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Daisy Miller (Penguin Classics)
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Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Author: Henry James
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Average Customer Rating:
Our Price: $7.00
You Save: $ ( % )
In stock soon. Order now to get in line. First come, first served.
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Author: Henry James
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Average Customer Rating:
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Daisy Miller (Penguin Classics) Description
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.4
EAN: 9780140432626
ISBN: 0140432620
Label: Penguin Classics
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 128
Publication Date: 1987-03-03
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Studio: Penguin Classics
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.4
EAN: 9780140432626
ISBN: 0140432620
Label: Penguin Classics
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 128
Publication Date: 1987-03-03
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Studio: Penguin Classics
Editorial Review of Daisy Miller (Penguin Classics)
Famous novella chronicles a young American girl's willful yet innocent flirtation with a young Italian, and its unfortunate consequences. Throughout, James contrasts American customs and values with European manners and morals in a narrative rich in psychological and social insight.
Customer Reviews of Daisy Miller (Penguin Classics)
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A light-hearted but ultimately tragic story
Review: Daisy Miller, Henry James's short novel, leaves one with mixed feelings as the range of evaluations demonstrates. That is because the novella is not what it appears to be--a light romantic tale of a young American girl doing what she pleases in Europe. The story is narrated by Winterbourne, an American who appears to be a student visiting his aunt, Mrs. Costello, at a resort in Switzerland. There he meets the Miller family, nine year old Randolph who has a mind of his own (and displays it), his mother and the irrepressible Daisy. She is an unabashed flirt who does what she pleases regardless of what anyone (especially the snobbish Europeans) think. Winterbourne becomes infatuated with her despite his rather stiff demeanor. He asks his aunt to meet her but she refuses, saying Daisy is too "common."
Nevertheless Winterbourne follows Daisy to Rome where she is having an affair with a debonair Italian, Giovanelli. Winterbourne sees him as a fortune seeker (the Miller family is quite wealthy), but is also motivated by his own interest in Daisy.
The novella comes to a sudden, tragic and unexpected ending, given the light-hearted tone of Daisy's behaviors.
I think the book is worth reading as an example of James' comparisons of European and American culture and for the character of Daisy who is one of the most delightful characters in literature. I rate it at four stars, but it could just as easily be three.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: ANNIE P. MILLER
Review:
A few thoughts and considerations on Daisy Miller: A Study.
Though called 'Daisy', her given name is Annie P. Miller in this short novel from 1878.
A fact seldom mentioned is that Daisy Miller was also written as a play, but due to producers in both New York and London rejecting it, it never made it to the stage. Some of Henry James's other writings, however, did get produced as stage plays.
Daisy Miller sold better than Henry James's "previous books". Was fairly well accepted in America but did stir some controversy.
Though Daisy Miller is a novel, the book has its basis in fact: while in Rome in 1877, Henry James heard a story through gossip of an American girl who had "provoked the general disapproval of Anglo-American society in Rome." From this he developed the short novel, Daisy Miller.
Henry James and his brother, William, had visited the Colosseum one night a few years prior to writing Daisy Miller, and Henry. especially struck by the ruins and "sad beauty" of both the Colosseum and Forum, decided to place Daisy in danger within its location.
The fever spoken of in Daisy Miller was "a rather frequent affliction of that time". Years later Henry James's fellow writer and friend, Edith Wharton, wrote a story entitled "Roman Fever". The malaria or 'fever' did actually exist and Americans were very susceptible to its affects.
Much mention of the words "a study" has been written about here. Henry James chose these words to symbolize as in a pencil drawing, or work of art, attempting to offer a portrait of sorts within the written work. Later between 1907 and 1909, when issuing the 24 volume 'New York Edition' revision of The Novels and Tales of Henry James, Henry James removed "A Study" from the reissued Daisy Miller. He felt it no longer held any significant purpose, yet to this date the words "A Study" is to found as part of the title. Rather strange since "the Master" had requested the words "A Study" be removed in 1909!
