The Buccaneers
16. Edith Wharton, The Buccaneers
This novel of manners set in the late 19th-century explores the various consequences to individuals when social worlds collide. The main characters are a group of young American women who, although pretty and rich, are unsuccessful in American society because they come from “new money.” Eventually Laura Testvalley, governess to the two St. George girls, suggests that they travel to England for a London Season: to the English, their relaxed manners will have the charm of novelty, and the girls will be more likely to make advantageous marriages. Despite the girls’ success in England, however, Nan St. George yearns for more than money and status, and she must eventually choose between true love and the demands of society.
When I started this book, I was a bit afraid it would drag, but I quickly became fascinated by the society Wharton conjures up, and I was intrigued by the intertwining stories of all the various characters. I found Nan St. George’s story particularly compelling, and while some of her choices frustrated me, I was definitely hoping for a happy ending for her. So the major drawback to this novel is that Wharton never finished it! She did write a summary of the entire plot, so we know where she ultimately intended to go, but unfortunately we don’t get to see the entire story unfold in Wharton’s own words. Even the part that she did write is somewhat unpolished: for example, although Nan seems to be the intended heroine, Laura Testvalley continually intrudes as a potential protagonist in her own right.
I read the movie tie-in version of this book (there was a BBC production in the ‘90s), in which Wharton’s manuscript was “completed” by Angela Mackworth-Young, who based her version of the story on the movie’s script. I had originally intended to read the Mackworth-Young ending, because Wharton’s portion really left me hanging - but after reading a few chapters, I had to give up. Mackworth-Young may be a decent writer, but she falls far short of Wharton’s standards, and I just couldn’t bring myself to read her version of the novel’s ending; I’d rather imagine my own! I really liked Wharton’s story, though, and I’m sorry that she didn’t live to finish what was shaping up to be an excellent novel.