Social Class and Mobility

The book explores the tensions and conflicts between different social classes in Gilded Age New York, particularly through the Dryfoos family's rise from farming to wealth and the Marches' precarious middle-class status, highlighting the moral and psychological costs of economic ambition.

The Marches' encounter with the janitor who doubts their ability to pay high rent underscores the class anxieties and social judgments inherent in urban life.

The Marches observe the hopeless poverty of tenement dwellers and reflect on their own middle-class aspirations and housing choices.

The search for an apartment and the encounter with Mrs. Grosvenor Green's flat underscore class distinctions and the challenges of urban living.

Dryfoos's transition from farmer to wealthy speculator and his move to New York to gain social standing for his daughters illustrates the pursuit of upward mobility and the tensions it creates.