The Europeans
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- This page is about the book. For other entries on The Europeans, see The Europeans (disambiguation).
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| Cover of 1964 Penguin Modern Classics edition of The Europeans | |
| Author | Henry James |
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| Country | United Kingdom, United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | Macmillan and Co., London Houghton, Osgood and Company, Boston |
| Released | Macmillan: 18-Sept-1878 Houghton: 12-Oct-1878 |
| Media Type | |
| Pages | Macmillan: volume one, 255; volume two, 272 Houghton: 281 |
The Europeans: A sketch is a short novel by Henry James, published in 1878. It is essentially a comedy contrasting the behaviour and attitudes of two visitors from Europe with those of their relatives living in the 'new' world of New England. The novel first appeared as a serial in The Atlantic Monthly for July-October, 1878. James made numerous minor revisions for the first book publication.
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[edit] Plot summary
The tale opens in Boston and New England in the middle of the 19th century, and describes the experiences of two European siblings shifting from the old to the new world. The two protagonists are Eugenia Munster and Felix Young, who were born in North America, but since their early childhood have lived in Europe; moving from France to Italy, and from Spain to Germany. In this last place, Eugenia entered into a Morganatic marriage with prince Adolf of Silberstadt-Schreckenstein, the younger brother of the Reigning prince who is now being urged by his family to dissolve the marriage for political reasons. Because of this, Eugenia and Felix decide to travel to America to meet their distant cousins, so that Eugenia may "seek her fortune" in the form of a wealthy American husband.
The first person and omniscient narrator introduces these two characters through the subdued, domestic scene of a rural inn. Felix is a Bohemian, living for art’s sake. Loving paintings and music, he is an artist and since the first moment spent in Boston, he seems to be fascinated by this young and active society, very different from the decadent European one they have left behind.
In contrast to her brother, Eugenia has a different impression of this world. She did not seem to like it very much: having decided to leave Europe in order to be quiet and far from her estranged husband, she is not really interested in visiting and knowing her new found cousins. In essence, she simply wants to be alone, neglecting all the society around her, and she detests chaos and movement.
All the cousins live in the countryside around Boston and spend a lot of time together. The first encounter with them corresponds to the first visit of Felix to his family. Mr Wentworth’s family is a puritanical one, far from the Europeans habits. Felix is fascinated by the patriarchal Mr Wentworth, his son, Clifford, and two daughters, Gertrude and Charlotte. They spend a lot of time together with Mr. Robert Acton and his sister Lizzie, their neighbours.
Eugenia’s reaction after this first approach differs from Felix’s one. She is not really interested in sharing her time with this circle. She doesn’t like the Wentworth ladies and does not want to visit them frequently. In contrast, her brother is very happy to share his spare time with Charlotte and Gertrude, spending hours in their piazza or garden creating portraits of the two ladies.
The plot of this novel owes a lot to the work of Jane Austen. There is a sort of love triangle: Felix falls in love with Gertrude, who is supposed to get married to Mr. Brand, Clifford and Robert Acton love Eugenia, but Eugenia will fall in love only with Robert, Clifford will marry Lizzie. At the end, the only one that does not get married is Eugenia who prefers to return to Europe and a rather bleak independence.
[edit] Some key themes
One of the most important themes of the novel is the comparison between European and American women, which James stresses through the great difference existing between Eugenia and the Wentworth ladies. Madame Munster is independent, modern, and displays hauteur. Gertrude and Charlotte lack this self possession. For example, they tend to comply with their father's suggestions. When Mr. Wentworth tries to arrange a marriage between Mr. Brand and Gertrude to which she objects, it is not simple for her to express clearly her preference. They spend most of their free time with the family, until the moment in which Gertrude discovers herself to be in love with Felix. This relationship helps her to get in touch with the world, to take decisions alone, to become independent. She reacts against her father's decision regarding Mr. Brand, explaining that she will never marry a man she does not love. Gertrude will marry Felix and leave America.
The difference between Europeans and Bostonians manifests itself in particular in the expression of feelings and emotions: The former are very sensitive, love is more important than money. Moreover American people are more strait-laced and they have closer links with tradition. The most important thing in life for those living in the 'New World' is, ironically, respecting old traditions and accepting the rules of a good morality. Mr Wentworth is profoundly surprised and fascinated by Eugenia's marriage experience as well as Robert Acton's. In the American eyes, Eugenia really is a perplexing woman.
This first person and omniscient narrator uses a very fine and cultivated language, sometimes he prefers Latin diction; preferring to introduce very long, detailed descriptions of the setting and of the characters, from both a psychological and a physical point of view. In addition to the contributions of the narrator, dialogue helps the author to introduce his characters and to show their reactions to unfolding events.
Finally, it’s important to stress a key word of the novel, because it is used many time by the narrator and by the female protagonist to introduce herself and her brother. The central word of this novel is "clever": quick at learning and understanding, intelligent. It corresponds to the most important quality that, from Eugenia’s point of view, we should possess to be happy and satisfied.
[edit] Critical evaluation
F.R. Leavis, the influential English literary critic, had a high opinion of this brief work, claiming:
"The Europeans, the visiting cousins, are there mainly to provide a foil for the American family, a study of the New England ethos being James's essential purpose.... Nevertheless James's irony is far from being unkind; he sees too much he admires in the ethos he criticizes to condemn it.... James is not condemning or endorsing either New England or Europe.... This small book, written so early in James's career, is a masterpiece of major quality." (Leavis, 1948)
Others, most notably the author's brother William James, faulted the novel's "slightness." Henry James replied in a November 14, 1878 letter that he somewhat agreed with the criticism:
"I was much depressed on reading your letter by your painful reflections on The Europeans, but now, an hour having elapsed, I am beginning to hold up my head a little; the more so as I think I myself estimate the book very justly & am aware of its extreme slightness. I think you take these things too rigidly and unimaginatively--too much as if an artistic experiment were a piece of conduct, to which one's life were somehow committed; but I think you're quite right in pronouncing the book 'thin' & empty."
This disdain for the novel may account for James' exclusion of the book from the New York Edition of his fiction that he assembled in 1907-1909. It's hard to argue that The Europeans is a massive achievement, or a massive anything. But this very lightness of touch does give the book a particular charm compared to the heavier (if more substantial) novels James would produce in the 1880s.
[edit] Derivative work
The Merchant-Ivory team produced a movie version of The Europeans in 1979, starring Lee Remick as Eugenia. The film got generally lukewarm reviews as a wan and overly literary adaptation, but it did receive several awards nominations.
[edit] References
- The Great Tradition by F.R. Leavis (London: Chatto and Windus 1948)
- The Correspondence of William James Vol.1: William and Henry 1861-1884 edited by Ignas Skrupskelis and Elizabeth Berkeley (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press 1994) ISBN 0-8139-1338-1
