicament and he takes it, thinking that it wouldn't matter to his former lover as she has long died. But actions like his have ways of backfiring, and his did big time. Seeing the public's negative reactions, he begins to feel guilty. The torment escalates when his very wife reads the letters and finds out he owns them.
This is where Wharton's genius emerges: the description of Glennard's pathos and transition. Wharton worded it succinctly and graphically that Glennard's emotions take off from the pages and begin to breath. Like in her other novels, Wharton describes the process through the perspective of a tormented soul. She does it so well you'd think she was in the know.
November 18, 2018
In 1900 New York, a wannabe so-called gentleman named Glennard secretly sells off a collection of letters he received from a now dead, now famous authoress. The public reaction is to despise the man who would sell these letters but also of fascination of their content. Glennard is initially happy because with the money he earns he is able to marry and invest in some desired speculations. But things don't turn out as expected.
The writing is excellent, the values 100 years so much better than today and the torment of Glennard makes this a little gem.
The writing is excellent, the values 100 years so much better than today and the torment of Glennard makes this a little gem.
November 14, 2020
The Touchstone is another singular work from Edith Wharton where conscience unveils a seemingly ordinary marriage as a performance. But the underlying disturbance in this union of supposed prosperity is volumes of intimate letters of one famous writer, Mrs Aubyn, published posthumously. In these letters, correspondences anonymously provided by Stephen Glennard, a vile unrequitedness of love and affection adds to the books' infamous reputation which the public can't stop devouring; it's an instant bestseller; a constant topic at teatime across higher social circles. As the women, including Glennard's wife, Alexa, experience second-hand embarrassment and disgrace in reading them, a remarkable conversation about publishing such letters for public consumption ensues and asks significant questions. When do we cross the line when trying to know a beloved author? What does it say about the public who loves controversies as a revelation of an author's humanity? I can't help but recall James Joyce's erotic letters (it seems he had a fart fetish) or Rebecca West's frantic letters to HG Wells. Perhaps, even some of the burnt letters of Emily Dickinson to Susan Huntington that may allude better to their supposed romance. Surely, it doesn't matter much when both people are dead. But what if one of them still lives? Such is with The Touchstone. All the while, Glennard hears of people's utter of disgust about his heartlessness in these letters. Only, he put it to himself in exchange for his desire of money. Money which lets Glennard and his wife live luxuriously. What succeeds is a state of paranoia and jealousy, a pang of remorse weighing on Glennard's back, a secret ultimately vomited at the height of matrimony's unbearably silent afflictions and brusqueness. Mrs Aubyn's apparition hangs over the Glennards' relationship. More so with the undeniable fact at how Stephen Glennard treated and had taken advantage of Mrs Aubyn. It ends abruptly at the heat of the Glennards' altercation. As expected from Wharton, like Ethan Frome's still vivid final paragraph, The Touchstone too shakes you with Alexa Glennard's response of exclamation. And it brings Walt Whitman's Sometimes with One I Love to me (also copied below).
Sometimes with One I Love by Walt Whitman
Sometimes with one I love I fill myself with rage for fear I effuse unreturn’d love,
But now I think there is no unreturn’d love, the pay is certain one way or another
(I loved a certain person ardently and my love was not return’d,
Yet out of that I have written these songs).
Sometimes with One I Love by Walt Whitman
Sometimes with one I love I fill myself with rage for fear I effuse unreturn’d love,
But now I think there is no unreturn’d love, the pay is certain one way or another
(I loved a certain person ardently and my love was not return’d,
Yet out of that I have written these songs).
August 23, 2023
This 1900 novella remains modern today, for it is about privacy and how much should the public know about a famous person. The story of a struggling lawyer who sells intimate letters from a deceased novelist to finance his wedding is considered "Wharton light," but it is filled with Whartonian ambiguities and moral questions when the "sale" comes back to torment him. Ironically, years later, after Wharton's death, her sole lover Morton Fullerton (c 1907-09) sold Wharton's letters to stay alive. We didnt know about their passionate affair until the 1970s and it left many academics blushing because they incorrectly assumed her lover was mentor-confirmed bachelor Walter Berry. The same academics now rap Fullerton for having fiddled w Wharton's emotions. A charmer who was always sexually on the prowl, Fullerton just did what came naturally....and did it very well. The obscure Fullerton, who lived in Paris throughout W2, deserves a big biography. Meantime, appreciate the keen ironies in "The Touchstone," Wharton's reply to "The Aspern Papers."
January 5, 2022
“The one woman knew but did not understand; the other, it seemed, understood without knowing.”
