"The House of Mirth" is Edith Wharton's classic and tragic portrayal of Lily Bart, an intelligent New York socialite during the Victorian era, who seeks to secure a husband and a place in upper class society. Central to the theme of the novel is how the Victorian era offered women relatively few other alternatives to achieve upward social and economic mobility than through marriage. A classic depiction of a bygone era, "The House of Mirth" is one of Wharton finest literary achievements.