Analysis of Henry James' _Portrait of a Lady_

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Henry James’s novel Portrait of a Lady published in 1881, presents more than the portrait and the destiny of Isabel Archer transposing the ideas of the late nineteenth century in a strong and intense literary work. The elements of the American society from the last decades of the nineteenth-century meet the European society: America, natural, attractive by vitality and by novelty, and Europe, old and sophisticated, but artificial and decaying.

The novel treats, in parallel, two key themes - in the foreground is Isabel Archer and her life story (Bamberg, 2003). "Portrait of a Lady" is a novel of becoming, a novel of destiny and in a subsequent plan treats the slightly overrated antithesis (this is fact that generated the most criticism around the novel) of the old European continent - dusty, frozen in stillness, almost decrepit, decadent and worn, and the promised land – America: new, young, fresh and natural, in constant motion - full of vitality and dynamism, with new reformed principles and values moved forwards by the enthusiasm of youth and newly conquered freedom, just like Isabel. The old world, despite the inviting appearance and hospitality, and the cozy living promised as collateral in exchange for the final establishing of aliens is shown as a trap, an old and dusty wreck that pulls down into itself, all those whom he lures into his nets (Freedman, 1998).

Through her daring, Isabel Archer is in stark contrast with the other ladies from this picture of a quiet, peaceful and seemingly cozy, archaic and patriarchal part of old England, where people take their life by pre-established standards in a monotonous and slow pace, and where the constancy of customs, habits and even of vices is considered almost a virtue. The s...

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Binding to Europe by her marriage to Gilbert Osmond Isabel forget her aspirations for freedom and knowledge: "She's Not the bright American girl SHE WAS". Isabel’s portrait is complex, capturing every detail, every thought, every intention and desire of the heroine: She is "the guardian angel" for Pansy, Lord Warburton is afraid of her "Remarkable Mind" and she had the "fortune to possess a finer mind than most of the persons among whom her lot was cast (James, 1881).” These are just some of the aspects that characterize Isabel Archer.

Works Cited

Bamberg, R., (2003), The Portrait of a Lady: An Authoritative Text, Henry James and the Novel, Reviews and Criticism, New York: W.W. Norton & Company

James, H., (1881), Portrait of a Lady, Penguin Classics

Freedman, J., (1998) The Cambridge Companion to Henry James Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press

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