Contexts constructs the historical foundation for this very historical novel. Many documents are included on the New York Four Hundred, elite social gatherings, archery (the sport for upper-crust daughters), as well as Wharton's manuscript outlines, letters, and related writings.

Criticism collects eleven American and British contemporary reviews and nine major essays on The Age of Innocence, including a groundbreaking piece on the two film adaptations of the novel.

"A Chronology and Selected Bibliography" are also included.