In a letter, Henry James called Daisy Miller "the little tragedy of light, thin, natural, unsuspecting, creature being sacrificed as it were to a social rumpus that went quite over her head and to which she stood in no measurable relation". In short, she really never got any of it.
As Leon Edel writes of Daisy: "is she a flirt or is she virtuous. Is she innocent or is she hard and cynical?". As Henry James wrote in a later tale concerning another character, "You admire her-you adore her, and secretly you mistrust her."
Finally, William James, Henry's older brother, objected to the ending of Daisy Miller "which seemed to him frivolous." As Henry James had to do with at least one other tale reaching the stage as a play, the ending had to be rewritten as a happy, rather than a sad one. Should Daisy Miller ever reached the stage as James intended, he might have had to rewrite a much different, happier ending to Daisy Miller.
Daisy Miller is not only the shortest of Henry James's works but it probably is the most frequently read and possibly the most popular. It represents a subject close to Henry James's heart as the flood of millions of Americans poured into Europe got on his nerves to such degree that he eventually refused to revisit Italy, and was caused to move from London due noise, crowds, etc., to reside at Lamb House in Rye. So, in Daisy Miller you not only have a tale of moral expression, you also have James's pet peeve dealing with too many people, too much noise, in one place, too close to him.
But the novel has the kaleoscope ability to be many things to many readers and remains very contemporary in its style of writing down to this day. No small accomplishment after passage of approximately 130 years!
Semper Fi.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excelent Service
Review: Unlike other orders in the past that sometimes had very long and drawn out waiting periods, I received this order promptly and was very satisfied with my purchase.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Daisy is the best of America
Review: I recommend Daisy Miller for anyone who's grown tired of American arrogance and exceptionalism, particularly for Americans who have lost sight of what's reasonably lovable in our own culture. This brash and irreverent naif, vacationing in Europe, and her affair with the stodgy and non-committal Winterbourne embodies the best of American innocence and idealism. Daisy remains James' best-loved character, perhaps because we need her so much, to remind us that our uninhibited lack of sophistication is at the heart of our American identity.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Peters out
Review: I enjoyed most of this novel while I was reading, and I think that the writing is technically proficient. The end was a great disappointment, and left me wondering why I spend the time reading this mercifully short piece. At least I can say that I've read some of Henry James.
My first problem with the book may be the result of not understanding the time period. I am not certain how Americans expected young women to behave, although I understand that their customs were much less restrictive than Europeans. I therefore don't know whether Daisy is rebellious, or reckless, or simply behaving in a manner that she understands to be suitable and many Europeans (American Euro-wannabees) misinterprete. Is the problem just that Winterbourne and Daisy don't understand each other's cultural assumptions, or that he is really reacting to Daisy's personality? Given the reactions of some of the Europeans, is Winterbourne following their codes of behavior more stringently than they do, perhaps fawning on Europeans by an excessive zeal to prove that he is like them? I am therefore at a loss to understand what point Miller is trying to make. Is the issue really the virtues of one set of social customs over another, or is it just the difficulties that arise from misunderstanding? I give this 3 stars rather than 2 because it might have made sense if I were reading it when it was written.
My other problem may be idiosyncratic: THIS IS A SPOILER. I have little sympathy for anyone foolish enough to "die for love", especially a brief romance. Winterbourne and Daisy obviously aren't suited for each other, and the solution is to move on, not become suicidal. I really don't see their incompatibility as a moral issue on either side. If Winterbourne really can't respect Daisy then he does well not to become seriously involved with her. If he is stuffy and priggish, well, that's how he is and he should choose a compatible wife. When it comes to a serious commitment like marriage, it is necessary to acknowledge how one really is, not delude oneself about how one ought to be.
