Henry James Novelist
- Gender: Male
- Citizenship: United Kingdom
- Born: Apr 15, 1843
- Died: Feb 28, 1916
Henry James, OM was an American writer who spent most of his writing career in Britain. He is regarded as one of the key figures of 19th-century literary realism. He was the son of Henry James, Sr. and the brother of philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James.
James alternated between America and Europe for the first 20 years of his life; eventually he settled in England, becoming a British subject in 1915, one year before his death. He is best known for a number of novels showing Americans encountering Europe and Europeans. His method of writing from the point of view of a character within a tale allows him to explore issues related to consciousness and perception, and his style in later works has been compared to impressionist painting.
James contributed significantly to literary criticism, particularly in his insistence that writers be allowed the greatest possible freedom in presenting their view of the world. James claimed that a text must first and foremost be realistic and contain a representation of life that is recognisable to its readers. Good novels, to James, show life in action and are, most importantly, interesting.
Deep experience is never peaceful.
experience
I adore adverbs they are the only qualifications I really much respect.
respect
Money's a horrid thing to follow, but a charming thing to meet.
money
Life is a predicament which precedes death.
death
A man who pretends to understand women is bad manners. For him to really to understand them is bad morals.
women
It is art that makes life, makes interest, makes importance... and I know of no substitute whatever for the force and beauty of its process.
art & beauty
It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature.
history
In art economy is always beauty.
beauty
Ideas are, in truth, force.
truth
It takes an endless amount of history to make even a little tradition.
history