The Portrait of a Lady (Penguin Classics)

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The Portrait of a Lady (Penguin Classics)
by Henry James
from Penguin Classics

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

• James And The Process of Perception
  Although his merits are legion, it is most in the respect of "pure perception", that James outpaces the authorial herd. And in this book, in particular, this quality is at its most exalted; it is perhaps the dominating feature. And in something which proposes itself as a "portrait", this is particularly fitting.
  By "pure perception", I mean that artistic virtue whereby the author's interference with, or manipulation of, the storyline and characterization are perceived (by the reader) to be minimal, or... more info

• Reminded me of a Soap Opera
  Rich people and the traps that they set for themselves. I had a hard time relating to the subject matter.
  Henry James is an excellent author, his cheracters are vivid, his stories very well written but Mr. James was born into money and it shows all through this story.
  I found the frequent use of French phrases and expressions inconvenient because I had to keep referring to the appendix to be able to follow the story.
  Although I enjoyed the story, my enjoyment was tinged with the... more info

• Classic
  Isabel Archer is a young, spirited American who travels to England stay for a bit with her aunt's family. Hungry for adventure and fiercely independent, she figures she'll marry at some point but only when it suits her and only to satisfy herself rather than any familial obligations or societal pressures. She's already spurned one suitor, the determined Caspar Goodwood, and soon after her arrival in England she's hotly pursued by Lord Warburton, a friend of the cousin she's staying with. She turns him down... more info

• This is the 1908 Edition!
  Harold Bloom, in his book How to Read and Why, strongly recommended the 1908 edition of James' Portrait of a Lady over his earlier 1881 edition. At Bloom's urging, I have combed through dozens of used book stores over the years and have always found only copies of the 1881 edition. I don't know why that would be because one would think that when an author like Henry James sets upon improving an earlier work that the revised version would be superior. Even if it is not superior, it is at least what he... more info

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