도시화와 소비하는 여성: 이디스 워튼의 『여름』을 중심으로

초록

This paper examines the phenomenon of consumer culture in which woman plays the role of consumer in Edith Wharton's Summer. As America in the late 19th century underwent a rapid process of urbanization and commercialization, the role of woman as consumer stood out. Separated from any productive labor, woman became a primary agent of consumption. Especially, the rise of the so-called ‘leisure class' made much of ‘conspicuous consumption.’ However, those who did not belong to the leisure class also participated in these cultural changes. Charity Royall, a resident of a small town, shares this desire for consumption as much as any woman in the city would pursue, and constantly emulates other women in pursuing her desire. When Lucius Harney comes to town, Charity is immediately allured to him because he is a city fellow representing urban power and glamor. In the end, Charity does not gain a full freedom from the rural scene, settling down to the marriage with Lawyer Royall. On the one hand, Charity's choice of the marriage only shows how difficult a poor underprivileged woman moves upward in her status and satisfy the desire for consumption. Yet, on the other, Charity’s marriage to Royall ironically opens up a possibility for her gaining the power of consumption she has coveted after all. By showing the case of Charity, Wharton presents a realistic picture of how woman was tightly bound in her social role as the consumer and consumable.

키워드