Daily Parties and Dirty Dishes

In Veblen's "Theory of the Leisure Class," it is suggested that beauty and pleasing surroundings are only created by the extravagant spending of money and time. Any actions that are not contributed towards this wasteful cause are pushed aside for a greater and more noticeable action. Veblen uses the comparison between washing the dishes and putting up fancy holiday decorations. The latter wold get greater attention and praise from others while clean dishes are expected to be present and received without much thought. In history, dish cleaning was done by women, so their action and role in life was lessened in importance. Veblen also brings up that female beauty in earlier times was found in strength and robustness, while at the turn of the century, gauged by delicateness and facial appeals. The major point brought up by Veblen was that a family's reputation was dependent on the expenditures of time and money to give off the impression that it is not needed. So while the man is working towards spending these things for his reputation, the woman is in charge of maintaining life away from the giant glass window.

This article by Veblen interestingly intertwines with how Edna is received by both her husband and the people around her. Edna spends most of her time with friends and lovers lounging whilst listening to music or chatting with others. Her daily interactions with others give off the impression that she is extremely appealing and that her money does what she isn't doing. But some things that people may expect Edna to be doing, such as watching her children or washing dishes is dispersed to servants. The fact that Edna almost ignores this private living standard that Veblen suggests drives Leonce crazy and away from her. The beauty that is seen in Edna almost immediately disappears when she is alone in a smaller house without her husband and children. The sense of leisure and wealth dissipates when she is forced to do more work on her own. This shows that the opinion made by others is dependent on what you show, not what you have.