A Question of Character in Henry James's Washington Square
After reading Henry James's Washington Square, I was left a bit curious as to why James had so many static characters in his novel. Character development is a major literary device in most works, but was almost completely ignored in this book. I say almost because Catherine's demeanor seems to, even if just to the most subtle degree, drift towards an unphilanthropic attitude. Dr. Austin Sloper, his two sisters and poor Morris Townsend remain rigidly in their roles from start to finish, even throughout the span of two decades.
Fortunately, the most accomplished poet T. S. Eliot, defends James on exactly this topic in his short essay, "A Prediction." "With 'character,' in the sense in which the portrayal of character is usually expected in the English novel," Eliot writes, "he had no concern" (55). He went on to add " 'character' is only one of the ways in which it is possible to grasp at reality" (55). Eliot insists that had James been better at developing characters, his writing would have suffered in other aspects (55).
Fair enough, but then I was left with a question from his 'prediction'. What then is the driving point to Washington Square? Is it the plot perhaps, or the interaction of these concrete characters?
Consider the complexity, or rather lack thereof, of the action and plot. The characters are introduced and Morris Townsend meets young Catherine. They court for a short while and Dr. Sloper investigates the young man's behaviors and concludes that he doesn't like him and forbids the marriage when the idea is presented to him. He and Catherine travel to Europe while Mr. Townsend visits with Lavinia, but upon Dr. Sloper's return, leaves Catherine. Finally, some twenty years later, the doctor dies leaving none of his fortune to his daughter who is visited by Mr. Townsend one last time resulting in absolutely no consequence.
If somebody told me that there was a book in which two hundred pages of plot was accurately and completely summarized in one short paragraph and character development was of no concern, I would have been most certain that what they actually had read was a screenplay for a porno. Plot was obviously not one of James' major concerns with this novel, but to his credit, implements it better than Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop.
Towards the end of his essay, Eliot hit upon the magic of Washington Square.
largely inferior to men at the time when this story was written. The story revolves around a couple Delia and Sykes, who have been unhappily married for 15 long years. It focuses on the turning point in Delia’s life when her husband wants her to go away from his life but eventually falls in his own trap and dies.
Throughout the novel Jane Eyre, true character was form by the people she encountered overtime from her childhood to her early adult stages. Jane’s travel has also impact the growth of Jane into being the character Charlotte Bronte wanted the audience to see farther in the novel. All Jane really wanted was Happiness and by traveling and meeting different people she was searching for that happiness that she never got as a child.
the reader into the book with the use of imagery, syntax, and figurative language. Also, the story was good, Atticus was like a modern story about the Prodigal Son Parable. The book was interesting to read and enjoyable. However, the book was all over the place. It started off with Scott coming over and then Scott dying and then finding Scott and then Scott’s point of view of what caused him to fake his death. If the reader was not able to fully understand what was going on throughout each chapter, the reader would have been lost. The shift of point of view confuses the reader for a little bit but then it all starts to click. This book will have a lasting effect on me
While an artist uses a variety of colors and brushes to create a portrait, Charlotte Bronte used contrasting characters and their vivid personalities to create a masterpiece of her own. In her novel Jane Eyre, Bronte uses narration and her characters to portray the struggle between a society’s Victorian realism and the people’s repressed urges of Romanticism.
Through the course of change in the world- either through prosperity, capitalism or greed- people have lost focus with the real meaning of 'the American dream'. It is no longer the gamely aspirations of living life to the fullest, providing a better life for yourself and or others; instead, a pursuit for those materialistic aspects in life.
Achieving the American Dream has been the ideal for people living in the United States for decades. People believed that the way to get there was through hard work, also known as the “Protestant work ethic”. The American Dream can vary depending on the person. Some people think that owning a house with a white picket-fence is the American Dream while others think that it is becoming a celebrity with a lot of money.
Authors develop characters’ personalities in order to add depth to their story and allow readers to feel more connected to the characters. Beyond this, characterization also allows authors to develop the themes of their stories in a more clear manner. A prime example of this would be in the poem Judith, where the author contrasts Judith and Holofernes’ personalities in order to develop the major themes of heroism and having faith in God.
In 1931 when the American Dream arose, Americans believed that the harder one worked, the more one would prosper (Meacham, 2012). In other words, they strongly believed that the American Dream was gaining a better, richer, happier life. Today, the American Dream is still hoping to earn a college degree, get a good job, buy a house, and start a family, but according to MetLife’s fifth annual survey, 41% of the respondents said it was about personal fulfillment, while most American’s say it is out of reach for many (White, ...
