To me, the most interesting aspect of reading about the bohemian era in American Moderns by Christine Stansell was the diverse group of people that made up the bohemian group in Greenwich Village. Wealthy progressive thinkers and lower class anarchists were united in common beliefs for greater equality: The upper and middle class bohemians were drawn to this lifestyle by a belief that it would greater open their minds to new experiences, and therefore expose them to innovative artistic ideas. That the upper class expressed discontent and would sometimes consciously choose a less comfortable life for themselves reminded me of Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence which was written during this era about the 1890s. In the novel, Newland Archer–a young, moneyed New Yorker–expresses discontent with May Weland, his fiance, because she is unwilling to step out of the confines of societal expectations. Conversely, he is attracted to the mysterious Countess because of her disdain for society. It is in this same way, I believe, that upper class people joined the progressives and anarchists and began to transform Greenwich Village into the happening spot we know today.