A Young Daughter Caught in Parental Conflict
Henry James made his career writing fictional, social commentaries that took an in depth perspective to the lives of its characters who most often were upper middle class or affluent Europeans or Americans. The long list of James’ works have been described as being among the best of modern novels for their ability to enrapture the reader into the thinking and personality of the main characters.
Mostly writing in the 3rd person, his book’s characters saw was often James’s style self purportedly built his own awareness into an intricate character development that translates into an intimate understanding to what each character stands for and the figure with in society who they are meant to represent.
The novelist focused most of his writings upon the surroundings in which he was familiar with including a privileged class often embattled with or un requitingly partaking in dishonest or unethical lifestyles. Portraying a non-idyllic portrait of upper class existence surely wasn’t an unstudied topic of literature prior to James. But the sensibilities and description that went into so many of his works is what has set his career apart from many other of his predecessors and contemporaries.
He was born into a wealthy family of New York immigrants who were originally from Ireland. Upon early childhood, his father who upheld the importance of a worldly viewpoint and sought influence e from inspirational thinkers periodically would travel with the family to London and France. Here the impression was deeply instilled and as James reached young adulthood, he choose to attend college in Paris to pursue writing. Contrarily though financial security later led him to pursue law at Harvard University which consequently never developed into a personal career choice for James. His experience studying law though while undoubtedly helped develop a sharp, analytical bent, it also provided beneficial access to the many books that he was passionate about.
The experience living in Boston also provided the inspiration for his popular work ‘The Bostonians’, which as the title conveys, is a full look into the old world of on goings in the city which dealt with women’s issues, radicalism and an adherence to the conformance of the social posterity of the day. His most famous work, ‘Portrait of a Lady’is a lengthy tale grasping with the choices that a young widow named Isabel Archer is faced to confront as she leaves her New York home a permanent stay with relatives in Europe. The situation becomes ensnared in uneasy circumstances as the heartbroken young woman is courted by many individuals whose interests are un-abundantly clear.
Both of these works among many others have been adapted to the screen or stage with mixed success over the last fifty years. The difficulty in such adaptation particularly in theater is for directors to go beyond simply restating the plot but capturing the interpersonal experience that the writer is lauded for. An accurate remaking of one these novels therefore necessitates a certain length of time in order to establish the depth of meaning which is not easily accomplished in several hours of acting.
The latest attempt though on a Henry James’ novel to movie is in the release of ‘What Maisie Knew’ starring Julian Moore. Her character plays a socially absorbed mother on the brinks of divorce from her wealthy husband named Beale, played by Steve Coogan. The intrigue of this production is that it’s set in present day. At stake in the story are the superficial interests that both characters seem immersed within while needing to fulfill the parental importance of nurturing the life of their sever year old daughter, Maisie. She embodies the image of innocence caught in between grandeur visions of the fixated careers of her mom Susanna who is a mildly popular band member and her father a British business man.
The parents have to come to terms with themselves amongst their ever seductive environs while faced with the unremitting need to care for Maisile. Coping with a prioritization of meaning and the skewed choices of parents in such a time of venerable impression for Maisie is much of the theme that the directors Scott McGhee and David Siegel strive to deliver.
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