THE MOUNT - The Estate and Gardens of Edith Wharton (1862-1937)
I recently had the pleasure of visiting The Mount, the home and garden designed and built by Edith Wharton in 1902. It is located in Lenox MA. As the first woman awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, Edith Wharton's achievement as one of America's greatest writers is unquestioned. She wrote over 40 books including The Decoration of Houses (1897). The Mount was a project into which she could pour all her ideas about home decoration. Once it was completed she was able to entertain her friends (including Henry James) and work on her writing. While living here she wrote one of her most famous works The House of Mirth (1905). She lived at this estate for ten years, when she was unfortunately forced to sell and move to France after the failure of her marriage.
The Mount has been restored and is now open to the public. You can take a guided tour or wander around on your own. There is a gift shop and a cafe where you can sit on the terrace and overlook the grounds. I found the whole place to be enchanting, but my favorite room was the library. The books displayed on the shelves are actually the same books that Wharton had when she lived there, some with her notations and inscriptions. They were returned from Europe to The Mount in 2006.
Henry James described The Mount in a letter to a friend saying, "...I am very happy here, surrounded by every loveliness of nature & every luxury of art & treated with a benevolence that brings tears to my eyes." I couldn't agree more. The gardens are so peaceful and being able to visit in July meant I could enjoy all the blooming flowers.
Wharton's understanding of the power of homes in human lives is evident in her works. For example this excerpt from The Age of Innocence (1920):
"The young man, as he followed his wife into the hall, was conscious of a curious reversal of mood. There was something about the luxury of the Welland house and the density of the Welland atmosphere, so charged with minute observances and exactions, that always stole into his system like a narcotic."
Note:
If you care to visit the Mount website you will find a lot more information and much nicer photos.
http://www.edithwharton.org
Posts
I saw the two movie adaptations of the age of innocence and the house of mirth and they both depressed me greatly. How are the books?
ReplyDeleteI envy you for having been there! The House of Mirth is a great book. I liked it a lot!
ReplyDeleteThe house looks wonderful, more like a palace really!
ReplyDeleteI'll put it on my 'to do' list for the next time I visit America.
How incredible! That is a great experience - thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds lovely. I've only read Ethen Frome, which I enjoyed. Re your comment on Haiku Fridays: I hope to post the column regularly, it depends on my health. I have three other haiku posts that may interest you here:
ReplyDeletehttp://freshinkbooks.blogspot.com/search/label/haiku
I'm glad you enjoy them and I'm delighted to have you as a follower.
hmsgofita, That is a shame that you found the movies depressing. I guess that you would feel the same way about the books. I kind of like depressing stories - in moderation.
ReplyDeleteAndreea, I feel very lucky to have been able to go. It was about a 3 hour drive from where we live. They do weddings there too - wouldn't that be amazing. Hopefuly one of my daughters will like the idea when they grow up! (They are 8 & 5 currently)
Gail, It would be wonderful if you get to go. They are still in the process of renovating so it will get better in the future.
Sheila, You are welcome. I was happy to share my excitement. It was a shame I couldn't have put up a photo of the library though. I didn't want to snitch one from their offical website because of copyright and no flash photography was allowed inside.
Sandra, I haven't read Ethen Frome. Did you like it? I will have to give it a try. Thanks for the links to your haiku.
I have wanted to visit The Mount for years, but the two small boys have limited my travels out of Wisconsin the past few years except to visit family in Michigan and Minnesota. I am jealous!
ReplyDeleteI love Edith Wharton - she is one of my all time favorite authors. Custom of the Country, The House of Mirth, and The Age of Innocence are my favorite novels(of the ones I've read). Ethan Frome was okay, but not as good as my favorite three I think.
I guess they are depressing, but sometimes I like a good weepie novel. I think she paints a wonderful picture of what life was like in upperclass New York at the turn of the century and how it wasn't all a bed of roses.