The (Not So) Magnificent Ambersons: The Gilded Age’s Version of the Dysfunctional Family
There is no question the Alderdices, the family in my Waxwood Series, are what we call today a dysfunctional family. The series focuses on the secrets, lies, half-truths, and evasions creating the family tapestry from the grandparents down to the current generation. The series is also about the decline of the family based on Victorian gender roles (which I talk about in this blog post https://tammayauthor.com/uncategorized/women-and-men-in-the-19th-century-the-separate-spheres) as the 19th century comes to a close.
The idea of the dysfunctional family (a family that is, as in Tolstoy’s words, “unhappy in its own way”) might seem like a modern one, and, in fact, the term was coined in the 1980s. But the Gilded Age https://tammayauthor.com/uncategorized/chaos-and-commerce-the-gilded-age was ripe for the breakdown of the traditional family structure because of changing values as America moved into the new century. Booth Tarkington documented one such family in his Pulitzer-Prize winning novel, The Magnificent Ambersons. The novel was later made into a film in 1942 directed by the great Orson Welles.
Who are the Ambersons? The following members make up the family:
Major Amberson, the family patriarch, who made his wealth through property as many men did in the early 19th century
Jack Amberson, his son, a likable but rather useless man
Isabel Amberson, his daughter and the family matriarch, beautiful but carrying on the tradition of the Victorian angel in the house (good and kind but not very bright)
George Amberson, the spoiled and entitled son and heir
Wilbur Minafer, Isabel’s husband and George’s father, a mild-mannered, dependable and boring man
Fanny Minafer, George’s sister, who meets all the criteria for the eccentric family spinster aunt and then some
What makes the Ambersons dysfunctional? They are stuck emotionally and psychologically in the Victorian era where the aristocracy ruled and lived in their own world shielded from social and political problems.Much of their wealth was built upon shady business dealings, unfair labor practices, and exploitation of immigrants. In the last quarter of the 19th century, their business dealings were cut down by new government laws and requirements and their social superiority dwindled with the rise of the middle-class and Progressive Era https://tammayauthor.com/uncategorized/american-reform-and-progress-at-the-turn-of-the-20th-century reforms.
The Amberson family dynamics could fit a soap opera. Isabel marries Wilbur not out of love but disappointment. The real love of her life is Eugene Morgan, a progressive thinker who doesn’t believe the automobile is a “useless nuisance” and, in fact, becomes quite wealthy as a car manufacturer at the turn of the century. Wilbur complies with the Amberson’s stale Victorian ideals while Eugene is steadily moving into the modern era. It wasn’t uncommon for 19th century women to marry men they didn’t love (especially wealthy ones who were expected to fulfill their duty by producing heirs to the family name and estate) but when Eugene comes back to town after years away, Isabel’s reputation starts to come into question, a big no-no in the Gilded Age.
Then there is George. As a child, he is a holy terror, doing what he wants when he wants, so much so the town holds its breath watching him grow up, praying he’ll “get his comeuppance”. Like his grandfather and uncle, he has no ambition other than enjoy life on the family’s wealth. He even has the gall to tell Lucy Morgan, whom he’s in love with, his ambition in life is to be a yachtsman. His relationship with his mother is also not exactly healthy, as from his first meeting with Eugene, Eugene is determined to drive a wedge in their friendship and, later, courtship.
Last, there is Fanny. Fanny is the Victorian spinster of storybooks — wiry, plain-looking, shrill-toned, constantly unsatisfied with life and jealous of married women. She harbors a secret love for Eugene and is equally destructive in the face of his growing affection for Isabel, especially after Wilbur dies. I wrote more extensively about Fanny and the actress who plays her in Welles’ film (Agnes Moorehead) on my old blog herehttps://thedreambookblog.wordpress.com/2016/12/04/edited-to-shreds-agnes-mooreheads-aborted-performance-in-the-magnificent-ambersons-1942/.
The Ambersons follow pretty much the pattern of most dysfunctional families — their magnificence deteriorates in the harsh light of the new century and they all, indeed, get their “comeuppance”.
Want to know how the Alderdice family gets its comeuppance? You can check out my Waxwood Series here https://tammayauthor.com/about-pages/about-the-waxwood-series. The series has just gotten a complete makeover (including new covers!) and Book 1, The Specter, is at 99¢. So start the series today!
As soon as Tam May started writing at the age of fourteen, writing became her voice. She writes historical women’s fiction and historical mysteries. She loves to take readers into the nooks and crannies of the past, and she wants to inspire readers with her resilient and autonomous female characters. Most of her fiction is set in and around the San Francisco Bay Area because she fell in love with the city and found her independence and writing voice when she lived there in the 1990s.
Her book Lessons From My Mother’s Life debuted at #1 in its category on Amazon. She’s also published a Gilded age family saga set among San Francisco’s Nob Hill elite titled the Waxwood Series which follows the Alderdices as they discover their place amidst revolutionary changes and shifting values in the last decade of the 19th century.
Tam’s current project is a historical mystery series titled The Paper Chase Mysteries. The series takes place in Northern California at the turn of the 20th century and features amateur sleuth and epistolary expert Adele Gossling, a progressive and independent young woman whose talent for solving crimes comes into direct conflict with her new community apt to prefer the previous era's angel in the house to the current century’s New Woman.
Tam lives in Texas but calls San Francisco and the Bay Area “home”. When she’s not writing, she’s reading classic literature, watching classic films, cross-stitching, or cooking yummy vegetarian dishes.
Is the life of a Gilded Age debutante all parties and flirtations? Read “The Rose Debutante” to find out! It’s FREE! Plus, you’ll get to know about life in the past and about the resilient women the history books forgot. And how about fun historical facts, great deals on historical fiction books, and a cool monthly freebie thrown in just because? Here’s https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/v0d5w8 where you can sign up.
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