Elm Tree (The Pretext)

Elm, or Ulmus, is a genus with 40 to 50 different species. Generally, the elm tree is a tree that can grow up to 40 meters and have green leaves in the summer. The leaves of the elm tree have two lines and grow reciprocally. Mostly, the leaves are not symmetrical and serrated on their edges. Within the different species the forms and sizes of the trees and the leaves show a vast variety. Elm trees grow in a lot of different environments but a great number of species seem to prefer growing next to a river or a stream. Elms are planted for their wood, as a protection against wind and for many other reasons (Mackenthun, 2021).

As already mentioned, the elm tree has a large number of species. One of them is the Ulmus americana or commonly known as the American elm. The elm trees described in the short story could probably be American elm trees because they grow in the east of the United States of America (Mackenthun, 2021). The American elm can grow up to 40 meters as well and grows nearby rivers but was also planted in cities. It is the most common species among the six species of elm trees which grow in North America. The diameter of the trunk can reach 3 meters and they can reach an average age of 200 years. The leaves of the American elm tree are different than the ones of a general elm. They are 10 to 15 centimeters long and 6 to 8 centimeters wide. They are extremely asymmetrical and their points are bent towards the tip of the leaf. Because of its special features the American elm tree cannot be confounded with any other elm tree in North America. The American elm is a typical American tree. It is said that George Washington should have taken command over the army of the colonies in the War of Independence under a big elm tree (Machenthun, 2021).

The elm tree appears quite a few times throughout the short story "The Pretext". First, on Hill Street, the street where the Ransoms live and where Mrs. Ransom sees her husband coming from and leaving for work almost every day, is shaded with elms (Lewis, 1968, p. 637). Secondly, there is a “sextuple line of elms” (Lewis, 1968, p. 641) on the green ‘Campus’ between Hamblin Hall and the University library. Moreover, the elms are mentioned when Mrs. Margaret Ransom avoids the elm walk on the green ‘Campus’ after the incident with Guy Dawnish on the night of the speeches and one more time when a year since this incident had passed after Lady Caroline Duckett leaves the Ransom’s house (“the elms were budding again” (Lewis, 1968, p. 654)). Even though no special qualities are attributed to the elm tree in the short story explicitly, the appearing of an elm tree can have several meanings regarding the interpretation. It can be a symbol for mourning and for protection. Furthermore, it is said that an elm tree stands at the gates to the underworld and that the dreams of the people are attached to it (Butzer and Jacob, 2008, p. 399). Because the street on which Mr. Robert Ransom leaves for and walks home from work is shaded with elms, it could mean that Mrs. Margaret Ransom, while watching him, mourns over the circumstances of her marriage and her life.

Sources:

Butzer, G.; Jacob, J. (2008). MetzlerLexikon literarischer Symbole. Stuttgart: J.B. Metzler.

Lewis, R. W. B. (1968). The Collected Short Stories of Edith Wharton. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.

“Handbuch der Ulmengewächse”. Mackenthun, G., 2021, https://www.ulmen-handbuch.de/handbuch/home.html. Accessed June 2, 2021.