Article #297-2 | Gutenberg Articles

Excerpt

Excerpt from The Flirt, by Booth Tarkington

Valentine Corliss walked up Corliss Street the hottest afternoon
of that hot August, a year ago, wearing a suit of white serge
which attracted a little attention from those observers who were
able to observe anything except the heat. The coat was shaped
delicately; it outlined the wearer, and, fitting him as women's
clothes fit women, suggested an effeminacy not an attribute of the
tall Corliss. The effeminacy belonged all to the tailor, an artist
plying far from Corliss Street, for the coat would have
encountered a hundred of its fellows at Trouville or Ostende this
very day. Corliss Street is the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne, the
Park Lane, the Fifth Avenue, of Capitol City, that smoky
illuminant of our great central levels, but although it esteems
itself an established cosmopolitan thoroughfare, it is still
provincial enough to be watchful; and even in its torrid languor
took some note of the alien garment.

Mr. Corliss, treading for the first time in seventeen years the
pavements of this namesake of his grandfather, mildly repaid its
interest in himself. The street, once the most peaceful in the
world, he thought, had changed. It was still long and straight,
still shaded by trees so noble that they were betrothed, here and
there, high over the wide white roadway, the shimmering tunnels
thus contrived shot with gold and blue; but its pristine complete
restfulness was departed: gasoline had arrived, and a pedestrian,
even this August day of heat, must glance two ways before
crossing.

Architectural transformations, as vital, staggered the returned
native. In his boyhood that posthumously libelled sovereign lady,
Anne, had terribly prevailed among the dwellings on this highway;
now, however, there was little left of the jig-saw's hare-brained
ministrations; but the growing pains of the adolescent city had
wrought some madness here. There had been a revolution which was a
riot; and, plainly incited by a new outbreak of the colonies, the
Goth, the Tudor, and the Tuscan had harried the upper reaches to a
turmoil attaining its climax in a howl or two from the Spanish
Moor.

Explanation

**Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from The Flirt by Booth Tarkington**

Context of the Source

Booth Tarkington (1869–1946) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist and dramatist, best known for works like The Magnificent Ambersons (1918) and Alice Adams (1921). The Flirt (1913) is a lesser-known but sharply observed novel that critiques the social mores of early 20th-century Midwestern America, particularly the superficiality, class pretensions, and rapid modernization of cities like Indianapolis (thinly veiled as "Capitol City" in the novel).

The excerpt introduces Valentine Corliss, a sophisticated, well-traveled man returning to his hometown after a long absence. His arrival sets the stage for a contrast between his cosmopolitanism and the provincial, aspiring-but-awkward elegance of Corliss Street (a stand-in for wealthy urban avenues like Fifth Avenue or Paris’s Avenue du Bois de Boulogne).

Themes in the Excerpt

Provincialism vs. Cosmopolitanism
- The passage juxtaposes Valentine Corliss’s worldly refinement with the parochial, self-conscious sophistication of Corliss Street. His tailored white serge suit, which would blend in at European resorts like Trouville or Ostende, stands out in Capitol City, where such fashion is still a novelty. The street’s observers are too "torrid" (both literally, from the heat, and metaphorically, from their unsophisticated gaze) to fully appreciate it, highlighting their limited exposure to true high society.
Change and Modernization
- The street, once "the most peaceful in the world," has been disrupted by automobiles ("gasoline had arrived") and architectural chaos. The shift from uniform Queen Anne-style homes to a mishmash of Gothic, Tudor, Tuscan, and Moorish designs reflects the haphazard, aspirational growth of American cities in the early 1900s—where wealth and taste did not always align.
Class and Appearance
- Corliss’s suit is described as effeminate in tailoring but not in wearer, suggesting that true masculinity (or sophistication) is not undermined by refined clothing—a subtle critique of Midwestern masculinity’s discomfort with elegance. The street’s reaction to his attire underscores how clothing signals social status, and how Capitol City’s elite are still learning the codes of high fashion.
Nostalgia and Disillusionment
- Corliss’s return after seventeen years frames the passage with a sense of lost innocence. The street’s transformation—from serene to chaotic—mirrors his likely disillusionment with a hometown that has grown but not necessarily improved.