Ah Glennard, the tortured soul caught between a beloved wife and a deceased ex-girlfriend, who continues to haunt him. This is one of those books that make you speechless, it’s really difficult to write down what it’s really about or how it made you feel. But this book makes you feel - to the core of your being. Edith Wharton creates wonders verbalizing some sentiments and feelings that are easily recognizable but challenging to transfer via words on a page. She creates one hell of a dead heroine that speaks louder than others who still exist. A magnificent piece of literature, a small novella that will capture your heart and a new addition to my all time-favorites of mine.
Ah Glennard, the tortured soul caught between a beloved wife and a deceased ex-girlfriend, who continues to haunt him. This is one of those books that make you speechless, it’s really difficult to write down what it’s really about or how it made you feel. But this book makes you feel - to the core of your being. Edith Wharton creates wonders verbalizing some sentiments and feelings that are easily recognizable but challenging to transfer via words on a page. She creates one hell of a dead heroine that speaks louder than others who still exist. A magnificent piece of literature, a small novella that will capture your heart and a new addition to my all time-favorites of mine.
September 3, 2013
Free download available at Project Gutenberg.
I didn't know but this is Wharton's first novella and her second book which was published in 1900. It was also published under the title "A Gift From The Grave".
Stephen Glennard betrays a former love - Mrs. Aubyn, selling her letters to him so that he may raise the money to marry his beautiful fiancee.
Excellent plot, a quite enjoyable reading. Another little gem of the literature.
I didn't know but this is Wharton's first novella and her second book which was published in 1900. It was also published under the title "A Gift From The Grave".
Stephen Glennard betrays a former love - Mrs. Aubyn, selling her letters to him so that he may raise the money to marry his beautiful fiancee.
Excellent plot, a quite enjoyable reading. Another little gem of the literature.
January 3, 2020
Edith Wharton is probably one of best story tellers I have come across. Gilennard sells letters of a deceased author who once loved him to finance his way to marriage. The accrued guilt is a theme similar to that of Nostromo - but gets a much better treatment from author.
"“The sensation was part of the general strangeness that made him feel like a man waking from a long sleep to find himself in an unknown country among people of alien tongue. We live in our own souls as in an unmapped region, a few acres of which we have cleared for our habitation; while of the nature of those nearest us we know but the boundaries that march with ours. Of the points in his wife's character not in direct contact with his own, Glennard now discerned his ignorance; and the baffling sense of her remoteness was intensified by the discovery that, in one way, she was closer to him than ever before. As one may live for years in happy unconsciousness of the possession of a sensitive nerve, he had lived beside his wife unaware that her individuality had become a part of the texture of his life, ineradicable as some growth on a vital organ; and he now felt himself at once incapable of forecasting her judgment and powerless to evade its effects.”
November 25, 2024
At length he looked up. "I don't know," he said, "what spirits have come to live in the house of evil that I built – but you're there and that's enough."
And this was her FIRST NOVEL, you guys – stick a fork into me 'cause I'm done. At this point I'd read a 600-page abstract about the stock market if Edith Wharton wrote it.
July 14, 2013
I just finished reading The Touchstone again, in conjunction with reading Henry James's The Aspern Papers. I believe that The Touchstone may have been Wharton's first published work of fiction too.
The novella tells the story of Stephen Glennard a youngish gentleman of New York's upper-crust society who is trying to find the financial wherewithal to marry his fiance, Miss Alexa Trent. Sitting in his club one evening he encounters an advertisement from a Professor Joslin who is looking for any papers and correspondence from the late author, Miss Margaret Aubyn. Miss Aubyn just happens to be the woman that Glennard had had a long-term intimate relationship with almost up until she died a few years earlier.
In short order, the reader discovers that Glennard has bundles and bundles of very personal letters that he received from Miss Aubyn during the course of their relationship. He then decides to have them published, and the two-volumes become a huge literary hit with the reading public.
As people begin reading the volumes, particular those in Glennard's circle of friends, he finds out that most people are frankly appalled that anyone would expose these intimate letters to public scrutiny. It is not long before Glennard himself begins to doubt his own motives for publishing the letters, and it begins to negatively impact his own relationship with his now wife, Alexa. In fact, they've even bought themselves a nice little house on the outskirts of New York City with the riches he's gained by selling the letters. Even Alexa--who doesn't know that these intimate letters were addressed to Glennard, or that he's sold them--is basically horrified that anyone could be so callous and black-hearted as to open this incredibly personal window into Miss Aubyn's heart and soul.
For much of the novella the story revolves around the struggle and tension between Glennard's desire to do right and provide a meaningful income and life for his new wife, and the increasing guilt he is feeling for his betrayal of his former relationship with Miss Aubyn. It builds to an important and emotionally powerful climactic scene involving Glennard and Alexa.
