Washington Square (Signet Classics)

I've just finished reading WASHINGTON SQUARE (1880) by Henry James (1843-1916) in the Signet Classics mass market paperback edition (which is perfectly acceptable, with easily readable print and wide-enough margins... and very lightweight). This was my first time reading anything by Henry James, and I enjoyed it so much that I've ordered two more HJ books from Amazon (arriving soon). James is such a perceptive and intelligent writer - and he keeps the action moving. And WASHINGTON SQUARE was, from what I can gather, the only novel that James placed in the past. As you may or may not know, the 1949 film The Heiresss (out of which came an Oscar win for Olivia de Havilland) was based on this short novel (209 pages in this edition). And the film version follows the book quite closely, both in dramatic action and dialog. But, of course, the book more deeply fleshes-out its characters and their feelings/motivations/strengths/weaknesses/challenges far more richly than a film ever could. The story centers around the well-to-do but plain, insecure and painfully shy young lady Catherine Sloper, her prideful, emotionally aloof, judgmental, and fastidious physician father, two aunts (the doctor's sisters), and a "beautiful" young man (Morris Townsend) who sweeps "poor Catherine" off her feet one night at a party. Morris immediately begins passionately courting Catherine and soon extracts a marriage promise from her (with the frequent and surreptitious aid of well-intentioned but meddlesome aunt Penniman) - much to her father's abject horror and her aunt Penniman's ecstatic delight. (The widowed aunt Penniman lives with Dr Sloper and Catherine in their large New York City home in Washington Square, and accounts for much of the humor and dramatic momentum in the story.) But are Morris's matrimonial intentions based on pure love, or is he really just a slick gold-digger after Catherine's current large bequeathed income - and the prospect of an even larger future inheritance when her father dies? The lonesome and emotionally vulnerable Catherine is rapturously convinced by Morris's burning love-ardor - but we are left intriguingly undecided throughout most of the novel concerning his true motives. And what must ultimately become of beautiful, exuberant Morris and his wealthy-but-homely Catherine? One of the "strange pleasures" of this book is watching Catherine's personality develop and mature over a span of some years, into her middle-age. This larger time expanse is a major difference from the film, which keeps the action more contained to the general present. But does Catherine mature into a better, finer person; or does she become hard-hearted and even more sternly introverted? Or perhaps a bit of both? (The romantic human heart is so very fragile, complex, brave and sensitive a thing.) At the end we are forced to ask: What do forgiveness and forgetting mean?....One possible slight drawback of reading this book after seeing the movie is that we inevitably "see" the various FILM ACTORS (de Havilland, Hopkins, Richardson, Clift, etc.) as the BOOK'S CHARACTERS. But the casting of the film is so excellent, this turns out not to be such a problem. But, if you can, read the book FIRST. This edition contains a very interesting Introduction by Mona Simpson, and provides some helpful biographical info on Henry James and a discussion of where James got the idea for WASHINGTON SQUARE. I highly recommend WASHINGTON SQUARE and feel certain you'll enjoy it.

Lloyd James has a good general tone for Henry James, objective and dispassionate with occasional small flurries of excitement and drama.It's in the detail that he becomes stuck: he has little feel for the forensic delicacy and purpose of Henry James' authorial voice. In the opening two chapters - which are in the author's point of view - he is all at sea, with irrelevant pauses, consistent failure to bring out the point of the language (and Henry James' language is always charged with point), and a complete unawareness that it's actually meant to be (at least partially) funny. Henry James' humour may be subtle to the point of stuffiness but it's still humour and Lloyd James just doesn't get it. He is unfailingly serious all throughout this reading. You need to listen very carefully to get what the author is getting at: there are few, if any, writers who equal Henry James for scalpel-like precision of language and this reading is too desultory and unfocused to bring out this quality.Happily, much of the novel is made up of dialogue and Lloyd James is much more at home here. The sentences are far shorter, with much more obvious point, and the narrator reads most of them with a clarity and assuredness that eludes him elsewhere. And this dialogue is so crisp, pointed, and entertaining that it alone brings a recommendation. The writing is sublime throughout - sustained better, I think, than in any other novel by James - and so despite the flaws of this reading I'm glad I bought this audiobook.

