Edith Wharton: First Woman To Win A Pulitzer Prize For Fiction

E
dith Wharton…  the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction (1921).[1]  She was also nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature on three separate occasions (1927, 1928, and 1930).[2] For obvious reasons, Wharton is considered one of America’s major 20th-century authors. So, it’s no surprise that she has also been inducted in the National Women’s Hall of Fame (1996).[3]

Wharton began telling stories at an early age. At about the age of four or five she would invent stories for her family. And walk with an open book, turning its pages as if she was reading the tale she was actually spinning in real time.

Her first attempt at a novel came at the age of eleven. But, her mother’s harsh criticism squashed that ambition (clearly only temporarily). [4] So, Wharton turned to writing poetry.

Though she showed promise as a poet, her family considered writing an unsuitable endeavor for a woman. That also goes for the “omnivorous reading” she engaged in at every opportunity – especially in a family as socially prominent as the one Wharton was born into. [5]

Just how high in society was her family’s standing? We’ve all heard the expression “keeping up with the Joneses.”  It’s said to refer to her father’s (George Frederic Jones) family. And was made popular in a comic strip titled “Keeping Up with the Joneses” by Arthur “Pop” Momand, which ran in the New York Globe. [6]

Given the pressures of growing up in such a socially prominent family, Wharton stopped writing completely in order to concentrate on the duties expected of her as a socialite and debutante.[7] Having fulfilled those duties, she resumed in her later years. And,the rigid social conventions and oppressive roles assigned to women in the high society she grew up in became the focus of her work.

Which One Of Edith Wharton’s Novels
Earned The Pulitzer Prize?

Which of Edith Wharton’s 15 novels earned her the Pulitzer Novel Prize (now the Fiction prize) in 1921? It was her work The Age of Innocence. And, Wharton being awarded the prize proved to be quite controversial even before it was formally announced. Not because of her gender, however, but due to the fact that the jury for the Novel prize voted to give Sinclair Lewis the prize for Main Street rather than Wharton’s The Age of Innocence.

Lewis’ book is a satire of small-town America. And, the trustees at Columbia University (the organization that awards the Pulitzer Prize) discovered that the work had “offended a number of prominent persons in the Middle West.”[8]

Which lead them to decide that Main Street failed the Pulitzer’s “wholesome” requirement.[9] So, Wharton was awarded the Pulitzer’s Novel (Fiction) Prize instead of Sinclair Lewis, and history was made.

This turn of events is not to say that Edith Wharton hadn’t established herself as one of the preeminent writers of her day – she had. In fact, Robert Morse Lovett a juror for the Novel prize that year, wrote a piece in The New Republic magazine addressing the upset in the Pulitzer’s 1921 Novel Prize.

Lovett, of course, revealed that the Pulitzer board had overturned the jury’s decision to award Sinclair Lewis the Pulitzer Prize for Novel. But, he also acknowledged Wharton’s elevated status within America’s literary scene, describing her as “one of our best artists in prose.”[10]

The Age of Innocence.

It bears pointing out that Edith Wharton’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel isn’t just a relic of the past. It’s true that Edith Wharton has been referred to as “the last Victorian author.”[11] And, that the main action in The Age of Innocence is set in the 1870s. But the work continues to be relevant. Because at its heart, Wharton’s novel is about dealing with the chaos and uncertainty of a changing world. And, that’s something we can all relate to… especially these days.

Pair this with
The Age of Innocence:
The Only Constant In Life Is Change

Download the full text of
The Age of Innocence here.

#celebrations           #women’s history month

Endnotes:

[1] “Edith Wharton’s ‘The Age of Innocence’ Celebrates its 100^th Anniversary.” The Pulitzer Prizes.
https://www.pulitzer.org/article/edith-whartons-age-innocence-celebrates-its-100th-anniversary[2] The Nobel Prize Nomination Archive.
https://www.nobelprize.org/nomination/archive/show_people.php?id=10128[3]”Edith Wharton.” National Women’s Hall of Fame. https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/edith-wharton/[4] Lee, Hermione. Edith Wharton. (1st ed.). London: Vintage, 2008.Pg 22, 36.[5] Wharton, Edith. A Backward Glance. New York: Appleton-Century, 1934. Pg 65.[6] Lee, Hermione. Edith Wharton. (1st ed.). London: Vintage, 2008.Pg 16, 22.
“Keeping Up With the Joneses” Phrasefinder.org.uk
https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/keeping-up-with-the-joneses.html[7] “Edith Wharton: First Female to Win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.” HubPages.com
https://discover.hubpages.com/education/Edith-Wharton-First-Female-to-Win-the-Pulitzer-Prize-for-Fiction[8] “Edith Wharton’s ‘The Age of Innocence’ Celebrates its 100^th Anniversary.” The Pulitzer Prizes.
https://www.pulitzer.org/article/edith-whartons-age-innocence-celebrates-its-100th-anniversary[9] Claudia Stone Weissberg. “Sinclair Lewis, ‘the main Street burglary’ and a rejection notice.” Pulitzer.org
https://www.pulitzer.org/article/sinclair-lewis-main-street-burglary-and-rejection-notice[10] “Edith Wharton’s ‘The Age of Innocence’ Celebrates its 100^th Anniversary.” The Pulitzer Prizes.
https://www.pulitzer.org/article/edith-whartons-age-innocence-celebrates-its-100th-anniversary[11] Foca, Anna. “The Age of Innocence.” Britannica.com  https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Age-of-Innocence

Images:

Edith Wharton: “Edith Wharton’s ‘The Age of Innocence’ Celebrates its 100th Anniversary.” Pulitzer.org  https://www.pulitzer.org/article/edith-whartons-age-innocence-celebrates-its-100th-anniversary
Pulitzer Prize Certificate: “Edith Wharton: Designing the Drawing Room.” Yale University Library Online Exhibitions.
https://onlineexhibits.library.yale.edu/s/edith-wharton/page/a-pulitzer-for-the-age-of-innocence
Pulitzer Prize Medal: https://www.pulitzer.org/article/edith-whartons-age-innocence-celebrates-its-100th-anniversary