EDITH WHARTON'S ROMAN FEVER
...ct that Grace had a rendezvous with Alida's fiancE Delphin Slade. Alida barely controlled her anger enough to compose a letter that she penned as though she were Delphin, beckoning Grace to a prearranged meeting. The reader then considers which character is the most illicit in her actions: Grace for undermining Alida's relationship with Delphin or Alida for sabotaging Grace. The setting of Wharton's Roman Fever is instrumental to the story's blatant theme about love, considering the fact that Rome is one of the most romantic spots on earth. It plays a significant role with respect to the mother/daughter relationship, as well as to the issue that deals with illness. This metaphoric implication of the transgressively sexual composition of Roman fever comes to life through the representative cold that Grace contracts. It is this cold, and the implications it reflects, that sparks the reader into realizing that the cold, in and of itself, is not the primary focus. It can be argued that Roman fever was just a cover for malaria and cholera, which the author discreetly masks with clever metaphor. The understanding behind the hidden implication of such a disease is reminiscent of the fact that people who contracted it were considered to have engaged in illicit sex. This act implied that the person was not of good standing and, therefore, received what he or she deserved for such behavior. The author addresses the transgression of sexual conduct as it intertwines with the transgression of sisterhood and friendship, which makes the author's explicit message a bit difficult to ascertain. Indeed, the characters do not appear to experience much happiness in Wharton's Roman Fever. They are either reliving old, painful memories, experiencing discord among family and friends or dealing with illness. The social pressures that exist among and between the women -- both mothers and daughters alike -- offer yet another reason for the characters to lack a genuine sense of tranquillity. To be sure, the expressive hostility that exists sets a precedence for unhappiness from the very beginning; the story does not change direction through the entire piece, because Alida is never able to shake the envy she feels toward Grace. The climax of the story finds that Alida has dedicated her life to the sole purpose of impressing others, yet this ostentatious presentation does nothing to preserve her own identity. Indeed, such a flagrant display only brings her heightened suffering and spite. Despite the fact that she and her friend, Grace, have endured many years since Grace secretly rendezvoused with Alida's fiancE it still never comes to pass that Alida is able to discard her intense envy and jealousy. It is interesting how the two women are portrayed as friends from the beginning of Wharton's tale, when in actuality they represent enemies more than anything else. It is easy to see that Alida loathes the very sight of Grace but puts up a convincing facade nevertheless. The two women would never again experience a relationship as they once knew it in t...