Edith Wharton "Sanctuary"
A little about the author first. Edith Wharton’s most famous novel, The Age of Innocence, was written in France and published in 1920. In 1921, Wharton was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for this novel, becoming the first woman to receive the award.
Now, let’s talk about Sanctuary...
Hysterical and entirely disconnected from reality - that’s the main character, Kate, in a nutshell. Her fiancé isn’t exactly brilliant either, and together they exist in a whirlwind of strange events forming the background of this emotional mess.
Of course, this is a modern take on the story. But Kate, living in a fantasy world that has little to do with actual life, is a fascinating spectacle. It’s the early 20th century in America. Upon discovering a dark secret about her fiancé, she tells him to “confess,” believing his troubled soul is the real problem - not the immoral act itself. Her love for him vanishes instantly the moment his perfect image is tainted. She doesn’t realize that his confession might only make things worse for everyone, but still sees it as her duty to “help” the poor man.
Not wanting any other woman or potential child to suffer from this man’s flaws, she chooses to “take the hit” herself and raise her son to be someone who - in her opinion - will never make the wrong choice.
Well, let’s see how that goes.
Once again, we witness a world where it’s all too easy to blame women - the so-called scheming seductresses - instead of men who shut them away and deny them a voice in society. A world where society forces women to disappear into their children’s lives, because they simply have nothing else: no agency, no access to real issues, no place outside their home or gossip circles. And eventually, when all a woman is allowed to think about is her child, society decides she’s gone mad.
Kate acts as if her husband’s and son’s selfish thoughts are sinful and shameful, yet her own behavior makes her the true antagonist. She sees no fault in her own actions while freely judging others. Selfishness, after all, is part of being human. Watching her internal tug-of-war is morbidly fascinating - will she make her son confess for his choices too?
And of course, she’s horrified that her son has fallen in love with a girl who is basically her younger mirror image. She judges the girl for expressing the same thoughts that Kate herself keeps locked in her head.
The death of one of the characters was deeply painful to read - especially through the lens of Kate’s obliviousness and narcissism. It’s hard not to wonder if her emotional negligence played a role. But what shocked me most was how briefly she mourned. Not normal. I was fuming. Her obsessive love for her son is clearly rooted in her circumstances - but loving your child and being an insufferable person are two separate things. She couldn’t even pretend to be a kind, caring, empathetic woman. She clung to things she herself had imbued with absurd importance, far removed from morality or common sense.
And the ending? It left me frustrated and confused. Just when I thought justice was coming, it veered off-course. It seems the author wanted to show us that Kate had done the “right” thing - she saved the boy, she saved the world - and we’re just supposed to carry on.
This book drained me emotionally. Still, I need to read The Age of Innocence to understand what Wharton got that Pulitzer for. If not - consider this author blacklisted, ha.