Literary Devices and Stylistic Analysis

Imagery and Sensory Detail
- Heat as a Dominant Motif: The "hottest afternoon of that hot August" sets a languid, almost oppressive tone. The heat is not just physical but symbolic of the street’s stifling provincialism—people are too "torrid" to notice much beyond their discomfort.
- Visual Contrasts:
  - The white serge suit (pristine, European) vs. the smoky, ill-lit Capitol City.
  - The shimmering tunnels of trees (natural beauty) vs. the architectural "riot" (man-made chaos).
  - The delicate coat (suggesting artistry) vs. the jig-saw hare-brained ministrations (suggesting amateurish design).
Irony and Satire
- Dramatic Irony: The narrator describes Corliss Street as esteeming itself "cosmopolitan" while revealing its provincial awkwardness (e.g., gawking at a well-tailored suit).
- Architectural Satire: The shift from Queen Anne to a hodgepodge of historical styles mocks the American tendency to imitate European grandeur without understanding it. The "howl or two from the Spanish Moor" is a particularly absurd image, suggesting garish excess.
Personification and Metaphor
- The street is personified as an observer ("took some note of the alien garment") and as a living entity with a past ("once the most peaceful in the world").
- The trees are "betrothed" overhead, creating a metaphorical canopy of romance, which contrasts with the unromantic, chaotic changes below.
Diction and Tone
- Elevated, Slightly Archaic Diction: Phrases like "posthumously libelled sovereign lady, Anne" (referring to Queen Anne-style architecture) and "pristine complete restfulness" give the prose a wry, cultured tone, reinforcing the gap between Corliss’s sophistication and the street’s pretensions.
- Sarcasm: Describing the architectural revolution as a "riot" and the styles as harried by the "Goth, the Tudor, and the Tuscan" frames the changes as violent and senseless, not progressive.

Significance of the Passage

Introduction to Valentine Corliss
- The excerpt establishes Corliss as an outsider in his own hometown—a man whose global experience sets him apart. His observations foreshadow his role as a critic of Capitol City’s social hypocrisies, a theme central to The Flirt.
Critique of American Social Climbing
- The passage satirizes the Gilded Age’s obsession with European imitation. The architectural chaos mirrors the social chaos of a city trying (and failing) to emulate old-world elegance. This reflects Tarkington’s broader critique of American materialism and superficiality.
Foreshadowing Conflict
- The tension between old and new (serene past vs. chaotic present) hints at the generational and cultural conflicts that will unfold in the novel, particularly around flirtation, marriage, and social mobility.
Urban vs. Rural Divide
- Though Capitol City is urban, its provincialism aligns it more with small-town mentality than true cosmopolitanism. This reflects the early 20th-century American identity crisis: caught between rural traditions and urban modernization.

Line-by-Line Breakdown of Key Moments

"a suit of white serge which attracted a little attention..."
- The suit is alien in Capitol City, marking Corliss as both an insider (by name) and an outsider (by taste).
"the effeminacy belonged all to the tailor..."
- The narrator defends Corliss’s masculinity, suggesting that true sophistication is not unmanly—a dig at Midwestern discomfort with refinement.
"Corliss Street is the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne, the Park Lane, the Fifth Avenue, of Capitol City..."
- The street fancies itself elite, but the comparison is ironic—it lacks the genuine cosmopolitanism of those famous avenues.
"gasoline had arrived, and a pedestrian... must glance two ways before crossing."
- The arrival of cars symbolizes modernity’s disruption of tradition, forcing even the wealthy to adapt.
"a revolution which was a riot; and, plainly incited by a new outbreak of the colonies..."
- The architectural "revolution" is framed as chaotic and unplanned, with "colonies" (American wealth) plundering European styles without coherence.
"the howl or two from the Spanish Moor."
- The most absurd and jarring of the architectural styles, suggesting tasteless excess—a final punchline to the street’s failed sophistication.

