The Imprisoned, Unspeakable Self: Silenced Sexuality in Henry James

Authors

  • Linda Camarasana State University of New York, College at Old Westbury

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25071/2369-7326.36119

Abstract

This essay analyzes Henry James’s The Bostonians (1886) as a novel, like several other works by James, that hints at but never fully articulates homosexual desire. The relationship between Boston feminist Olive Chancellor and her protégé, Verena Tarrant, is a study in self-silencing and repression. In particular, James subtly explores Olive Chancellor’s struggle with an internal prison, her suppressed homosexuality, which was likely James’s own sexual struggle as well. In addition, James’s literary style, his famously imposing and dense walls of verbiage attempt to articulate secrets without ever stating what’s hidden. Paradoxically, James’s voluminous wall of words calls the reader’s attention to what is silent in his characters and in James himself.

Author Biography

Linda Camarasana, State University of New York, College at Old Westbury

Assistant Professor of English

References

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Published

2014-06-08

How to Cite

Camarasana, L. (2014). The Imprisoned, Unspeakable Self: Silenced Sexuality in Henry James. Pivot: A Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies and Thought, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.25071/2369-7326.36119

Issue

Section

Critical Articles