Innocence is one or Wharton’s most successful books because it offers an inside look at a subject the author knew very well. Because the author was already familiar with New York society due to the fact that she grew up in old New York, it was not as difficult for Wharton to place the characters in the novel, and to develop the central theme.

Wharton’s most successful theme was the plight of the young and the innocent in a culture they were not prepa

The Age of Innocence is known as a novel of manners because people live the way society expects them to and not as the please. This culture portrays sophistication and elegance, but once the mask is removed we see a world of suffering and denial.

The author portrays three figures against the historical background of New York’s Elite: First is May Welland the young woman whom Newland Archer becomes engaged to. She is a product of the social setting, a young girl raised to be perfectly innocent in order for her husband to teach and train her to suit his wishes. Ellen Olenska has freed herself from the restraints of society. . She has left her husband, the Count, because of his abuse. New York society disapproves of her because she has left her husband, because she supposedly had an affa

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