Conclusion: Why This Passage Matters

This excerpt is a masterclass in social satire, using fashion, architecture, and weather to expose the pretensions and anxieties of a growing American city. Tarkington’s sharp eye for detail and wry narrative voice make the passage both humorous and critical, setting the stage for The Flirt’s exploration of love, class, and the performance of identity in a rapidly changing world.

The passage also resonates beyond its time, offering a timeless critique of how societies struggle with modernization—whether in the early 1900s or today, the tension between authenticity and affectation remains a rich subject for literature.

Questions

Question 1

The passage’s description of Valentine Corliss’s suit as “effeminate” yet clarifying that this quality “belonged all to the tailor” serves primarily to:

A. underscore the disconnect between the street’s provincial perceptions of masculinity and the narrator’s more nuanced view of sophistication.
B. critique the superficiality of high fashion by implying that true masculinity is inherently incompatible with sartorial refinement.
C. highlight the tailor’s artistic failure in misunderstanding the wearer’s intended projection of rugged individualism.
D. suggest that Corliss’s own ambivalence about his appearance is rooted in a subconscious rejection of his cosmopolitan identity.
E. foreshadow the street’s eventual acceptance of Corliss as a symbol of progressive gender norms in Capitol City.

Question 2

The architectural “revolution which was a riot” is most effectively interpreted as a metaphor for:

A. the chaotic, uncritical adoption of European cultural fragments by an aspirational but unsophisticated American society.
B. the inevitable decline of traditional craftsmanship in the face of industrialization’s homogenizing influence.
C. the cyclical nature of aesthetic trends, wherein each generation rebels against the stylistic constraints of its predecessors.
D. the psychological turmoil of Capitol City’s elite, who are torn between nostalgia for the past and desire for modern prestige.
E. the literal destruction of historical buildings by urban developers prioritizing profit over heritage preservation.

Question 3

The narrator’s observation that Corliss Street “esteems itself an established cosmopolitan thoroughfare” yet remains “provincial enough to be watchful” is structurally analogous to which of the following scenarios?

A. A self-proclaimed polyglot who fluently speaks only their native language but critiques others’ grammatical errors in foreign tongues.
B. A small-town theater troupe staging Shakespeare with elaborate costumes but delivering lines in broad regional accents.
C. A university that advertises its cutting-edge research facilities while relying on outdated pedagogical methods in its classrooms.
D. A politician who champions environmental reform while frequently flying private jets to campaign events.
E. A tech startup that markets itself as disruptive yet replicates the hierarchical management styles of traditional corporations.

Question 4

The phrase “the shimmering tunnels... shot with gold and blue” functions in the passage as:

A. a fleeting moment of natural beauty that ironically contrasts with the human-made disorder of the street’s architectural evolution.
B. an example of the narrator’s sentimental nostalgia for the street’s past, undermining the passage’s otherwise satirical tone.
C. a subtle indication that Corliss’s perception of the street is distorted by his own romanticized memories of childhood.
D. a metaphor for the ephemeral nature of wealth, suggesting that the street’s opulence is as transient as sunlight through leaves.
E. foreshadowing of the economic boom that will eventually transform Capitol City into a genuine cosmopolitan hub.

Question 5

Which of the following best captures the narrator’s attitude toward the “growing pains” of Capitol City?

A. Amused detachment, tinged with a critique of the city’s lack of coherent cultural identity despite its ambitions.
B. Unabashed nostalgia for the city’s past, coupled with resentment toward the forces of modernization.
C. Optimistic approval of the city’s architectural eclecticism as a sign of vibrant creative experimentation.
D. Cynical dismissal of all urban development as inherently vulgar and devoid of artistic merit.
E. Neutral observation, withholding judgment to allow the reader to form their own conclusions about the city’s transformation.

Solutions and Explanations

1) Correct answer: A

Why A is most correct: The passage explicitly separates the "effeminacy" of the suit from Corliss himself, attributing it to the tailor’s artistry. This distinction serves to contradict the street’s provincial association of refined tailoring with unmanliness, while the narrator’s tone implies that true sophistication transcends such rigid gender norms. The phrasing “belonged all to the tailor” is a deliberate correction of the street’s misreading, aligning with A’s focus on the disconnect between perception and nuanced reality.