Currently, Wharton's book is admired as a "modern" novel. More sympathy is extended to Ellen as an independent woman, and more criticism is leveled at May's manipulative ways. Feminists cheer Ellen's independence and values, but also criticize Wharton's role as a member of the group she is criticizing. The varying interpretations but consistent approval of the love-story triangle have made The Age of Innocence a timeless classic. The Scorsese film of the novel in the early 1990s only heightened its popularity.
Despite these interpretations of the characters' motives, Wharton had great difficulty in deciding what to do with her unhappy lovers. At one point she decided to have Newland and Ellen run away together, but have Newland eventually go home because he could not give up his leisure-class values. Another option had Newland and Ellen spending a short time in Florida; Newland becoming unhappy with living a lie and Ellen eventually returning to Europe. Wharton also considered Newland and Ellen marrying, but Ellen later forsaking him for Europe with its less narrow-minded attitudes. In the end Wharton decided to keep them apart and use their love to show how individuals must sacrifice happiness for duty and the greater good of the social order. The patient, time-honored values of the old century have given way to the expediencies of the new one, and the reader closes the book judging the gains and the losses.
