
The Real Thing
by Henry James
'The Real Thing ' Summary
The narrator, an unnamed illustrator and aspiring painter, hires a faded genteel couple, the Monarchs, as models, after they have lost most of their money and must find some line of work. They are the "real thing" in that they perfectly represent the aristocratic type, but they prove inflexible for the painter's work. He comes to rely much more on two lower-class subjects who are nevertheless more capable: Oronte, an Italian, and Miss Churm, a lower-class Englishwoman.
The illustrator finally has to get rid of the Monarchs, especially after his friend and fellow artist Jack Hawley criticizes the work in which the Monarchs are represented. Hawley says that the pair has hurt the narrator's art, perhaps permanently. In the final line of the story the narrator says he is "content to have paid the price—for the memory".
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
EnglishPublished In
1892Genre/Category
Tags/Keywords
Authors

Henry James
America, Britain
Henry James was born in New York City on April 15, 1843, into a wealthy and intellectually stimulating family. His father, Henry James Sr., was a Swedenborgian philosopher and his mother, Mary Roberts...
Books by Henry JamesDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books

Liza of Lambeth by W. Somerset Maugham
Set in the impoverished slums of late 19th-century London, "Liza of Lambeth" follows the life of Liza, an 18-year-old factory girl. The novel explores...

Little Eve Edgarton by Eleanor Hallowell Abbott
Eve Edgarton is not who she seems she is. A short encounter with Mr. Barton show that first impressions are not always right or indicative of one's se...

Lo, Michael! by Grace Livingston Hill
It tells the story of a young man named Michael Strange who, despite facing numerous challenges and obstacles, refuses to give up on his dreams and in...

White Rose of Weary Leaf by Violet Hunt
In 'White Rose of Weary Leaf', Amy, a fiercely independent woman navigating the complexities of Victorian society, challenges societal expectations an...

No Name by Wilkie Collins
When Andrew Vanstone is killed suddenly in an accident and his wife follows shortly thereafter, it is revealed that they were not married at the time...

The Forged Note: A Romance of the Darker Races by Oscar Micheaux
It tells a captivating story about the complex issues of race and class in early 20th-century America. Published in 1935, "The Forged Note" centers a...

Paul Faber, Surgeon by George MacDonald
The book tells the story of a young surgeon named Paul Faber, who moves to a small town to start a new life and becomes embroiled in a complicated lov...

Death in Venice by Thomas Mann
Death in Venice is a novella by German author Thomas Mann, published in 1912. It presents an ennobled writer who visits Venice and is liberated, uplif...

Stine by Theodor Fontane
Stine, a young woman from a modest background, finds herself drawn to the attention of Graf Waldemar Haldern, a sickly young nobleman. Their romance b...

The Crystal Cup by Gertrude Atherton
It tells the story of a beautiful young woman named Margot. Margot is the daughter of a wealthy French nobleman and is known for her exquisite beauty...
Reviews for The Real Thing
No reviews posted or approved, yet...