The Tea-Table Symbol Analysis

The tea-table present in the final scene of “The Other Two” represents propriety, as well as the choice Mr. Waythorn and Mrs. Alice Waythorn have made to prioritize etiquette over honesty. At the end of the story, Mr. Waythorn and Mrs. Waythorn, Mr. Varick, and Mr. Haskett find themselves unexpectedly thrown together in the Waythorns’ library. Before anybody has a chance to remove themselves from this awkward situation, Alice cheerfully offers them tea, and, lest they appear rude and improper, they have no choice but to accept. Tea figures prominently in the culture of upper-class, polite society, and Wharton’s choice to feature a drink and social event with such sophisticated connotations at the conclusion of “The Other Two” carries great symbolic weight. The central conflict of “The Other Two” centers around Mr. Waythorn’s battle between acting on his jealousy (and thus acting genuinely) and doing what is polite (and thus practicing proper etiquette). The tea-table—placed, fittingly, in the center of these four reluctantly poised, polite characters—signifies that the Waythorns have chosen to continue in the rules and rituals of polite society rather than to address the jealousies and hidden truths that gnaw at the integrity of their marriage.