The ''New York Edition'' of Henry James'

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

was a 24-volume collection of the Anglo-American writer's novels, novellas and

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

, originally published in the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

and the UK between 1907 and 1909, with a

photogravure Photogravure (in French ''héliogravure'') is a process for printing photographs, also sometimes used for reproductive intaglio printmaking. It is a photo-mechanical process whereby a copper plate is grained (adding a pattern to the plate) and ...

frontispiece for each volume by Alvin Langdon Coburn. Two more volumes containing James' unfinished novels, '' The Ivory Tower'' and '' The Sense of the Past'', were issued in 1917 in a format consistent with the original set. The entire collection was republished during the 1960s by

Charles Scribner's Sons Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City that has published several notable American authors, including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjori ...

. The official title of the set was ''The Novels and Tales of Henry James'', though the more informal title was suggested by James himself and appears as a subtitle on the series title page in each volume. It has been used almost exclusively by subsequent commentators.

Prefaces

James wrote a series of

preface __NOTOC__ A preface () or proem () is an introduction to a book or other literature, literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a ''foreword'' and precedes an author's preface. The preface o ...

s for the set which have become the focus of intense

critical Critical or Critically may refer to: *Critical, or critical but stable, medical states **Critical, or intensive care medicine * Critical juncture, a discontinuous change studied in the social sciences. *Critical Software, a company specializing i ...

attention. Written in the ornate style of his final years, the prefaces discuss such important topics in the writing of fiction as

point of view Point of View or Points of View may refer to: Concept and technique * Point of view (literature) or narrative mode, the perspective of the narrative voice; the pronoun used in narration * Point of view (philosophy), an attitude how one sees or ...

, the central

intelligence Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. It can be described as t ...

of the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a ...

, "foreshortening" or the presentation of complex material in a reasonable length, creating the sense of wonder necessary for effective

storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing narrative, stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatre, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cul ...

, the need for

attention Attention or focus, is the concentration of awareness on some phenomenon to the exclusion of other stimuli. It is the selective concentration on discrete information, either subjectively or objectively. William James (1890) wrote that "Atte ...

on the part of the reader, the proper selections and exclusions of additional developments of the original

narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether non-fictional (memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travel literature, travelogue, etc.) or fictional (fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller ...

idea, the relationship between narrative art and ordinary human life, and the contrast between

romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

and realism. James also explored the origins of many of his fictions and often recounted personal experiences involved in their writing, such as the distracting beauty of

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

where he wrote much of '' The Portrait of a Lady''.

Construction and criticism

James excluded much of his fiction from the edition, especially many early works from the 1860s, 1870s and 1880s. Critical controversy has swirled around the exclusion of such works as '' Washington Square'' and ''

The Europeans ''The Europeans: A sketch'' is a short novel by Henry James, published in 1878. It is a comedy contrasting the behaviour and attitudes of two visitors from Europe with those of their relatives living in the "new" world of New England. The nov ...

''. Although he spent a great deal of time and effort on the edition, James' hopes for financial returns were largely disappointed. The edition sold poorly, as James lamented in his letters. To his friend

Edmund Gosse Sir Edmund William Gosse (; 21 September 184916 May 1928) was an English poet, author and critic. He was strictly brought up in a small Protestant sect, the Plymouth Brethren, but broke away sharply from that faith. His account of his childhood ...

, James wrote in 1915: :"That Edition has been, from the point of view of profit either to the publishers or to myself, practically a complete failure; vulgarly speaking, it doesn't sell... ndhas never had the least intelligent critical justice done it—or any sort of critical attention at all paid to it..." James was an inveterate reviser of his works, and for the edition he made extensive alterations in many of his fictions, especially earlier works like '' Roderick Hudson'' and '' The American''. These revisions have also come under extensive critical scrutiny. Some commentators such as F.R. Leavis have decried the revisions as verbose and unnecessary tinkerings with the original, superior versions. Other writers such as Philip Horne have generally favored the revisions as heightening and deepening the effects of James' fiction. A number of biographers and critics, including Leon Edel and Michael Anesko, have discussed the construction of the edition and the compromises James made in selecting and excluding certain works due to commercial demands and his own tastes and preferences.