I once worked as a tutor, at my university's tutoring center, and in one of the numerous moments of leisure I enjoyed (the majority of the student population seemed to be unaware of the center's existence, which makes sense when one considers that it was located in the library basement), I overheard a conversation between two students, a guy and a girl, who had been taking an English class titled Special Topics: Conrad and James. "Why doesn't he get to the point?" the girl was complaining. I began to listen to the conversation in medias res, but I did not need to hear more to know that she was not talking about Conrad. I think they were discussing _The Portrait of a Lady_, which I've yet to read. As most enthusiasts of English literature know, James is famous for an exhaustive, convoluted style that is not everyone's cup of tea. In the middle of his career, James' style offers the lover of great prose a nearly physical pleasure; towards the end of the author's life, it degenerated almost into self-parody. At least that is the consensus. A friend of mine said, referring to _The Golden Bowl_ (1904), that it is often difficult to figure out what is going on, assuming that something is going on at all.Published in serial form two years after the original _Daisy Miller_, _Washington Square_ (1880) is a novella that belongs to the decade in which Henry James published such highly regarded works as _The Portrait of a Lady_, _The Bostonians_, _The Author of Beltraffio_, _The Aspern Papers_, and _The Lesson of the Master_. It is a love story of sorts, related in the beautiful, ornate prose that characterizes James' most satisfactory works.The reader follows the fate of Catherine Sloper, who falls in love with Morris Townsend. The conflict: Catherine is a good girl who will inherit a reasonable sum from her mother and an even larger one from her still-living father, while Morris lives off his sister and has been known to squander what little money he had. Behind the two central figures stand Catherine's father, Dr. Sloper, who is convinced that Morris is only after the money, and his sister, Catherine's Aunt Lavinia Penniman, who has not only a taste but a hunger for romance. Catherine is caught between obedience to her father and a sincere attraction to Morris. The reader wonders whether Dr. Sloper is correct, whether Morris really is mercenary.As is known, critics have bestowed upon Henry James the enviable title of Heir of Jane Austen, and _Washington Square_ offers much justification. The style is precise and exquisite, and the novella focuses on the struggle between emotion and convention. Like Austen, James proves that it is possible to tell a good story without resorting to lurid subject matter, without sensationalism. The action is not outward, but psychological and emotional. Could the story have been told in half the number of pages, or less? Probably. But then it wouldn't have been a Henry James story, and the reader would have been deprived of the elegant style that is almost a character in itself in this author's works.Although it is generally catalogued as a novel, the rubric of novella fits _Washington Square_ more comfortably. I wrote my dissertation on this neglected and elusive genre, but I won't bore you with the details. In a nutshell, if the short story is governed by the literary device of revelation and the concept of development characterizes the novel proper, the novella focuses on a situation that is presented and reexamined. This is exactly what happens in _Washington Square_, and that's all one can say without giving away too much.I have yet to read James' novels. I am curious to see how a master of the short story and especially of the novella spins a longer yarn. If I had to compare _Washington Square_ to any of the works I've read by James, my choice would be _The Beast in the Jungle_ (1903), that story about the fear of one's future. I also thought, as I was reading, of other stories that play with the theme of possible or actual ulterior motives: _The Aspern Papers_ and _The Lesson of the Master_. I'll simply say that _Washington Square_ is a bit less ambiguous than other Henry James stories.I recommend _Washington Square_ to both James enthusiasts and neophytes. The former will be delighted; the latter will be able to establish whether they want to give the author a second chance or not. Personally, I would describe this novella as one of the most gratifying examples of the immensely gratifying art of Henry James.My next Henry James will be _In the Cage_.Thanks for reading, and enjoy the book!

Libro conforme alla descrizione. Tutto bene.

