Appearances and Female Cliques in Society. "House of Mirth"

         I thought the conversation topic of Lily Bart being an archetypal character after which many modern television characters are modeled was a very interesting point that would be fun to elaborate on.  The social constructs of female cliques and the wickedness that every person is capable of, and that exclusive social groups especially tend to exercise, is of great relevance throughout Edith Wharton's novel.  These upper class cliques and mean girl attitudes are the formula for many modern television shows and movies.  Think of Gossip Girl, The Hills, Laguna Beach, and Mean Girls as prominent examples.  The promotion of being a bitch (to put it plainly) and appearing a certain way, even if it's a facade, is apparent in todays pop culture.  Most "upper tier" social groups, particularly of females, revolve around their capacity to be exclusive and their focus on generally irrelevant things such as social connections, parties, looks, and relationships (both sexual and non-sexual).  This article from the New York Times provides some keen insight on high society and how it is a glossier version of high school.  It is amazing to scrutinize these behaviors on the big screen and see how distorted the female perception is of what is valuable in a friend, and realize this is the manner in which many of us conduct our own social circles.  It's a bit shameful to come to terms with how cliche our own social behavior is, and to comprehend that it is not just the wealthy who act in such a way.  The evil and manipulative nature of communities is simply more poignant and entertaining in the context of the upper class.  This article definitely would be applicable to an analysis of Lily Bart and the social circle she is ousted from and desperately wants to rejoin.  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/18/arts/television/18stan.html