Washington Square
by Henry James
'Washington Square' Summary
The novel is told in the first person omniscient point of view, and the narrator often offers comments directly to the reader ("though it is an awkward confession to make about one's heroine, I must add she was something of a glutton", Chapter II).
The novel begins at a distance from the characters, describing the background of the Sloper family. It then recounts in detail the story of Catherine's romance with Morris Townsend. When Morris jilts her, the focus shifts back to a long view. As the narrator puts it: "Our story has hitherto moved with very short steps, but as it approaches its termination it must take a long stride." The final few chapters are taken once more in short steps, ending with the striking vignette of Catherine's rejection of Morris.
The bitterest irony in the story is that Dr. Sloper, a brilliant and successful doctor, is exactly right about Morris Townsend, and yet he is cruel to his defenseless and loving daughter. If the doctor had been incorrect in his appraisal of the worthless Townsend, he would be only a stock villain. As it is, the doctor's head functions perfectly but his heart has grown cold after the death of his beautiful and gifted wife.
Catherine gradually grows throughout the story, ultimately gaining the ability to judge her situation accurately. As James puts it: "From her point of view the great facts of her career were that Morris Townsend had trifled with her affection, and that her father had broken its spring. Nothing could ever alter these facts; they were always there, like her name, her age, her plain face. Nothing could ever undo the wrong or cure the pain that Morris had inflicted on her, and nothing could ever make her feel towards her father as she felt in her younger years." Catherine will never be brilliant, but she learns to be clear-sighted.
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
EnglishPublished In
1880Author
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...
More on Henry JamesDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books
The Blue Behemoth by Leigh Brackett
The novel is set in a distant future, in which humanity has colonized the stars and formed a vast interstellar empire. The story follows the adventure...
Joan Haste by H. Rider Haggard
It is an enthralling novel that takes young readers on a thrilling journey of love, bravery, and self-discovery. Which was published in 1895. Set in t...
The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton
The Custom of the Country is a 1913 tragicomedy of manners novel by American Edith Wharton. It tells the story of Undine Spragg, a Midwestern girl who...
The Woodlanders by Thomas Hardy
The Woodlanders is a novel by Thomas Hardy. It was serialised from May 1886 to April 1887 in Macmillan's Magazine and published in three volumes in 18...
Villette by Charlotte Brontë
Villette is an 1853 novel written by English author Charlotte Brontë. After an unspecified family disaster, the protagonist Lucy Snowe travels from he...
The Wanderer by Fanny Burney
The Wanderer; or, Female Difficulties is Frances Burney’s last novel. Published in March 1814 by Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, this historical...
Maggie Miller by Mary Jane Holmes
The story follows the life of a young woman named Maggie Miller who, after the death of her parents, is taken in by her wealthy aunt and uncle. Maggie...
Old Mortality by Sir Walter Scott
It is a conflict between the Covenanters, a group of Presbyterians who opposed the rule of Charles II, and the Royalists, who supported the monarchy....
Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott
The story follows the lives of the four March sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy—and details their passage from childhood to womanhood. Loosely based on t...
The Guermantes Way (Le Côté de Guermantes) by Marcel Proust
Marcel is a young man who is fascinated by the Guermantes family, one of the most prestigious families in Parisian high society. He dreams of being ac...
Reviews for Washington Square
No reviews posted or approved, yet...