Wharton's use of colour to represent the opposition between innocence and experience is masterful. Her use of the yellow rose motif (representing infidelity and jealousy) is, as Darth Vader might say, most impressive.
In Gilded Age New York, reputation is everything, and deviation from the norm invites merciless condemnation. Nowhere is this more evident than in the establishment's treatment of Ellen Olenska, the independent and unconventional countess whose mere existence unsettles the carefully curated order. Chairing the lets-take-down-Ellen committee is Mrs. Welland, whose icy remarks—couched in the language of concern—are calculated to inflict maximum damage.
If you admire Edith’s exquisite prose and explosive exposé of societal constraints, then this tee's for you.