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Roman Fever and the Forum |
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written
by shivali / 10.24.2005 |
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Assignment |
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Edith Wharton’s choice of the Forum as the setting for her story is a significant one because the Forum represents the duality of preservation and destruction. First, the Forum is a testament to preservation. Wharton notes that each person who visits the Forum places their history within the history of the monuments. For the characters of “Roman Fever,” they discuss the transitions of their grandmother’s lives in relation to the Forum and Roman fever in comparison to their mothers’ or their own. They believe that with each generation there are changes in the way that women conduct themselves socially. However, little seems to change. The foundations of the Forum and human nature persist beyond the destruction of time. Next, they openly discuss and fuse over details of their flighty daughters’ lives when they are reenacting very similar trials. They reminisce and discuss a past and a time that is long over. And like the Forum, though the details of the sagas that they outline there are significant; they remain with the characters though they are of another time. The pain and cracks of the wounds and destruction seem to live on within the Forum.
Next, consider that the two main characters claim to know all one another’s secrets. They assume because they have known one another since childhood. They have studied one another’s character and are privy to the deeper intricacies of the other’s personality. The two main characters, however, know very little about the details of one another’s lives. Mrs. Slade does not know about Mrs. Ansley’s affair with her fiancé and future husband. There is a mystery that persists among the ruins of the Forum. Even with the factual details of dates and people, deep holes remain in the story. It seems that the barebones are there, but the essential details of significance are missing. Visitors to the Forum, likewise, perhaps know very little about even the major details of the Forum. A visitor, like me, is left wondering how an everyday Roman experienced the Forum. No description or number does its grandeur any justice. Likewise, Mrs. Slade is left with her own questions about the significant details of her friend’s life like her trip to the Forum one cold evening, although she knows all the other “important” details of her life.
Also, the mood of the Forum is one of an obvious somberness. The characters are not picnicing on the Palatine along the lush green scenery like our class had the opportunity to. Instead, they are among the grey and white rubble. Likewise, their relationship is also in ruins. They are scavenging among stories and remnants of the past and all that remains of the youthful, exciting life they once lived is the ruins and destruction of time. The pillars are knocked over; only portions of temples remain erect. Additionally, in the Forum- one’s concept of time is blurred and obscured. A visitor has trouble distinguishing a hundred years from one thousand years and likewise, the characters appropriately lose their concept of time. What remains of the Forum and the women’s friendship is only remains of its once greatness.
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