Der verwitwete Arzt Dr. Sloper, angesehen und wohlhabend, wohnt mit seiner Tochter und seiner verwitweten Schwester in einem repräsentativen Haus am Washington Square in New York. Seine Frau, die er sehr geliebt hat, ist kurz nach Geburt der Tochter verstorben. Seine Schwester, Mrs. Penniman, hat er nach dem Tod ihres Mannes bei sich aufgenommen. Vorübergehend - doch letzten Endes hat sie sich bei ihm "eingenistet". Dr. Sloper ist Vernunftmensch durch und durch. Durch seine Tätigkeit hat er sich große Menschenkenntnis erworben. Mit scharfem Verstand analysiert und durchschaut er seine Mitmenschen. Er liebt seine Tochter Catherine. Sie ist aber auch eine herbe Enttäuschung für ihn, denn sie ist schüchtern, sehr ruhig, nicht intelligent, nicht attraktiv. Sie wiederum vergöttert ihren Vater. Von seiner Schwester hält Dr. Sloper noch weniger: Sie hat keinen festen Standpunkt, schwankt in ihren Meinungen hin und her und lässt sich von ihrer lebhaften Phantasie und ihren emotionalen Bedürfnissen beherrschen. Penetrant mischt sie sich in die Angelegenheiten anderer ein und verursacht immer wieder Chaos. Mit einer anderen Schwester, Mrs. Almond, tauscht sich Dr. Sloper öfter aus. Sie schätzt er und sie teilt seine Meinung über Mrs. Penniman.Als Catherine den Mitgiftjäger Morris Townsend kennen lernt, verliebt sie sich in ihn. Auch Mrs. Penniman ist begeistert von ihm. Nur Dr. Sloper hat ihn schnell durchschaut: Der junge Mann hat nichts gelernt, geht keiner Tätigkeit nach, hat kein Geld und wohnt bei seiner Schwester, von der er sich aushalten lässt. Catherine ist für ihn ein naives, sehr vermögendes Opfer. Dr. Sloper macht seiner Tochter klar, dass er gegen eine Verbindung zwischen ihr und Morris ist. Für Mrs. Penniman ist jedoch die Förderung der Beziehung eine emotional belebende Aufgabe. Sie trifft sich immer wieder mit Morris, um ihn vom Stand der Dinge zu unterrichten und um ihre verstiegenen, romantischen Ideen und Bedürfnisse zu befriedigen. Morris verbirgt seine zunehmende Verärgerung ("alte verrückte Schachtel"), denn er möchte ja seine Interessen nicht gefährden. Schließlich unternimmt Dr. Sloper mit Catherine eine Kulturreise nach Europa und hofft, dass sie danach von ihren Gefühlen für Morris geheilt ist. Dies ist nicht der Fall. Er gibt ein sarkastisches Urteil über sie ab, das sie sehr verletzt.Während der Reise hat sich seine Schwester verstärkt um Morris gekümmert: Der geht im Haus am Washington Square ein und aus, macht es sich im Arbeitszimmer von Dr. Sloper bequem und genießt den Wein des Doktors. Was während seiner Abwesenheit geschehen ist und wer dafür verantwortlich ist, entgeht Dr. Sloper natürlich nicht. Ironisch konfrontiert er seine Schwester mit seinem Wissen.Aber Morris kommt seinem Ziel einfach nicht näher: Dr. Sloper lehnt unverändert eine Heirat ab. Bei einer Heirat würde Catherine nur das Erbe ihrer Mutter erhalten, nicht sein Vermögen. Catherine könnte das akzeptieren - nicht jedoch Morris. Er muss sich nun etwas einfallen lassen, um von einer unergiebigen Erbin, die sich an ihn klammert, loszukommen. Er schützt Geschäfte vor. Catherine dämmert es, dass dies Trennung bedeutet. Sie ist verzweifelt. Dr. Sloper ist sich sicher: "Jetzt ist es passiert - der Gauner hat sich aus dem Staub gemacht". Mit einer LIst lockt er Catherine aus der Reserve. Sie sagt ihm, dass s i e sich von Morris getrennt hat. Natürlich weiß er, wer sich von wem getrennt hat. Er ist sich auch sicher, dass Morris wieder auftauchen wird. Evtl. nach seinem Tod, um sich das Vermögen der Erbin zu sichern. Davor möchte er seine Tochter schützen.Die Jahre vergehen. Dr. Sloper möchte, dass Catherine ihm verspricht, nach seinem Tod Morris nicht zu heiraten. Sie kann ihm das nicht versprechen. Nach seinem Tod wird sein Testament eröffnet. Der größte Teil seines Vermögens geht nicht an Catherine, "da er ihr nicht zutraut, geldgierigen Abenteurern zu widerstehen". Catherine gibt sich damit zufrieden.Und tatsächlich: Noch einmal taucht Morris in ihrem Leben auf, natürlich unterstützt von Mrs. Penniman. Catherine erkennt, dass er ihr nichts mehr bedeutet. Sie bleibt trotz seines Drängens stark und lehnt weiteren Kontakt ab.Ein wundervoller, durchaus humorvoller Roman. Er beschreibt das Beziehungsgeflecht von drei Personen - Catherine, Morris, Mrs. Penniman - mit allen Komplikationen. Die vierte Hauptperson, Dr. Sloper, ist mit einem unverrückbaren Standpunkt der Fels in der Brandung: Er muss seine Tochter und ihr Geld vor einem Mitgiftjäger bewahren. Er weiß, was er von seinen Mitspielern zu halten hat. Seine manchmal scharfe Ironie im Umgang mit Catherine und seiner Schwester ist nachvollziehbar: Seine Vernunftorientierung wird durch sie auf eine harte Probe gestellt! Mit leisem Vergnügen beobachtet er die Verstrickungen der drei Personen und die Entwicklung der Ereignisse. Letzten Endes behält er (zum Teil) Recht: Morris, wieder "unversorgt", versucht nach Jahren erneut sein Glück bei Catherine. Mrs. Penniman hat sich überhaupt nicht geändert. Nur bei Catherine ist eine Änderung eingetreten. Die Geschichte endet mit leiser Melancholie.

Buen libro

This is the second time I have bought a kindle version of a classic 19th century novel- only to find that the text has been butchered to an extent that it's unreadable-complete with modern words like 'superstar' dropped in at odd places that don't make any sense and destroy the whole reading experience. It's like someone scrawling graffiti all over a a major work of art and trying to tell you it's the same thing. An appalling practice that Amazon should stop- presumably they do this so they can make money out of something that's out of copyright. I would have given this zero stars it it were possible - not for the novel itself (I like Henry James) but for this adulterated version. From now on I will only buy this kind of novel in book versions- never on Kindle!

This novel is one of the best of Henry James. Everyone should read this