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The Awkward Age
by Henry James, Ronald Blythe, Patricia Crick
by Henry James, Ronald Blythe, Patricia Crick
Henry James loosens the corset of convention in a comedy
of ambiguous desires and ambitions. Plenty of matrimonial
talk goes round in discreet, repetitive cicles; the tenor is
always tender. A vivid worldling of 'a certain age' ponders her daughter's future while manipulating a boring husby, protecting
her rotter of a son and managing a beau that the heroine-daughter fancies. Salonistas insist on keeping up appearances. Emotional resolution is offered by a passionate friend, known as 'the old man' -- a Jamesian standin -- who wants someone to love, just as James recognized this deperate need in himself. It's a circus, sighs the hostess, in which they must all perform: "That is how we earn our living." How modern can you get?
of ambiguous desires and ambitions. Plenty of matrimonial
talk goes round in discreet, repetitive cicles; the tenor is
always tender. A vivid worldling of 'a certain age' ponders her daughter's future while manipulating a boring husby, protecting
her rotter of a son and managing a beau that the heroine-daughter fancies. Salonistas insist on keeping up appearances. Emotional resolution is offered by a passionate friend, known as 'the old man' -- a Jamesian standin -- who wants someone to love, just as James recognized this deperate need in himself. It's a circus, sighs the hostess, in which they must all perform: "That is how we earn our living." How modern can you get?
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of ambiguous desires and ambitions." Nice! I have this, but HJ's style has not always sat well with me. Loved Aspern Papers, Portrait of a Lady, and Washington Square. Could not finish What Maisie Knew.