Henry James's 1881 novel follows Isabel Archer, a spirited young American woman who inherits a fortune and navigates the complex social world of European society. This psychological fiction explores themes of independence, marriage, and the clash between American idealism and European sophistication through Isabel's relationships and moral choices.
Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. There are circumstances in which, whether you partake of the tea or not--some people of course never do,--the situation is in itself delightful. Those that I have in mind in beginning to unfold this simple history offered an admirable setting to an innocent pastime. The implements of the little feast had been disposed upon the lawn of an old English country-house, in what I should call the perfect middle of a splendid summer afternoon. Part of the afternoon had waned, but much of it was left, and what was left was of the finest and rarest quality. Real dusk would not arrive for many hours; but the flood of summer light had begun to ebb, the air had grown mellow, the shadows were long upon the smooth, dense turf. They lengthened slowly, however, and the sc…Continue reading →
Born in 1843, this American expatriate spent most of his career in Europe, crafting psychologically complex novels that explored the clash between American innocence and European sophistication. His innovative narrative techniques and deep character studies in works like The Portrait of a Lady helped establish the modern literary novel. All works by Henry James →
Browse all Fiction · 19th Century works