Wentworth University (The Pretext)

Wentworth is the only place where the short story takes place. Whether Wentworth University is a real or a fictional place is unknown to the reader, but there actually is a University in Boston, Massachusetts in the USA which is called Wentworth Institute of Technology and is also near a river which is also true for Wentworth University in “The Pretext”.

Wentworth Institute of Technology was founded in 1904 (“Wentworth Institute of Technology”, 2021) so it would fit in the time of writing and publishing the short story (Publication of “The Pretext” in 1908), but the little stream mentioned in the short story is between Wentworth University and South Wentworth (Lewis, 1968, p. 641) which means the river on the map should be in the south of the campus, not in the north. Furthermore, the campus does not look like the one described in the short story and there is neither a Hamblin Hall nor a street named Hill Street or one named Maverick Street. So maybe Wentworth Institute of Technology is the original of Wentworth University used in the short story or it is just a coincidence.

Wentworth University as it is described in the short story is a University City with old fashioned houses and their residents, who more and more start to look similar to each other (Lewis, 1968, p. 632) which suggests the monotonous life which all residents of Wentworth are predetermined to live. Furthermore, Wentworth has a “long green ‘Campus’ with its sextuple line of elms” (Lewis, 1968, p. 641). On the one end of the long green campus there is Hamblin Hall where the banquet and the speeches take place. On the other end the University library with its cupola is located. Moreover, a congregational church with a white steeple and some older halls with columns can be found on the site. On the way from Hamblin Hall to the path which leads to the spot next to the river with the two benches and the willows there are a few park benches “encircling the pedestal of a patriot in bronze” (Lewis, 1968, p. 641).

The legal representative of the University is Mr. Robert Ransom because he had chosen Wentworth over an employment in New York (Lewis, 1968, p. 636). According to the author a certain social code can be attributed to Wentworth and its residents (Lewis, 1968, p. 634). According to this social code it seems very natural that Mrs. Margaret Ransom is often visited by Guy Dawnish, that she looks after him and that their relationship can be nothing more than friendship (Lewis, 1968, p. 634). This social code includes or rather distributes a prudery which dominates the behavior, actions and thinking of every Wentworth resident. The prudery is described in more detail below. In contrast to the social code in Wentworth stands the ‘New Yorky’ look of the Brant girl and her horrendous behavior (Lewis, 1968, p. 635 - 36). Moreover, Wentworth lays “a good deal of stress on ‘motives’” (Lewis, 1968, p. 636) so that the main character and her husband “had dwelt in a complete community of motive.” (Lewis, 1968, p. 636). Wentworth also had always been the connection between Mrs. Margaret Ransom and Mr. Robert Ransom and to the reader it seems almost like it has been the only one as well because no other is mentioned in the whole short story (Lewis, 1968, p. 636). Besides the social code in Wentworth mentioned above there is also a certain ‘tone’ which, similar to the social code, reigns over all social relationships, “the coiffure of the ladies” Lewis, 1968, p. 636) and even over “the preparation of the food.” (Lewis, 1968, p. 636). Wentworth has its own “sumptuary laws” (explained in Social Code of Wentworth) and “curriculum of learning” (Lewis, 1968, p. 636). In the short story it seems that living at Wentworth is an advantage compared to living somewhere else (Lewis, 1968, p. 637) and Mrs. Margaret Ransom is also proud of living in Wentworth and her husband being a part of the University (Lewis, 1968, p. 636). But compared to the life of Guy Dawnish, Wentworth seems less advantageous which also “fascinated and bewildered” (Lewis, 1968, p. 638) Mrs. Margaret Ransom every time she listens to Guy Dawnish and his “light unconscious talk.” (Lewis, 1968, p. 638).

Because Wentworth is located in New England (Lee, 2007, p. 348), it makes it also a New England short story for which Edith Wharton was famous for. Additionally, it is typical for Edith Wharton to use a little university town, especially on the east coast, as a setting for a short story. She uses it, even if it is not obvious at first sight, as a replacement for the society of New York with all its problems and struggles. Edith Wharton uses the intellectual superiority of the university people as a metaphor for the material and financial superiority of the upper-class of New York (Kornetta, 1996, p. 55).

Sources:

Kornetta, R. (1996). Das Korsett im Kopf. Ehe und Ökonomie in den Kurzgeschichten Edith Whartons. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang GmbH.

Lee, H. (2008). Edith Wharton. London: Vintage.

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

“Wentworth Institute of Technology”. U.S. News& World Report, 2021, https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/wentworth-institute-of-technology-29099. Accessed March 13, 2021.