"The House of Mirth" by Edith Wharton.

        It is truly ironic after one works endlessly to benefiting oneself that such work only ends up being harmful. Such is the case of Miss Lily Bart in New York at the turn of the century. In Edith Wharton's House of Mirth, Lily Bart behaves as the young and jaded protagonist, desperate to establish and maintain her position on the social ladder. Her extreme carelessness and arrogance initially evoke less pity than desired by the …

…her demise was the result of her own mistakes. It was the objective of Wharton to prove, however, that high society was a dangerous game to partake in; the obsession and need for it could lead to one's misfortune and undoing. The ill fate of the individuals who were just behaving in the way they were expected may seem unjust, but as a whole, expulsion by the unfairness of society is only inevitable for many.