If James' point, as reviewers seem to indicate, is to expose the difference between European and USA manners, the story is not well-constructed, since Daisy's critics are mostly expat Americans; real Europeans are more tolerant of her. The ending seems a bit bizarre. Such misunderstandings have been the basis of comedies of manners or novels of personal angst, but the ending to this novel is too melodramatic and contrived. In Jane Austen: Women, Politics, and the Novel, Claudia Johnson has some acerbic things to say about the tradition of killing off women disappointed in love. Does James mean to criticize Winterbourne? It would have been more satisfying (and reasonable) if Winterbourne later realized what a fool he had been when he meets up with the happily married, brilliant hostess Daisy Marriedname, famous beauty and wit, perhaps married to a real European who finds her refreshing.
Review Summary: A light-hearted but ultimately tragic story
Review: Daisy Miller, Henry James's short novel, leaves one with mixed feelings as the range of evaluations demonstrates. That is because the novella is not what it appears to be--a light romantic tale of a young American girl doing what she pleases in Europe. The story is narrated by Winterbourne, an American who appears to be a student visiting his aunt, Mrs. Costello, at a resort in Switzerland. There he meets the Miller family, nine year old Randolph who has a mind of his own (and displays it), his mother and the irrepressible Daisy. She is an unabashed flirt who does what she pleases regardless of what anyone (especially the snobbish Europeans) think. Winterbourne becomes infatuated with her despite his rather stiff demeanor. He asks his aunt to meet her but she refuses, saying Daisy is too "common."
Nevertheless Winterbourne follows Daisy to Rome where she is having an affair with a debonair Italian, Giovanelli. Winterbourne sees him as a fortune seeker (the Miller family is quite wealthy), but is also motivated by his own interest in Daisy.
The novella comes to a sudden, tragic and unexpected ending, given the light-hearted tone of Daisy's behaviors.
I think the book is worth reading as an example of James' comparisons of European and American culture and for the character of Daisy who is one of the most delightful characters in literature. I rate it at four stars, but it could just as easily be three.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: ANNIE P. MILLER
Review:
A few thoughts and considerations on Daisy Miller: A Study.
Though called 'Daisy', her given name is Annie P. Miller in this short novel from 1878.
A fact seldom mentioned is that Daisy Miller was also written as a play, but due to producers in both New York and London rejecting it, it never made it to the stage. Some of Henry James's other writings, however, did get produced as stage plays.
Daisy Miller sold better than Henry James's "previous books". Was fairly well accepted in America but did stir some controversy.
Though Daisy Miller is a novel, the book has its basis in fact: while in Rome in 1877, Henry James heard a story through gossip of an American girl who had "provoked the general disapproval of Anglo-American society in Rome." From this he developed the short novel, Daisy Miller.
Henry James and his brother, William, had visited the Colosseum one night a few years prior to writing Daisy Miller, and Henry. especially struck by the ruins and "sad beauty" of both the Colosseum and Forum, decided to place Daisy in danger within its location.
The fever spoken of in Daisy Miller was "a rather frequent affliction of that time". Years later Henry James's fellow writer and friend, Edith Wharton, wrote a story entitled "Roman Fever". The malaria or 'fever' did actually exist and Americans were very susceptible to its affects.
Much mention of the words "a study" has been written about here. Henry James chose these words to symbolize as in a pencil drawing, or work of art, attempting to offer a portrait of sorts within the written work. Later between 1907 and 1909, when issuing the 24 volume 'New York Edition' revision of The Novels and Tales of Henry James, Henry James removed "A Study" from the reissued Daisy Miller. He felt it no longer held any significant purpose, yet to this date the words "A Study" is to found as part of the title. Rather strange since "the Master" had requested the words "A Study" be removed in 1909!
In a letter, Henry James called Daisy Miller "the little tragedy of light, thin, natural, unsuspecting, creature being sacrificed as it were to a social rumpus that went quite over her head and to which she stood in no measurable relation". In short, she really never got any of it.
As Leon Edel writes of Daisy: "is she a flirt or is she virtuous. Is she innocent or is she hard and cynical?". As Henry James wrote in a later tale concerning another character, "You admire her-you adore her, and secretly you mistrust her."
