Washington Square (Dover Thrift Editions: Classic Novels) - Softcover

Henry James

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0486404315 ISBN 13: 9780486404318

Publisher: Dover Publications, 1998

Synopsis

Set in New York City in the 1840s, this celebrated novel tells the story of Catherine Sloper, the docile and affectionate daughter of a well-to-do physician, who appears destined for a lifetime of spinsterhood with only the companionship of her sardonic father and fatuous aunt.
When a flurry of attention from an attractive suitor causes the plain and unremarkable Catherine to fall deeply in love, the stage is set for a struggle of opposing wills between Catherine and her adored father. Dismayed by his prospective son-in-law's shallowness and lack of prospects, and strongly suspecting him of fortune-hunting, Dr. Sloper threatens Catherine with disinheritance and forces her into a choice between father and lover. As the tale unfolds, James explores, with acute psychological penetration and masterly storytelling skill, the moral consequences of the callous exploitation of trust and the ruthless manipulation of a tender heart.
While this memorable story plays itself out in the vanished world of nineteenth-century New York, its underlying themes and moral concerns are timeless and universal. Students and other lovers of great literature will appreciate this inexpensive edition of one of the great American novels.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

Washington Square follows the coming-of-age of its plain-faced, kindhearted heroine, Catherine Sloper. Much to her father's vexation, a handsome opportunist named Morris Townsend woos the long-suffering heiress, intent on claiming her fortune. When Catherine stubbornly refuses to call off her engagement, Dr. Sloper forces Catherine to choose between her inheritance and the only man she will ever truly love. Cynthia Ozick, in her Introduction to what she calls Henry James's "most American fiction," writes that "every line, every paragraph, every chapter [of Washington Square] is a fleet-footed light brigade, an engine of irony." Precise and understated, this charming novel endures as a matchless study of New York in the mid-nineteenth century.

From the Back Cover:

Washington Square (1881), by Henry James, tells the story of Catherine Sloper, the plain, obedient daughter of the widowed, well-to-do Dr. August Sloper of Washington Square. When a handsome, feckless man-about-town proposes to Catherine, her father forbids the marriage because he believes the man to be after Catherine's fortune and future inheritance. The conflict between father, daughter, and suitor provokes consequences in the lives of all three that make this story one of James's most piercingly memorable.

About this edition

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0486404315
• ISBN 13: 9780486404318
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176