The Lesson of the Master (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Henry James
- First Published: 1888
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: The 1880's
- Setting: London, English countryside near London, and Switzerland
- Principal Characters: Paul Overt, Henry St. George, Mrs. St. George, Marian Fancourt, General Fancourt
- Genres: Social realism, Short fiction
- Subjects: Love or romance, Art or artists, Novelists, Isolation
- Locales: London, England, Switzerland
The Story
Henry James's “The Lesson of the Master” focuses on Paul Overt, a young novelist with three or four novels to his credit, who is caught up in the dilemma of choosing the time-absorbing business of living or the isolation of art. Henry St. George, whose reputation as an artist remains high though his later work is inferior, is the master of the title, with Overt his pupil.
The tale begins with Overt arriving at Summersoft, an old country house near London, to find, to his delight, that St. George, whose early works played an important part in forming Overt...
[The entire page is 1159 words long]
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