Novels 1871-1880

The early novella WATCH AND WARD (written in 1871) is about a man who marries his ward; it first appeared in the Atlantic Monthly. In RODERICK HUDSON, James's first novel, an egocentric sculptor from New England travels to Rome with his patron, the wealthy Rowland Mallet, who provides the moral center of the story. Away from home, Hudson becomes increasingly unstable and depressed, and comes to a violent end in the Swiss Alps--the first of James's American characters to be destroyed by Europe. In THE AMERICAN, a brash and wealthy Civil War veteran goes to Paris in search of an aristocratic wife. He falls in love with the widowed Claire de Cintre (nee Bellegarde), whose ruthless, snobbish mother and older brother refuse to allow them to marry. Another family member tells Newman a family secret that he can use to force the Bellegardes to agree to the marriage, but he is too upright to do so. He gives up his pursuit of Claire, she enters a convent, and American innocence succumbs once again to the jaded and cynical sophistication of the Old World. James's lighthearted novel THE EUROPEANS is about a brother and sister who have been raised in Europe. They travel to New England to visit their cousins, and the clash of customs, opinions, and moral values results in enlightenment for everyone involved. Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005. For personal use only. All rights reserved.