A story of love, passion and renunciation against the backdrop of morbid New York society - in the 1870s - one of the great classics of American literature by Pulitzer Prize winner Edith Wharton.
Newland Archer, a young lawyer from New York High Society, is class-consciously engaged to May . When May's cousin Ellen returns to New York after a failed marriage to a European count, Newland falls in love with the gallant countess. Obeying reason, however, Newland submits to the codex of society, sacrificing his love and happiness: he accepts the order from his law firm to dissuade Ellen from the divorce and urges on a quick marriage to May ...