The Moving Finger

by “Edith Wharton”

By: Ms. Yamna Sheikh

MS ( Applied Linguistics)
English lecturer
Edith Wharton
• Born January 24, 1862 in New York City.
• She was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, short story writer, and a
designer.
• Her novels and short stories reflect her concern for the status of women.
• Wharton's interests included: women being trapped by social circumstances that they
have no control over; the fact that choices leading to liberty are forbidden by society;
making the choice to do the right thing inevitably leads to absolute entrapment;
oppression; and matters involving not being able to break free of social suffocation.
• In most of her work, her characters feel the need to better their lives.
• They often dream of better situations.
• Her interests are evident in 'The Moving Finger'.
Edith Wharton
• Edith Wharton spent much of her childhood living in Europe, where she became
fluent in French, German, and Italian.
• Wharton published over a dozen more novels, as well as several novellas, short
story collections, poetry collections, and nonfiction books.
• Much of her writing focuses on a critique of the upper-class society in which she
was raised.
• Wharton won the 1921 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Age of Innocence,
making her the first woman to receive the award.
• She died of a stroke in 1937.
Historical Context of The Moving Finger

• “The Moving Finger” was written and set in the late 19th century, when early
feminism was taking shape.
• A few decades prior, the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention (the first women’s rights
convention in history) took place.
• This was a landmark event wherein women’s rights activists came together to
debate women’s suffrage and discuss societal gender roles.
• Opening up a dialogue about women’s rights led to a widespread cultural shift in the
U.S., as women were increasingly seen as equal (rather than inferior) to their male
counterparts.
• This contemporary context was important for Edith Wharton, who was pressured to
publish her early work anonymously because writing was seen as an unacceptable
pursuit for women at the time
• The national dialogue about women’s rights and gender roles made the
public more accepting of female voices in art and literature, enabling
Wharton to begin publishing her writing under her own name as an
adult.
• This context is also specifically relevant to “The Moving Finger,” as
the story subtly (not clear) condemns the objectification of women
both in art and within personal relationships—subject matter that
would likely not have been taken seriously a few decades prior.
Disparaging:

expressing the opinion

that something is of little
worth; derogatory.
Character Analysis

• The first Mrs Grancy: A harsh, vain, controlling woman.

• Mr Grancy: He loves easily. He is faithful to both of his wives. His
second wife brought out the best in his character as he only really
lived in the shadows of his first wife.
• The second Mrs Grancy: A very beautiful woman. Her character is
portrayed as innocent, however, she betrayed her husband by having
an affair.
• Claydon: The painter who fell in love with the second Mrs Grancy. He
is a deceitful character who portrayed himself as Mr Grancy's friend
but in the end was responsible for his death.
Setting of story
• The story takes place in the surroundings where the portrait of Mrs
Grancy is situated, suggesting that she or the painting of her is the
essential element in the short story. The picture is first placed in the
library, "the portrait of Mrs. Grancy illuminating its studious walls."
Later, once Mr Grancy has fallen ill, he places the portrait in his study.
And nearing the end of the short story, Claydon places the portrait in
his studio among his other most valuable works. Everything that
occurs in the story happens in and among these areas.
Mood
• The mood of this short story often changes as it is read. In the
beginning, it is filled with gloom and suggests depression. Then as Mr
Grancy remarries, it creates a happy, exciting atmosphere.
• Once the second Mrs Grancy dies, it portrays an unhappy and lonely
atmosphere.
• Towards the end, the mood of the story is that of a shocked,
unexpected one.
Relevance of the Title

• The title,'The Moving Finger' alludes to the expression, "the writing is

on the wall" which means that something is obvious, apparent or a
warning to danger.
• Wharton gave the short story this specific title as Mrs Grancy and
Claydon had an affair and Mr Grancy must have realised it because it
was obvious - "When Claydon painted her he caught just the look she
used to lift to mine when I came in. I've wondered, sometimes, at his
knowing how she looked when she and I were alone."
Conflict in the Story

• Rivalry exists between Mr Grancy and Claydon. The second Mrs Grancy
has become an obsession of both Mr Grancy and Claydon. They love her
dearly and it becomes a competition of who would get the best of her. When
she dies, the competition continues, but it now revolved around the painting.
This story proves women were irrelevant in the competition between men,
as long as they got what they wanted. Mrs Grancy is just an object that got
passed from the one man to the other.
• Claydon also experienced conflict within himself. When Mr Grancy asks
Claydon to adjust the painting to make Mrs Grancy age with him, he denies
as he does not want to destroy his best work. However, he eventually agrees
to do it as he knew it was the correct thing to do for Mr Grancy.
Themes
• Entrapment: Mr Grancy's first marriage was an example of this. He was
trapped by his wife; her only concern was herself.She overshadowed
him and he had no chance to bloom or show the person he really is. The
second Mrs Grancy is trapped by the competition between the two men.
• Isolation: Mr Grancy feels alone in his first marriage; Mrs Grancy could
be considered as only an object being tossed around, as if she is living in
isolation around people; Mr Grancy is lonely once Mrs Grancy dies and
he has her portrait altered as if she has aged.
• Rivalry: The entire story revolves around the conflict between Mr
Grancy and Claydon as explained before.
Conclusion
• To conclude, “The Moving Finger” by Edith Wharton is a story which
develops love, obsession, and control through the way in which the
characters relate to Mrs Grancy, as Mr Grancy and Claydon love her
deeply, and, as they are obsessed with the woman, both of them
want to have control over her and her portrait, which leads to two
friends to deteriorate a relationship of many years and fight explicitly
for her.
• In readers opinion, neither of them could let her go. However, it can
be interpreted that Mr Grancy needs a woman in his life, as after his
first wife died, he marries the Mrs Grancy the reader knows more
about. Even though his first wife was not good for him, he never got
divorced. He depended on both of his wives.
Conclusion
• As for Claydon, reader believes that he really loves Mrs Grancy
and wants to have the painting for himself as it is his
masterpiece and, as mentioned before, he turns his real woman
into a picture. However, he also wants to control Ralph’s wife
through the portrait, as Claydon changes the painting as it was
the first time he painted it once Mr Grancy inherited it to the
artist. Claydon controls the portrait the way Mr Grancy did
before he died.