henry-james

HenryJames英教141童小晨26(1843-1916)Contents1.Personalinformation2.Majorworks3.Writingstyle4.ContributionPersonalinformationHewasborninawealthyculturedfamily.Hisfatherwasaneminentphilosopherandreformer,hisbrotherwasafamousphilosopherandpsychologist.In1862HenryattendedHarvardLawSchool,butrealizedthathewasnotinterestedinstudyinglaw.HepursuedhisinterestinliteratureandassociatedwithauthorsandcriticsWilliamDeanHowellsandCharlesEliotNortoninBostonandCambridge,formedlifelongfriendshipswiththem.Majorworks1.InternationalthemeIninternationaltheme,hetoldstoriesofAmericaninnocenceinfaceofEuropeansophistication.InHenry’stexts,EuropeandAmericaaretwodifferentsocietiesandculturalforcesboughtintocontact.Europeisthekindofsocietywherethevitalimpulsehasrunoutandallitsmeaningsareexpressedthroughitsconventionsandrefinements.Americaisthekindofsocietywheretheoriginaldrivingforceshavenotyetmaturedintoconventions.Americanpersonalities:innocence,freshness,ignorance,vulgarity（粗俗）,enthusiasm,simplicityandindividualityEuropeanpersonalities:sophistication,highlycultivated,over-refinement,degeneration（衰退、堕落）,complexity2.Emotion-of-lifethemeToexpresshismoralvisionandhisoutrage,hebroughtsuchsocietyorpeoplewhoweredecayingandsterilewhilelivingonconventionswithoutanyforceofconventionunderhisfictivemicroscopeandshowedushowtheemotionunderliningtheconventionsisabouttoexplode.3.ArtistthemeItsustainsHenry’sviewofartandartistishisfidelitytolife.WritingstyleHenryJamesisgenerallyacknowledgedasaforerunnerofmodernisminfictionintheEnglishlanguageandhighlyvaluedforhispsychologicalandmoralrealism,hismasterfulcreationofcharacter,hislow-keybutplayfulhumor,andhishighly-refinedlanguage,andintricate(错综复杂的)construction.James’sliterarytechniques1).“Pointofview”视角Explainthesituationandcharacterthroughoneorseveralminds.Readersobserveeventsandpeoplethroughtheconsciousnessofcharactersandparticipateintheirexperience.2）PsychologicalanalysisEmphasizestheinnerawarenessandinwardmovementofcharacters--thefounderofpsychologicalrealism--theforerunnerof“stream-of-consciousness”(意识流)novels.TheArtofFictionInordertoresponseSirWalterBesant’sspeech,HenryJamesproducedhisessayTheArtofFiction.Inthisessay,heemphasizesthattheliteratureartistorepresentlife;thatthenovelistsshouldhavetheabsolutefreedomtoconducttheircreation,begoodatexperiencinglife,guesstheunseenfromtheseenandknowtheflexibilityofnovel.Healsohighlightstheimportanceofpsychologicaldescrip-tionanddiscussesthequestionofanovel’smorality.Atlast,heputsforwardsomesuggestionsfortheyouthfulwriters.Onenotedfeatureofthisessayistheuseofmanyexamplestoillustratetheauthor’sideaandthecompound-complexsentencesrepeatingthesameconcept.Theaimofthenovelistopresentlife.Artmustberelatedtolife.Theartistshouldwriteaboutanythingthatconcernshim,eventheuglyandthecommonplace.Theonlyreasonfortheexistenceofanovelisthatitdoesattempttorepresentlife.ContributionHenryJameswasthefirstAmericanwriterwhodevelopedhisliterarycareermostlyinEurope.HisprincipleinterestwastheconfrontationofAmericanandEuropeancultures.Henotonlybridgedthe19thand20thcenturiesbutconnectedAmericaandEurope.HecontributedtoliterarycreationandnoveltheoryinEnglishworldandopenaneweraofmodernnovels.Withtwenty-twonovels,overahundredshortstoriesandhiscriticalcommentaries,hecontributedgenerouslytothedevelopmentofmodernfictionbothbypreceptandbyexample.