With America actually being seen as the land of assurance, the American dream is usually associated with the freedom and opportunity of gaining prosperity, recognition, power, triumph, and contentment. On the surface, this dream appears virtually delighted, offering individuals the exceptional hope of accomplishing success despite of one’s race, religion, or family history. The American Dream is accurately what it seems to be the chance of perfect lying nearby the corner. However, the actual nature of this dream prohibit the pleasure of the victory one has earned, as the desire is always demanding one to work a slight harder and gain a slightly more.
Authors use character development to show how a person can change. Through a descriptive portrayal of a charter and their development they become real to the reader. A well-developed character stirs up emotions in the reader making for a powerful story. A person can change for better or worse and Nathaniel Hawthorne shows this thru the character development of Hester, Chillingworth, and Dimmesdale in The Scarlet Letter.
The three events that mark Jane as an evolving dynamic character are when she is locked in the red room, self reflecting on her time at Gateshead, her friendship with Helen Burns at LoWood, her relationship with Mr. Rochester, and her last moments with a sick Mrs. Reed. Brought up as an orphan by her widowed aunt, Mrs. Reed, Jane is accustomed to her aunts vindictive comments and selfish tendencies. Left out of family gatherings, shoved and hit by her cousin, John Reed, and teased by her other cousins, Georgina and Eliza Reed, the reader almost cringes at the unfairness of it all. But even at the young age of ten, Jane knows the consequences of her actions if she were to speak out against any of them. At one point she wonders why she endures in silence for the pleasure of others. Why she is oppressed. "Always suffering, always browbeaten, always accused, forever condemned" (Bronte, 12). Jane’s life at Gateshead is not far from miserable. Not only is she bullied by her cousins and nagged by her aunt, but help from even Bessie, her nurse and sort of friend, seems out of her reach. In the red room scene Jane is drug by Ms. Ab...
There are events in Henry James’ life that we think may have influenced him in his work. He often released his emotions in his works as well. “A Small Boy was written at a period of breakdown, artistic reversal, and family deaths, so that he valued I as a therapeutic retreat to a past whose pleasures might off set his emotional depression.” (Mitchell 6) Henry James took the advantage that he was going through some grey areas to help create some great work like A Small Boy. He looked for
What is the American Dream, and who are the people most likely to pursue its often elusive fulfillment? Indeed, the American Dream has come to represent the attainment of myriad of goals that are specific to each individual. While one person might consider a purchased home with a white picket fence her version of the American Dream, another might regard it as the financial ability to operate his own business. Clearly, there is no cut and dried definition of the American Dream as long as any two people hold a different meaning. What it does universally represent, however, it the opportunity for people to seek out their individual and collective desires under a political umbrella of democracy.
The author uses one main character, at most, two; only the protagonist and the antagonist exist as major characters. “Rip Van Winkle”, Washington Irving uses one main character to play both the role of the protagonist and the antagonist. In paragraph three lines, six and seven, the reader meets the protagonist. “…a simple good-natured fellow of the name of Rip Van Winkle” In paragraphs five and nine, lines one and two, and one and four, respectively, the reader encounters the antagonist. “The great error in Rip’s composition was an insuperable aversion for all kinds of labor.” “…Rip would rather starve on a penny than work for a pound.” Even though, in both cases where the reader encounters Rip Van Winkle, Rip only counts as one main character. Characterization occurs when the author draws an overall picture of the characters. Characterization happens in two ways in literature, by description and personality. The author uses the words a story to describe a character or imply the appearance of the characters through the text of the story. Introducing the personality of the character to the reader in words give or describe the personality of the characters or the words used imply certain things about the character. The protagonist in “Rip Van Winkle” the reader first meets in paragraph three, lines seven and eight, “… a simple good-natured fellow of the name of Rip Van Winkle.
Gargano also brings out how well James "traces [Catherine's] developing insight" (131) into her own nature. He refers to the part in the novel where James writes, "She watched herself as she would have watched another person, and wondered what she would do" (qtd. in Gargano 131). Then Gargano adds, "it is hard to write off as dull a young woman with such a vivid 'contact' with her own development" and Gargano also felt that "James intended the dullness to be ascribed to the bright people around her who never even glimpse her hidden abysses" (131). This is an interesting viewpoint, which, when applied to the novel, adds a deeper perception of the characters.