Collecting and Appreciating: Henry James and the Transformation of Aesthetics in the Age of Consumption - Couverture souple

Francescato, Simone

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 3034301634 ISBN 13 : 9783034301633

Editeur : Peter Lang AG, Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften, 2010

Synopsis

This book examines the role and the meaning of collecting in the fiction of Henry James. Emerging as a refined consumerist practice at the end of the nineteenth century, collecting not only set new rules for appreciating art, but also helped to shape the aesthetic tenets of major literary movements such as naturalism and aestheticism. Although he befriended some of the greatest collectors of the age, in his narrative works James maintained a sceptical, if not openly critical, position towards collecting and its effects on appreciation. Likewise, he became increasingly reluctant to follow the fashionable trend of classifying and displaying art objects in the literary text, resorting to more complex forms of representation.
Drawing from classic and contemporary aesthetics, as well as from sociology and material culture, this book fills a gap in Jamesian criticism, explaining how and why James's aversion towards collecting was central to the development of his fiction from the beginning of his career to the so-called major phase.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

The Author: Simone Francescato received his Ph.D. in Anglo-American Literature from the Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Peter Lang AG, Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften
• Date d'édition: 2010
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 3034301634
• ISBN 13: 9783034301633
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 220
• Coordonnées du fabricant: GPSR Kontakt; r.boehm-korff@peterlang.com; ; Gontardstraße 11; Berlin; 10178; Allemagne