Wharton uses Selden’s observations to satirize the idleness of the wealthy Americans in Europe. They are depicted as spending the majority of their time in indecision over where to eat. Furthermore, the wealthy are shown to be more interested in where they might be observed eating and with whom as opposed to what they will actually eat.
Carry divulges the pretentiousness of the upper class when she relates her observations of the Brys to Selden. She tells him that Bry would fare better in his attempts to enter society if Louisa would let him indulge his personal style rather than putting on airs and constantly correcting her husband.
Carry tells Selden about Lily’s courtship with the Italian prince and subsequent flirtation with his stepson to illustrate her belief that Lily “works like a slave preparing the ground and sowing her seed; but the day she ought to be reaping the harvest she oversleeps herself or goes off on a picnic.” This statement not only reveals Carry’s belief that Lily is her own worst enemy, but it also indicates to the reader that Lily really does not wish to marry for money rather than love.
Selden’s chance meeting with Lily on the train to Nice gives Wharton the opportunity to foreshadow Lily’s fate. Selden observes that Lily is “on the edge of something—that was the impression left with him. He seemed to see her poised on the brink of a chasm, with one graceful foot advanced to assert her unconsciousness that the ground was failing her.”
Silverton’s discussion with Selden concerning Lily’s behavior in Sicily also serves as an opportunity for Wharton to foreshadow Lily’s destiny. According to Silverton, Lily’s open manipulation of Dorset has served to injure Bertha’s pride, an injury that will eventually cost Lily a valuable friendship and lead to her downfall.
