Summary
In the damp, listless atmosphere of a rural enclave, Katie Abbott finds herself paralyzed by the suffocating weight of being an overlooked 'wallflower,' a social pariah in an age that demands vibrant femininity. Driven to the precipice of oblivion, she seeks a watery quietus in the village pond, only to be snatched from the brink by a mysterious, gallant newcomer. This savior, far from being a mere knight-errant, integrates himself into the local industrial fabric by securing a position at the town's automobile factory—a locus of burgeoning modernity and clandestine vice. The narrative shifts its gaze to Henry Higginbotham, a conscientious clerk who perceives the rot beneath the factory's polished veneer; he discovers that the manager, J. W. Wiseman, is the architect of a sophisticated auto theft syndicate. When Wiseman audaciously pivots toward political legitimacy by running for mayor, Katie—now emboldened by her brush with death and her burgeoning affection for her rescuer—goads the timid Higginbotham to stand as a populist alternative. What follows is a clash between the silver-tongued corruption of the establishment and the stuttering sincerity of the common man. The resolution arrives not through the ballot box alone, but through the revelation that the heroic stranger is an undercover journalist, whose exposé dismantles Wiseman’s empire, paving the way for Higginbotham’s victory and Katie’s romantic ascension.
Synopsis
Katie Abbott, despairing of being a wallflower, is about to attempt suicide in the village pond when she is rescued by a young stranger. Following his heroic feat, the young man accepts a job in the town's automobile factory. Meanwhile, Henry Higginbotham, a clerk in the same factory, resigns when he suspects that the manager, J. W. Wiseman, is running an auto theft ring. After Wiseman announces his mayoral candidacy, Katie urges Higginbotham to oppose him. Higginbotham fails as an orator, but just as it appears that he will lose the election, the nice young man reveals himself to be an undercover newspaper reporter and exposes Wiseman's corruption. As a result, Wiseman is arrested, Higginbotham is elected mayor and Katie marries her hero.
Review Excerpt
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The Fragile Resilience of the Wallflower: An Analytical Perspective
To watch Heart of Twenty (1920) is to witness a fascinating intersection of post-Victorian morality and the burgeoning cynicism of the Jazz Age. Directed with a steady, if conventional, hand, the film serves as a vehicle for the idiosyncratic talents of Zasu Pitts, an actress whose very physicality—all fluttering hands and wide, apprehensive eyes—redefined the 'waif' archetype for a generation. Unlike the more robust heroines..."
