Henry James 
The Spoils of Poynton 

’The Spoils of Poynton’ is the tale of the widow Adela Gereth, an iron-willed woman of impeccable taste, and her conflicts with her son Owen over the antique furniture and art in the family home of Poynton. Told from the perspective of Fleda Vetch, a young woman caught between her love for Owen, who is engaged to another, and her concern for Mrs. Gereth. Originally serialized in ’The Atlantic Monthly’ in 1896 ’The Spoils of Poynton’ is ultimately a tragic tale of materialism.