I suggest that a reading of Edith Wharton's The Touchstone can be significantly enhanced by first reading Henry James's The Aspern Papers (1888). The topics of personal privacy, betrayal, trust, and the role of literary biographers and academic research are really front-and-center in both novellas. Which is perhaps not all that surprising considering that Edith Wharton and Henry James not only knew each other well, but became very good friends. Finally, The Touchstone truly is a most excellent introduction to the fiction of Edith Wharton, the first woman to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1921, for her novel, The Age of Innocence (1920).
The novella tells the story of Stephen Glennard a youngish gentleman of New York's upper-crust society who is trying to find the financial wherewithal to marry his fiance, Miss Alexa Trent. Sitting in his club one evening he encounters an advertisement from a Professor Joslin who is looking for any papers and correspondence from the late author, Miss Margaret Aubyn. Miss Aubyn just happens to be the woman that Glennard had had a long-term intimate relationship with almost up until she died a few years earlier.
In short order, the reader discovers that Glennard has bundles and bundles of very personal letters that he received from Miss Aubyn during the course of their relationship. He then decides to have them published, and the two-volumes become a huge literary hit with the reading public.
As people begin reading the volumes, particular those in Glennard's circle of friends, he finds out that most people are frankly appalled that anyone would expose these intimate letters to public scrutiny. It is not long before Glennard himself begins to doubt his own motives for publishing the letters, and it begins to negatively impact his own relationship with his now wife, Alexa. In fact, they've even bought themselves a nice little house on the outskirts of New York City with the riches he's gained by selling the letters. Even Alexa--who doesn't know that these intimate letters were addressed to Glennard, or that he's sold them--is basically horrified that anyone could be so callous and black-hearted as to open this incredibly personal window into Miss Aubyn's heart and soul.
For much of the novella the story revolves around the struggle and tension between Glennard's desire to do right and provide a meaningful income and life for his new wife, and the increasing guilt he is feeling for his betrayal of his former relationship with Miss Aubyn. It builds to an important and emotionally powerful climactic scene involving Glennard and Alexa.
I suggest that a reading of Edith Wharton's The Touchstone can be significantly enhanced by first reading Henry James's The Aspern Papers (1888). The topics of personal privacy, betrayal, trust, and the role of literary biographers and academic research are really front-and-center in both novellas. Which is perhaps not all that surprising considering that Edith Wharton and Henry James not only knew each other well, but became very good friends. Finally, The Touchstone truly is a most excellent introduction to the fiction of Edith Wharton, the first woman to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1921, for her novel, The Age of Innocence (1920).
July 21, 2010
Maybe Wharton's charm and acerbity wear with the more of her books that you read or maybe this one just is not her best.
Lovely writing, some interesting insights but ultimately difficult to be invested in. The idea is compelling: selling out a not-love to secure your true love--who eventually falls a little flat. But if you've read Wharton, from the get-go you know it's not going to pan out all too well. And then it doesn't. And I couldn't quite get myself to care about any of the characters. And that was that.
Lovely writing, some interesting insights but ultimately difficult to be invested in. The idea is compelling: selling out a not-love to secure your true love--who eventually falls a little flat. But if you've read Wharton, from the get-go you know it's not going to pan out all too well. And then it doesn't. And I couldn't quite get myself to care about any of the characters. And that was that.
March 26, 2017
25 MAR 2017 - for the love of one woman, a man sells the memory of another.
Free download at Project Gutenberg - http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/267
Free download at Project Gutenberg - http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/267
April 22, 2019
The nature of the conflict and the way the main characters acted upon it, seemed completely archaic to me, a contemporary reader, but Wharton managed to keep the story interesting. Her observations of a human character are acute and though her prose is dense, it runs smoothly. I especially enjoy her descriptions of everyday life. The Gilded Age novels written today can never capture all details in full, since the authors live in a completely different world. Wharton knows her world. Take a ride in a hansom (the 19th century version of a taxi) for example: if you lifted the lid, the cabby automatically assumed you had something to tell him and slowed down in order to hear you. Details like that make Wharton's novels a real treasure for anyone interested in this period.
January 5, 2018
How can he betrayed his ex gf's (though dead) personal privacy and trust by publishing her love letters to him just to get rich and marry someone else? Hmm...
December 28, 2025
Esta es la primera novela de Edith Wharton, publicada en el año 1900. En esta novela corta ya se evidencia la gran calidad narrativa que llegaría a tener esta autora, ganadora del premio Pulitzer por su obra, La edad de la inocencia. Es una autora que me encanta, tanto por su estilo narrativo como por las tramas de sus obras y de la cual he leido varias de sus novelas.
