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Read The Age of Innocence , by Edith Wharton
Answer:
Wharton, taken by evolutionary theories and anthropology, used related terminology ("chosen specimens") to describe her thoughts about the 1870's New York being in contradiction with Europe, which was devastated by the war.
Step-by-step explanation:
Wharton describes Newland Archer as feeling "distinctly the superior of these chosen specimens of old New York gentility," showing that he considers himself intellectually and culturally superior to his New York elders and their rigid society.