# Janey Archer — The Age of Innocence character guide

> Janey Archer in The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Janey, Archer

**First appearance:** 0001-i

## Snapshot

Newland's unmarried sister, living with their mother, a true Newland in manner and in the family's instinct for propriety.

## Who they are

Janey Archer shares her mother's tall, pale Newland looks and her taste for scenery, glazed ware, and novels about people in society. Unmarried and settled into the narrow round of West Twenty-eighth Street, she is an excellent audience for Sillerton Jackson's anecdotes and a reliable echo of the family's opinions. She matters less as an actor than as an atmosphere: the domestic quiet against which Newland's restlessness and Ellen's foreignness both stand out.

## Relationships

### [Newland Archer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/newland_archer)

_family_

A close but stifling sibling bond, with Janey acting as her mother's echo and a constant reminder of family duty.

### [Ellen Olenska](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/ellen_olenska)

_social_

A polite but wary acquaintance, with Janey viewing Ellen as a fascinating yet dangerous figure from a foreign world.

### [May Welland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/may_welland)

_family_

A supportive sister-in-law relationship, with Janey admiring May's conventional perfection and social grace.

### [Mrs. Archer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/mrs_archer)

_family_

A codependent mother-daughter relationship where Janey remains a spinster under her mother's controlling influence.

### [Ellen Olenska](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/ellen_olenska)

_social_

A polite but wary acquaintance, with Janey viewing Ellen as a fascinating yet dangerous figure from a foreign world.

### [Newland Archer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/newland_archer)

_family_

A close but stifling sibling bond, with Janey acting as her mother's echo and a constant reminder of family duty.

### [Mrs. Archer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/mrs_archer)

_family_

A codependent mother-daughter relationship where Janey remains a spinster under her mother's controlling influence.

### [Newland Archer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/newland_archer)

_family_

A close but stifling sibling bond, with Janey acting as her mother's echo and a constant reminder of family duty.

### [May Welland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/may_welland)

_family_

A supportive sister-in-law relationship, with Janey admiring May's conventional perfection and social grace.

### [May Welland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/may_welland)

_family_

A supportive sister-in-law relationship, with Janey admiring May's conventional perfection and social grace.

### [Mrs. Archer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/mrs_archer)

_family_

A codependent mother-daughter relationship where Janey remains a spinster under her mother's controlling influence.

## In the story

### [Chapter V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/v)

Participates in the gossip, speculating about Ellen's dress and name, revealing her suppressed romantic fancy.

### [Chapter VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/viii)

Mentioned as reporting to Archer that many were disappointed by Ellen's lack of stylishness.

### [Chapter X](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/x)

Questions Newland about his indifference to family reputation and Ellen's actions.

### [XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/xv)

She comments on Newland's pale appearance at breakfast.

### [XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/xvii)

Tells Newland about Ellen's visit to their mother.

### [XIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/xix)

Newland's sister, seated in the family pew and unable to see much of the congregation.

### [XX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/xx)

Newland's sister, who accompanied Mrs. Archer on their European travels and helped forge the friendship with Mrs. Carfry and Miss Harle.

### [XXXIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/chapters/xxxiv)

Archer's sister, who gives her mother's emeralds to Fanny Beaufort.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters/janey_archer
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_age_of_innocence_se/characters