Trusting America: Undine Spragg's revolutionary break in the custom of the country

Grant, David

Trusting America: Undine Spragg's revolutionary break in the custom of the country

Author

Grant, David

Date

2016

Keywords

oratory, historical continuity, Elmer, Undine, trusts, generational rededication, American progress, Larson

Abstract (summary)

This article claims that Undine Spragg’s ascent in Wharton’s The Custom of the Country represents a victory over the traditional American faith in historical continuity as a model for personal progress. In Undine’s recovered memory, oratory suffers a comic debunking that frees Undine to untie the bonds of generational rededication.

Publication Information

Grant, David. “Trusting America: Undine Spragg’s Revolutionary Break in The Custom of the Country.” Canadian Review of American Studies, vol. 46, no. 1, Apr. 2016, pp. 86–115. ProjectMUSE, doi:10.3138/cras.2014.020.