List of volumes

#'' Roderick Hudson'' #'' The American'' #'' The Portrait of a Lady'' (part one) #'' The Portrait of a Lady'' (part two) #'' The Princess Casamassima'' (part one) #'' The Princess Casamassima'' (part two) #'' The Tragic Muse'' (part one) #'' The Tragic Muse'' (part two) #'' The Awkward Age'' #'' The Spoils of Poynton'', '' A London Life'', ''The Chaperon'' #'' What Maisie Knew'', '' In the Cage'', '' The Pupil'' #'' The Aspern Papers'', '' The Turn of the Screw'', '' The Liar'', ''The Two Faces'' #'' The Reverberator'', '' Madame de Mauves'', '' A Passionate Pilgrim'', ''The Madonna of the Future'', ''Louisa Pallant'' #''Lady Barbarina'', ''The Siege of London'', ''An International Episode'', ''The Pension Beaurepas'', '' A Bundle of Letters'', ''The Point of View'' #'' The Lesson of the Master'', '' The Death of the Lion'', '' The Next Time'', '' The Figure in the Carpet'', '' The Coxon Fund'' #'' The Author of Beltraffio'', '' The Middle Years'', ''Greville Fane'', ''Broken Wings'', ''The Tree of Knowledge'', ''The Abasement of the Northmores'', '' The Great Good Place'', ''Four Meetings'', '' Paste'', ''

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

'', ''Miss Gunton of Poughkeepsie'', ''Fordham Castle'' #'' The Altar of the Dead'', '' The Beast in the Jungle'', '' The Birthplace'', ''The Private Life'', ''Owen Wingrave'', '' The Friends of the Friends'', ''Sir Edmund Orme'', '' The Real Right Thing'', '' The Jolly Corner'', ''Julia Bride'' #'' Daisy Miller'', ''Pandora'', ''The Patagonia'', ''The Marriages'', '' The Real Thing'', '' Brooksmith'', ''The Beldonald Holbein'', ''The Story In It'', ''Flickerbridge'', '' Mrs. Medwin'' #'' The Wings of the Dove'' (part one) #'' The Wings of the Dove'' (part two) #''

The Ambassadors ''The Ambassadors'' is a 1903 novel by Henry James, originally published as a serial in the ''North American Review'' (NAR). The novel is a dark comedy which follows the trip of protagonist Lewis Lambert Strether to Europe to bring the son of ...

'' (part one) #''

'' (part two) #'' The Golden Bowl'' (part one) #'' The Golden Bowl'' (part two) #'' The Ivory Tower'' (issued posthumously 1917) #'' The Sense of the Past'' (issued posthumously 1917)

References

* ''Henry James: The Master 1901–1916'' by Leon Edel (1972) * ''Studies in Henry James'' by R.P. Blackmur (1983) * ''Henry James Literary Criticism — French Writers, Other European Writers, The Prefaces to the New York Edition'' edited by Leon Edel and Mark Wilson (1984) * ''Henry James Letters'' edited by Leon Edel, volume 4 (1984) * ''"Friction with the Market": Henry James and the Profession of Authorship'' by Michael Anesko (1986) * ''Henry James and Revision: the New York edition'' by Philip Horne (1995) * ''Henry James's New York Edition: The Construction of Authorship'' edited by David McWhirter (1995) * "Henry James at Work: The Question of Our Texts" by Philip Horne in ''The Cambridge Companion to Henry James'' edited by Jonathan Freedman (1998) * ''Henry James: Literary Criticism: French Writers, Other European Writers, Prefaces to the New York Edition'', edited by Mark Wilson and Leon Edel. Library of America (1984)

External links

The Henry James Scholar's Guide to Web Sites
{{Henry James New York Edition