Finally, William James, Henry's older brother, objected to the ending of Daisy Miller "which seemed to him frivolous." As Henry James had to do with at least one other tale reaching the stage as a play, the ending had to be rewritten as a happy, rather than a sad one. Should Daisy Miller ever reached the stage as James intended, he might have had to rewrite a much different, happier ending to Daisy Miller.
Daisy Miller is not only the shortest of Henry James's works but it probably is the most frequently read and possibly the most popular. It represents a subject close to Henry James's heart as the flood of millions of Americans poured into Europe got on his nerves to such degree that he eventually refused to revisit Italy, and was caused to move from London due noise, crowds, etc., to reside at Lamb House in Rye. So, in Daisy Miller you not only have a tale of moral expression, you also have James's pet peeve dealing with too many people, too much noise, in one place, too close to him.
But the novel has the kaleoscope ability to be many things to many readers and remains very contemporary in its style of writing down to this day. No small accomplishment after passage of approximately 130 years!
Semper Fi.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excelent Service
Review: Unlike other orders in the past that sometimes had very long and drawn out waiting periods, I received this order promptly and was very satisfied with my purchase.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Daisy is the best of America
Review: I recommend Daisy Miller for anyone who's grown tired of American arrogance and exceptionalism, particularly for Americans who have lost sight of what's reasonably lovable in our own culture. This brash and irreverent naif, vacationing in Europe, and her affair with the stodgy and non-committal Winterbourne embodies the best of American innocence and idealism. Daisy remains James' best-loved character, perhaps because we need her so much, to remind us that our uninhibited lack of sophistication is at the heart of our American identity.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Peters out
Review: I enjoyed most of this novel while I was reading, and I think that the writing is technically proficient. The end was a great disappointment, and left me wondering why I spend the time reading this mercifully short piece. At least I can say that I've read some of Henry James.
My first problem with the book may be the result of not understanding the time period. I am not certain how Americans expected young women to behave, although I understand that their customs were much less restrictive than Europeans. I therefore don't know whether Daisy is rebellious, or reckless, or simply behaving in a manner that she understands to be suitable and many Europeans (American Euro-wannabees) misinterprete. Is the problem just that Winterbourne and Daisy don't understand each other's cultural assumptions, or that he is really reacting to Daisy's personality? Given the reactions of some of the Europeans, is Winterbourne following their codes of behavior more stringently than they do, perhaps fawning on Europeans by an excessive zeal to prove that he is like them? I am therefore at a loss to understand what point Miller is trying to make. Is the issue really the virtues of one set of social customs over another, or is it just the difficulties that arise from misunderstanding? I give this 3 stars rather than 2 because it might have made sense if I were reading it when it was written.
My other problem may be idiosyncratic: THIS IS A SPOILER. I have little sympathy for anyone foolish enough to "die for love", especially a brief romance. Winterbourne and Daisy obviously aren't suited for each other, and the solution is to move on, not become suicidal. I really don't see their incompatibility as a moral issue on either side. If Winterbourne really can't respect Daisy then he does well not to become seriously involved with her. If he is stuffy and priggish, well, that's how he is and he should choose a compatible wife. When it comes to a serious commitment like marriage, it is necessary to acknowledge how one really is, not delude oneself about how one ought to be.
If James' point, as reviewers seem to indicate, is to expose the difference between European and USA manners, the story is not well-constructed, since Daisy's critics are mostly expat Americans; real Europeans are more tolerant of her. The ending seems a bit bizarre. Such misunderstandings have been the basis of comedies of manners or novels of personal angst, but the ending to this novel is too melodramatic and contrived. In Jane Austen: Women, Politics, and the Novel, Claudia Johnson has some acerbic things to say about the tradition of killing off women disappointed in love. Does James mean to criticize Winterbourne? It would have been more satisfying (and reasonable) if Winterbourne later realized what a fool he had been when he meets up with the happily married, brilliant hostess Daisy Marriedname, famous beauty and wit, perhaps married to a real European who finds her refreshing.