The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

Welcome to the Valley of Decision. It should be about 1761 when the book starts, and of course a few years later by the time we reach the end of the first section. We've met a lot of characters (I've had to keep a running list of names and titles). Odo goes from Pontesordo to Pianura to Donnaz to Turin, and through many life stations.

By the way, this setting is pretty unfamiliar to me (pre-unification Italy), and I had to look a lot of things up. Will add some of the non-spoilery elements to the background thread and keep any spoilery ones in the sections where they come up.

Why does Odo feel an affinity for the painted saints and figures in the chapel? And later with the "Pagan" paintings in the Donnaz granary?

What do you think of the various characters? (Pontesordo: Filomena, Giannozzo, the abate, the Momola; Pianura: the Duke and Duchess, Lelio Trescorre, Brutus, Countess Laura; and then the Count Valdu, Cantapresto, Mirandolina, Alfieri) Do you have any favorites, any you're watching carefully, anyone you're suspicious of?

What did you make of Odo's conversation and friendship with Count Alfieri and his uncle?

What are some differences between Odo's religious ideals and those of his mother after some time in Turin?

This section was very hard going for me. I realize it’s setting the background for us, but it was a bit of a slog.

Deborah wrote: "This section was very hard going for me. I realize it’s setting the background for us, but it was a bit of a slog."

Me too. I'm on week 3's section now, and it does get better. Though some of the language is still hard for me.

Lori wrote: "Deborah wrote: "This section was very hard going for me. I realize it’s setting the background for us, but it was a bit of a slog."

Me too. I'm on week 3's section now, and it does get better. Tho..."

I’ve also read ahead and it does get better

I’m having to go slowly on the story also and may fall behind, but it seems like a great story is shaping up.

Nancy wrote: "I’m having to go slowly on the story also and may fall behind, but it seems like a great story is shaping up."

We can add a catchup week at some point if people are falling behind. (I'm having the same struggle with our local book club - I don't think I'm going to finish that book on time!)

I too am struggling with too much to read in a short time

Deborah wrote: "I too am struggling with too much to read in a short time"

Do you all want to take the week starting May 25 off and come back after the Vicar of Wakefield finishes?

I was flabbergasted by the first couple of chapters. Not at all what I was expecting from Edith Wharton. Erudite, meticulously researched (as far as I can tell) historical fiction. In Italy! This was her first novel, and there are reviews out there that think it was her best. I agree that all the references to painters, poets, philosophers, and political figures got somewhat overwhelming in later chapters.

This, from an essay called Italian Foregrounds and Backgrounds: The Valley of Decision by Gianfranca Balestra gives an interesting perspective.

....as Wharton admitted in a letter, "there is too much explanation, too much history," because "the period (in Italy) is one so unfamiliar to the reader that it was difficult to take for granted that he would fill out his background
for himself." Wharton meant "the book to be a picture
of a social phase, not of two people's individual history,
& Fulvia & Odo are just little bits of looking-glass in
which fragments of the great panorama are reflected."
The characters then are not the main subject of the novel:
they are "reflectors" for a panorama that might at times
be too detailed and didactic, but in most cases comes to
life with a vividness similar to that recognized by Whar-
ton in the Italian religious paintings.

Odo begins his journey to the lowlands in ch. 1.7, gazing from the window of the carriage, he sees "The scene was such as Salvator might have painted: wild blocks of stone heaped under walnut-shade; here the white plunge of water down a wall of granite..." Just one example of the many visual descriptions directly related to paintings.

This painting is called Wooded Landscape by Salvator Rosa.

The writing is definitely picturesque and detailed, and more character and setting-driven than plot-driven! And I agree, from what I've been able to tell so far with all the things I've had to look up, it seems she was going for historical accuracy when it comes to customs and things like that.

I vote for taking the week of May 25 off. I am enjoying the book, despite the slow going. It seems somewhat like fantasy, but also somewhat like a historical tale. I’ve only read one other Wharton novel, Ethan Frome, and it’s amazing how different Wharton’s style of writing is in this book. EF was spare and concise, and the emotions were raw. I hope to read more of her work in the future, because her talent is amazing.

I've posted the Week 2 thread already, but I'll add a catchup week to the schedule.

I just joined the group and am looking forward to discussing this and other books with all of you. The Valley of Decision is a great book for me to begin with.

Yes indeed as others noted above, there’s a enormous amount of detail in Book 1. When approaching historical fiction with lots of archaic and non-English words, I try not to get bogged down in particulars but instead look to the general sweep of the setting—which Wharton describes magnificently—and traits of characters that appear frequently. Odo’s character is still developing, but there are already hints as to what lies in his future.

This may be Wharton’s first novel but she is already a master of the language. Consider for example this perfect portrait of

” … the fine gentlemen’s world of intrigue, cards and duelling: the world in which ladies were subjugated, fortunes lost, adversaries run through and tradesmen ruined with that imperturbable grace which distinguished the man of quality from the plebeian.”

Lori wrote: "What are some differences between Odo's religious ideals and those of his mother after some time in Turin?"

It seems to me that Odo is indifferent to his mother's formalism and routinization of religion. His own religious experience began in the chapel of Pontesordo and moved toward the monastic. Becoming the heir-presumptive of Pianura has changed the direction of his life. It will be interesting to see what comes of his youthful religious impulse now. Already he "prayed in vain for a reawakening of the old [religious] emotion."

Lori wrote: "Deborah wrote: "This section was very hard going for me. I realize it’s setting the background for us, but it was a bit of a slog."
Me too. .."

Me three. I've read 17 other Wharton works and haven't run into one before where I felt the introductory chapters presented a muddled picture of the setting and characters. My trudge through the slog of words was aided by my general love of Wharton.

Lori wrote: "The writing is definitely picturesque and detailed, and more character and setting-driven than plot-driven! ..."

While Wharton is certainly descriptive enough to present the reader a solid visualization, I still was unable to follow everything clearly enough to accomplish that. Perhaps it was her choice to present foreign people in a foreign land in a different time. The Italian names of characters and towns and the titles do seem to add to the confusion, as do her concerns to educate the reader and to be historically accurate
While Wharton has presented foreign settings effectively in other novels they have generally been with American characters and in her current or immediate prior time period.
Reading this reminds me of my reading experience with another English-language author's work about Italians in a prior century's Italy: George Eliot's Romola. I had difficulty visualizing the characters and setting in that one too, resulting in a less engaging read. As a result it was my least favorite of the 7 George Eliot novels I have read. I hope for better from this book but if not, as a self-professed Wharton fan, I will get value from this reading experience no matter how enjoyable a one it is.