Analysis of Henry James' Novel The Portrait of a Lady
Analysis of Henry James' Novel The Portrait of a Lady
What defines us? Is it our character or the objects we own? In Henry James' novel, The Portrait of a Lady, Madame Merle and Isabelle Archer present a different opinion of what creates a person. Is it the shell or the soul? Madame Merle believes that one’s character lies in the materials one possesses; that what one owns gives a visual of what lies beneath. Archer believes that a person’s character lies within their soul. The soul contains a person’s “spirit” giving them a way to live. The soul may contain our “spirit”, but it is the material possessions we own which represent the message to the world of what a person is like. It is Madame Merle’s side of the argument that is presented with stronger conviction.
Madame Merle sees the soul as only a small piece of the puzzle, which makes a person. Merle has experienced life and has seen that society judges us by appearance. For instance, when a play is performed the set, lighting, costumes, props, and makeup represent the characters the actors portray. The audience can tell what type of personality an actor is portraying by the costume he is wearing. The clothing or possessions we have portray our “character” within. This adds to Merle’s theory when she says, “ I know a large part of me is in the clothes I wear. I’ve a great respect for things! One’s self- for people- is one’s expression of one’s self; and one’s house, one’s furniture, one’s garments, the books one reads, the company one keeps, these things are all expressive.” Thus, this quote is saying that each of these things are pieces to the puzzle of what makes us who we are and determines how others see us.
Isabel Archer demonstrates an argument on the contrary of Madame Merle’s. Archer expresses that it is the soul itself that makes a person what they are. The soul is the flame that lies within a person that burns an undying spirit. It is the flame that burns within us that inspires us to act, think, and create which makes us who we are. Does this flame prompt us in our behavior? The soul is the piece of...