Old Money Love
This summer I've been taking an American Moderns: 1900-1945 online class through SCAD. I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would, having discovered the amazing Dorothy Parker through our readings
From paging through the short stories of Edith Wharton and F. Scott Fitzgerald I've become intrigued by the courting rituals of the early 20th century rich. Men and women live very separate lives. Because of this, couples are often a mystery to one another. One of Wharton's tales tells the story of a husband who's wife is a stranger to him. In another story a woman sits across from a man she ran off with, realizing she doesn't know him at all. Once a couple is determined to be a good match, they are quickly engaged. To wait too long would be suggestive and scandalous. These marriages often break up for sake of the story. Those that do last inevitably involve cheating, or at least the couple falling out love. Oh, and naturally divorce has disastrous consequences too.
I would not have survived in this world of money and hand written invitations. I am slow to warm up to potential suitors. This would inevitably have two consequences: I would lose out on real love, or end up ceremoniously married to someone that I cared nothing for. I suppose communicating by fancy letters would be fun though.
From paging through the short stories of Edith Wharton and F. Scott Fitzgerald I've become intrigued by the courting rituals of the early 20th century rich. Men and women live very separate lives. Because of this, couples are often a mystery to one another. One of Wharton's tales tells the story of a husband who's wife is a stranger to him. In another story a woman sits across from a man she ran off with, realizing she doesn't know him at all. Once a couple is determined to be a good match, they are quickly engaged. To wait too long would be suggestive and scandalous. These marriages often break up for sake of the story. Those that do last inevitably involve cheating, or at least the couple falling out love. Oh, and naturally divorce has disastrous consequences too.
I would not have survived in this world of money and hand written invitations. I am slow to warm up to potential suitors. This would inevitably have two consequences: I would lose out on real love, or end up ceremoniously married to someone that I cared nothing for. I suppose communicating by fancy letters would be fun though.