【正文】 ite friends to participate in to wele the return of the Countess Olenska, however, the invitations are received consistently refusal which shows the behavior of Ellen is pletely unacceptable in New York. “The upper class pay great attention to the “decent” principle of life and they are afraid of scandal than fear of disease”(Li Yinbo, 20xx). They all think that divorce will bring humiliation to the whole family and social position. Besides, if Ellen gets divorce ,she has no economic ine for her to live on. Ellen?s behavior threatens the old conventions of the New York and manifests the conservatism and hypocrisy of upper class, so almost everyone insists that Ellen is stupid and they naturally have no good impression on such a treacherous lady. The love affair between Newland and Ellen has received consistently resistance again. The relatives and friends are well thought of Newland and May?s marriage, and when they perceive that Ellen is a threat of the happy couple, they do every effort to protect the marriage from harms. Actually, the New Yorkers can not bear a person like Ellen to disturb the stereotypical way of life, and they consider Ellen as a “disaster” to the old conventions and social customs. Finally the relatives and friends successfully expel Ellen out of the New York together with May, and Ellen lives the rest of her life alone in Europe. 12 Chapter 3 Analyzing the Features of “Old New York” As one member of the upper class in New York, Wharton lets the outsiders peep into the whole picture of the Gilded Age New York. The greatest thing is that she not only showed us the upper class what they eat, what they play, but also exposed the sophisticated social skills under the elegance and the slightly paranoid persistence of social customs. By using the eloquence of irony and contrast, Wharton revealed the psychology of the characters when they were confronted with difficult choices and stripped the disguise of etiquette manners, exposing the essence that “old New Yorker” tried to hide. Here, the features of the old New York society will be stated from three aspects. The conservatism of “old New York” People39。 When May was in the act of announcing her engagement on the Beaufort?s annual ball, “A group of young men and girls were gathered about her, and there was much handclasping, laughing and pleasantry”(Wharton, 20xx). It is quite obvious to see that the upper class show great approval of the couple and wish their bination a lasting happy marriage. When Newland realizes the fact that “New York believed him to be Madame Olenska?s lover”, he feels like “a prisoner in the center of an armed camp”. May plans to hold a farewell party for Ellen which actually is a trick to eliminate Ellen from the tribe with the relatives and friends, but they “pretended to each other that they had never heard of, suspected, or imagined anything, and that occasion of the entertainment was simply May Archer?s natural desire to take an affectionate leave of her friend and cousin”(Wharton, 20xx). At the end of the novel May?s son Dallas judge his parents? marriage as follows “You never did ask each other anything, did you? And you never told each other anything. You just sat and watched each other, and guessed at what was going on underneath. A deafanddumb asylum, in fact!”(Wharton, 20xx). The words from a new generation are bold and unconventional, but they are just accurately cutting to the point. Newland and May?s marriage seems to be enviable and amazing, however, the love between the two is far from true love. Upper class? attitudes towards the relationship between Newland and Ellen Newland?s attitude towards his relationship with Ellen Ellen is also born in New York upper class, but she grows up in France and receives good education and free thought in Europe. Therefore, she has active thinking and keen insight. There is a sense of freedom and rebellion in her all the time. 9 She is beautiful, sagacious, independent, and has more experience of life. She is full of artistic temperament and exoticism, just as Newland deeply perceives, she is more like yellow rosesthere was something too rich, too strong, in their fiery beauty. In Newland?s eye, there is no doubt that Ellen is different, “there was about her the mysterious authority of beauty, a sureness in the carriage of the head, the movement of the eyes, which, without being in the least theatrical”, and the unfortunate marriage leaves her a hint of maturity, “she was so quietquiet in her movements, her voice ,and the tones of her lowpitched voice”(Wharton, 20xx). It is no wonder that a handsome young man will be attracted by such a beautiful lady. After falling in love with Ellen, Newland unconsciously often makes parison between May and Ellen, and he finds that Ellen is his true and ideal lover. However, Newland has to take responsibility of his marriage, yet he still puts Ellen in his deep heart and secretly misses her. When he has chance to meet her again, he says “I was changed, till I saw you again”(Wharton, 20xx), and later he seeks in vain to elope with Ellen from New York and spend the whole life together. These things all show that Newland wants to keep Ellen around and cherishes the love with Ellen. Ellen?s attitude towards her relationship with Newland Ellen moves back to New York for her unhappy marriage to seek shelter from relatives and friends. New York, however, denies any scandal which will humiliate the upper class and shake the stereotypical conventions, so her returning back causes great disturbance. Newland seeks to protect her from the harm of others. He tells her what should do and say in New York. When he pays a visit to Ellen, she says that “There are only two people here who make