Henry James and London: The City in his Fiction (American University Studies) - Hardcover

Prof. John Kimmey

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0820413593 ISBN 13: 9780820413594

Publisher: Peter Lang Inc., International Academic Publishers, 1991

Synopsis

This is the first full-length study of the influence of London on Henry James' fiction. It begins with a comparison of his treatment of the city with that of Dickens, Gissing, and H.G. Wells and proceeds to analyze decade by decade how he employed it in his essays on England and the British capital as well as an examination of the part the metropolis played in his life from his childhood to his last years.

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Review:

«Professor Kimmey tells us that he has three purposes: 1) to present the importance of London in James's life and work; 2) to examine the use of London in his fiction; and 3) to offer an evaluation of its significance. He promises, then, a discussion of novels, tales, essays, notebooks by James that deal with the urban setting, that touch on James's forty-year association with London. He tells us that the organization of the book is chronological: a decade by decade account of the interchanges between the city and the fiction. At minimum, the reader expects to receive an account of James's various views of London and a discussion of the changes in his attitude, style and technique over four decades. But Kimmey is far too modest. He offers the reader these insights and far more. Through a rich and complex tapestry of revelations, Kimmey demonstrates the diverse ways in which James was an integral part of Victorian London; furthermore, his study surprises in offering explorations of some unexpected but delightful avenues of the nineteenth-century experience. Kimmey is an informed and helpful guide to other nineteenth-century writers, to the world of art, and to Victorian guidebooks. Thus, there are wide-ranging comparisons made to Balzac, Dickens, Thackeray, Melville, Gissing, and Wells. There are also discussions of various art works: illustrations by Cruikshank, paintings by Hogarth, cartoons by George DuMaurier, 'Punch' drawings, and the illustrations for the New York edition of James's works. Professor Kimmey convinces us that 'øa!rt is one of the main media through which øJames! saw city life.'
In this book, Kimmey conveys - with a quiet, judicious enthusiasm - the striking accomplishments of James's response to London life. We must agree with his conclusion that 'øf!ew Victorian novelists, even Dickens, appear so keen on capturing the nuances of the climate in which their characters breathe and pursue the business of their lives.' His book fills an embarrassing void: there has been no sustained critical attention paid to the prominence of London in James's works. In this study Kimmey is a patient observer, an expert guide to the artistic and social patterns of James's London and to his fictional characters. He offers worthwhile analysis of a host of Jamesian characters and their dealings with actual locations and circumstances in the city.
Kimmey's book is a balanced work of literary history and criticism: he weighs James's tendency to present the positive and negative attributes of the city. Likewise, James's characters fill all of the various moral rungs of the ladder of human good and evil. As Kimmey concludes: 'øJames! learned to accept London. He learned to adapt to its contradictions and inequalities, its pressures and disappointments. He mastered the chaos and sublimated the loneliness. He overcame the alienation and ended up a panegyrist.' How these attitudes unfold through James's works over four decades is the fascinating story that Kimmey tells with such loving care in this remarkable study. It is carefully researched. The footnotes and bibliography demonstrate a scholar who knows the complete spectrum of research available on James and the city and literature. When Kimmey takes on differences in critical interpretations, he is a formidable opponent, indeed¿» (William B. Thesing, Studies in Short Fiction)
«John Kimmey's study is greatly to be welcomed as the first full-length treatment of the city in James's fiction» (F.S. Schwarzbach, The Henry James Review)

About this edition

• Publisher: Peter Lang Inc., International Academic Publishers
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0820413593
• ISBN 13: 9780820413594
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 210