Aunque esta es una buena novela, yo no me estrenaría con la autora con esta novela, ya que tiene bastante de temática psicológica y no gusta a todos los lectores.
La trama de la novela gira en torno a Stephen Grennant, un abogado con escasos medios que quiere casarse con la señorita Alexa Trent, hace años fue amigo de la escritora Margaret Aubyn, y tiene en su posesión bastantes cartas que la autora le escribió, el destino pone en su camino, un cambio de su suerte, a cambio de vender esas cartas a una editorial para publicarlas en un libro.
La novela gira en torno al dilema moral que supone para Grennant el haber vendido esas cartas en beneficio propio.....
Aunque esta es una buena novela, yo no me estrenaría con la autora con esta novela, ya que tiene bastante de temática psicológica y no gusta a todos los lectores.
La trama de la novela gira en torno a Stephen Grennant, un abogado con escasos medios que quiere casarse con la señorita Alexa Trent, hace años fue amigo de la escritora Margaret Aubyn, y tiene en su posesión bastantes cartas que la autora le escribió, el destino pone en su camino, un cambio de su suerte, a cambio de vender esas cartas a una editorial para publicarlas en un libro.
La novela gira en torno al dilema moral que supone para Grennant el haber vendido esas cartas en beneficio propio.....
April 26, 2023
3'5 ⭐
Ser amado por la mujer más brillante de su época y ser incapaz de amarla le parecía, al echar la vista atrás, la prueba más hiriente de sus limitaciones.
El único hecho que nos permite convivir con nuestros allegados es que desconocemos por completo lo bien que nos conocen. El amor es el refugio más inexpugnable de nuestra autoestima y odiamos a todo aquél que sepa ver nuestra desnudez.
Ser amado por la mujer más brillante de su época y ser incapaz de amarla le parecía, al echar la vista atrás, la prueba más hiriente de sus limitaciones.
El único hecho que nos permite convivir con nuestros allegados es que desconocemos por completo lo bien que nos conocen. El amor es el refugio más inexpugnable de nuestra autoestima y odiamos a todo aquél que sepa ver nuestra desnudez.
January 6, 2018
It was not bad, but kinda melodramatic and the characters were rather annoying. As a satire it was good. A nice short read, with some interesting lines.
December 12, 2025
bunun wharton'ın ilk novellası olduğuna inanamadım, o kadar hoş kiii
September 5, 2017
Col suo splendido inglese e con l’ancora più splendida capacità di ritrarre l’animo umano, è una lettura balsamica. Anche se questa storia è stupida (ma perché non si divertivano?! Peggy Guggenheim è la dimostrazione che si poteva!), è un mirabile specchio di Edith (cioè di come avrebbe voluto apparire), nella duplice veste di scrittrice che porta il raggio della conoscenza e risveglia l’etica sopita del suo giovane protegé (che non l’ha né amata né capita, ma tradita due volte) e dell’amorevole moglie che attraverso il perdono riscatta quel fregnone del marito.
NOTA: questa lettura segue “L’età del desiderio”, storia romanzata degli amori tra la quarantenne Wharton e il giovanotto Fullerton (metà del libro titilla la pruderie: Edith scopre l’impero dei sensi col giornalista e l’autrice ce ne dà pure conto, e sembra pure che il tutto sia documentato dalla corrispondenza!).
La scelta del titolo è stata casuale (sul K ho tutti i racconti in inglese), ma incredibilmente centrata: The Touchstone è una sorta di vendetta letteraria retroattiva. Dove l’uomo fa una misera figura, e la donna si erge in tutta la sua grandezza (peccato che per farlo debba prima morire).
NOTA: questa lettura segue “L’età del desiderio”, storia romanzata degli amori tra la quarantenne Wharton e il giovanotto Fullerton (metà del libro titilla la pruderie: Edith scopre l’impero dei sensi col giornalista e l’autrice ce ne dà pure conto, e sembra pure che il tutto sia documentato dalla corrispondenza!).
La scelta del titolo è stata casuale (sul K ho tutti i racconti in inglese), ma incredibilmente centrata: The Touchstone è una sorta di vendetta letteraria retroattiva. Dove l’uomo fa una misera figura, e la donna si erge in tutta la sua grandezza (peccato che per farlo debba prima morire).
August 6, 2025
3.5 rounded up for the vibes fr.. i definitely see the roots of her pulitzer prize winning smash hit the age of innocence but it falls a little flat. nevertheless edith remains the master of male regret
April 28, 2022
Esta es la típica historia bien escrita que acaba diluyéndose en tu memoria cuando la recuerdas.
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