Edith Wharton 
The Touchstone 

Published in 1900, eleven years prior to her masterpiece 
Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton’s novella
The Touchstone explores the emotional complexities of love and betrayal. Penniless and unable to marry the woman he loves, the financially struggling lawyer Stephen Glennard discovers a way out of his predicaments by selling love letters written to him by deceased author Margaret Aubyn. Glennard’s psychological anguish as he grapples with his guilt and the repercussions of his actions presents a poignant narrative of human conscience and morality.