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'Do you remember what you said to me once? That you could help me only by loving me? Well-you did love me for a moment; and it helped me. It has always helped me.'
Lily Bart, an attractive young woman living in New York City, relies on beauty and charm to ensure economic survival. Determined to marry into wealth to support her expensive lifestyle, Lily denies her feelings for Lawrence Stern due to his modest income. She turns instead towards young millionaire, Percy Grace. During her pursuit of money and status, Lily becomes the agent of her own undoing. Events take a tragic turn and her reputation is ruined by scandal. She is unwilling to adhere to the standards of New York's social elitism, which leads to devastating consequences.
Wharton's stunning and disturbing commentary on the role of women in this irresponsible, hedonistic society will delight those enchanted by her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel 'The Age of Innocence'.
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Yes, you can access CLASSICS-HOUSE OF MIRTH EPU_EB by Edith Wharton in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literature & Classics. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
CLASSIC LITERATURE: WORDS AND PHRASES adapted from the Collins English Dictionary
AccoucheurNOUN a male midwife or doctor
I think my sister must have had some general idea that I was a young offender whom an Accoucheur Policemen had taken up (on my birthday) and delivered over to her (Great Expectations by Charles Dickens)
addledADJ confused and unable to think properly
But she counted and counted till she got that addled (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
admirationNOUN amazement or wonder
lifting up his hands and eyes by way of admiration (Gulliverās Travels by Jonathan Swift)
afeardADJ afeard means afraid
shake itāand donāt be afeard (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
affectedVERB affected means to assume the appearance of
Hadst thou affected sweet divinity (Doctor Faustus 5.2 by Christopher Marlowe)
agroundADV when a boat runs aground, it touches the ground in a shallow part of the water and gets stuck
what kepā you?āboat get aground? (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
agueNOUN a fever in which the patient has alternate hot and cold shivering fits
his exposure to the wet and cold had brought on fever and ague (Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens)
alchemyADJ false or worthless
all wealth alchemy (The Sun Rising by John Donne)
all alikePHRASE the same all the time
Love, all alike (The Sun Rising by John Donne)
alow and aloftPHRASE alow means in the lower part or bottom, and aloft means on the top, so alow and aloft means on the top and in the bottom or throughout
Someoneās turned the chest out alow and aloft (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
ambuscadeNOUN ambuscade is not a proper word. Tom means an ambush, which is when a group of people attack their enemies, after hiding and waiting for them
and so we would lie in ambuscade, as he called it (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
amiableADJ likeable or pleasant
Such amiable qualities must speak for themselves (Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen)
amuletNOUN an amulet is a charm thought to drive away evil spirits.
uttered phrases at once occult and familiar, like the amulet worn on the heart (Silas Marner by George Eliot)
amusementNOUN here amusement means a strange and disturbing puzzle
this was an amusement the other way (Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe)
ancientNOUN an ancient was the flag displayed on a ship to show which country it belongs to. It is also called the ensign
her ancient and pendants out (Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe)
anticADJ here antic means horrible or grotesque
armed and dressed after a very antic manner (Gulliverās Travels by Jonathan Swift)
anticsNOUN antics is an old word meaning clowns, or people who do silly things to make other people laugh
