Washington Square - Henry James

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Résumé :
A father tries to prevent a relationship between his innocent daughter and the man he thinks wants to wed her for her money in Henry James' 1880 book Washington Square.Catherine Sloper, an innocent and reserved person, lives with her dictatorial father, Dr. Austin Sloper, in 1840s New York City. Lavinia Penniman, Catherine's idealistic aunt, offers her comfort. Dr. Sloper learns that Arthur Townsend has moved in with his widowed sister after squandering his previous bequest. Townsend believes he'll wed Catherine nevertheless, and the two are preparing to run away together.While Aunt Penniman extends Townsend an invitation to stay at the Sloper house while they are away, Sloper sends his daughter to Europe for a year in the hopes that she will forget about Townsend. Sloper tries to persuade Catherine out of her engagement when they are in Switzerland, but she resists, shocking Sloper with her determination. Catherine is so heartbroken that she won't even consider another love possibility. She devotes the ensuing years to charitable work and taking care of her ailing father. Townsend and Catherine have one final encounter, which Aunt Penniman arranges. She rejects his attempts now that she is older and wiser and accepts her existence as a spinster.

Biographie:
Henry James (15 April 1843-28 February 1916) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the son of Henry James Sr. and the brother of philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James. He is best known for his novels dealing with the social and marital interplay between ?migr? Americans, English people and continental Europeans. His fundamental theme was the innocence and exuberance of the New World in clash with the corruption and wisdom of the Old, as illustrated in such works as Daisy Miller (1879), The Portrait of a Lady (1881), The Bostonians (1886) and The Ambassadors (1903). His later works were increasingly experimental. In describing the internal states of mind and social dynamics of his characters, James often wrote in a style in which ambiguous or contradictory motives and impressions were overlaid or juxtaposed in the discussion of a character's psyche. By his mid-20s James was regarded as one of the most skilful writers of short stories in America. Critics, however, deplored his tendency to write of the life of the mind rather than of action. For their unique ambiguity, as well as for other aspects of their composition, his late works have been compared to impressionist painting....

Sommaire:
A father tries to prevent a relationship between his innocent daughter and the man he thinks wants to wed her for her money in Henry James' 1880 book Washington Square.Catherine Sloper, an innocent and reserved person, lives with her dictatorial father, Dr. Austin Sloper, in 1840s New York City. Lavinia Penniman, Catherine's idealistic aunt, offers her comfort. Dr. Sloper learns that Arthur Townsend has moved in with his widowed sister after squandering his previous bequest. Townsend believes he'll wed Catherine nevertheless, and the two are preparing to run away together.While Aunt Penniman extends Townsend an invitation to stay at the Sloper house while they are away, Sloper sends his daughter to Europe for a year in the hopes that she will forget about Townsend. Sloper tries to persuade Catherine out of her engagement when they are in Switzerland, but she resists, shocking Sloper with her determination. Catherine is so heartbroken that she won't even consider another love possibility. She devotes the ensuing years to charitable work and taking care of her ailing father. Townsend and Catherine have one final encounter, which Aunt Penniman arranges. She rejects his attempts now that she is older and wiser and accepts her existence as a spinster....