The House of Mirth (Blog 14)

By: Edith Wharton

Like I predicted, the ending of this book was so depressing!  In chapter 15, Selden goes to visit Lily, so I was excited for him to encounter her again.  "He only knew that he must see Lily Bart at once-he had found the word he meant to say to her, and it could not wait another moment to be said.  It was strange that it had not come to his lips sooner-that he had let her pass from him the evening before without being able to speak it" (Wharton, 264).  I am not exactly sure what Selden's motivation was to see Lily, but it sounded like he was going to propose to her.  When he got to Lily's, Gerty frantically answered the door.  Selden becomes concerned at this and the fact that many other people are in the apartment.  Gerty leads him upstairs to a bedroom, where he sees Lily's dead body lying in bed.  He learns that Lily had over-dosed on chloral, which she was taking to help her sleep.  It broke my heart to read this entire chapter.  Reading some of the thoughts and descriptions of Selden's reaction to Lily's death was so sad.  "His impulse was to return to her side, to fall on his knees, and rest his throbbing head against the peaceful cheek on the pillow.  They had never been at peace together, the two; and now he felt himself drawn downward into the strange mysterious depths of her tranquility" (Wharton, 265).  When I read this part, I honestly teared up a little bit.  Selden and Lily had a difficult relationship, and the two always struggled with something.  When Selden realized this after Lily died, I felt terrible for him.  Selden exhibits a strong, unconditional love for Lily.  It disappoints me that he never got to marry Lily because he really wanted to.  It is so sad that Lily died in a state of depression.  I wanted her to find happiness, and I definitely think Selden would have been the source of this happiness.