The House of Mirth: Book II V-VI

Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.

In this section of Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth, Lily experiences another major turning point. Luckily for her, this one is good. She is taken in by Carrie Fisher and exposed to new faces in high society, allowing her to begin rebuilding her damaged reputation. As a writer, Wharton has unique signatures given to those residing in upper-class society. One such signature is her chosen diction, or the dialect she uses for the upper-class, educated characters. High society has a vernacular just like other societies, and in Wharton's case it is French words. Although it is common for writers to occasionally place a term from another language in a novel, Wharton specifically places French terms, not in descriptions or narrations, but in the dialogue of the wealthy characters. For example, Carrie Fisher easily slips French into her sentences, saying "I've got carte blanche to bring my friends down there" (Wharton, 188).

Often Wharton's characters will use a French word, most likely to appear fancy, educated, and wordly. It's also a sign of the time period, as in the early 1900s Europe was looked to for trends in everything from food to fashion. It is not surprising then, that the wealthy would use French terms in an attempt to show off their status.