The Descent of Man and Other Stories

Wharton at her most barbed. The title story follows Professor Linyard, a biologist returning from a Maine vacation with more than pine air in his lungs. He's conceived a satirical masterpiece: a razor-sharp takedown of the pseudoscientific nonsense polluting popular literature. But between him and publication stands his doting wife, his children, and the entire weight of domestic expectation. Wharton, writing at the height of her powers, uses this comic premise to skewer the collision between intellectual ambition and social obligation. The other stories in this collection further explore the boundaries of marriage, ambition, and the small violences of respectable society. A masterclass in wit from the first woman to win the Pulitzer. For readers who relish sophisticated satire and the pleasure of watching a brilliant mind dissect the pretensions of her era.