The Literature Book

186

SHE IS WRITTEN

IN A FOREIGN

TONGUE

THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY (1881), HENRY JAMES

M

uch has been made

of the supposed

psychological and

cultural differences between

Europeans (notably the British)

and Americans—whether in

language, humor, or social

etiquette. In Europe, the debate

often centers on Americanisms

that are seen to be creeping into

European cultures.

Similar preoccupations have

been reflected in literature, with

early transatlantic fiction often

exploring cultural differences,

but with a particular focus on the

impact of the Old World (Europe)

on American sensibilities. Although

the 18th century had seen a political

and economic breach in Anglo–

American relations that led to

American independence in 1776,

there remained a strong, though at

times antagonistic, bond between

the two. As a nation, the US gained

confidence, and saw a growth in

the affluent classes and an increase

in tourism and transatlantic travel.

Innocents abroad

One prominent example of an

American with a taste for travel

and an eye for cultural difference

was the expatriate Henry James.

He viewed his fellow Americans

with detachment, and his novels

examined in depth what it meant

to be an American.

Like so many of his works, The

Portrait of a Lady depicts a cast of

mainly American characters in a

European setting. The self-made

Caspar Goodwood is a symbol

of his nation—enterprising and

forthright. He is contrasted with

Gilbert Osmond, who has adopted

European manners and values,

a morally corrupt man who poses

as an aesthete, a man of taste.

It is through the novel’s central

character, Isabel Archer, that the

tensions between Old and New

IN CONTEXT

FOCUS

Transatlantic fiction

BEFORE

1844 In Martin Chuzzlewit,

Charles Dickens offers an early

piece of transatlantic fiction,

set in England and the US.

1875 The Way We Live Now,

a satirical novel by English

writer Anthony Trollope,

follows corrupt European

financier Augustus Melmotte

and his American investments.

AFTER

1907 American author Edith

W ha rton’s Madame de

Treymes revolves around

Americans living in France.

1926 In The Sun Also Rises,

American author Ernest

Hemingway presents a group

of young American and British

expatriates in Paris and Spain.

1955 In Vladimir Nabokov’s

Lolita, European Humbert

Humbert pursues the young

Lolita across the US.

If we’re not good

Americans we’re certainly

poor Europeans; we’ve no

natural place here.

The Portrait of a Lady

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