num_pages: 718
description: When Isabel Archer, a beautiful, spirited American, is brought to Europe by her wealthy aunt, Mrs Touchett, it is expected that she will soon marry. But Isabel, resolved to enjoy the freedom that her fortune has brought her to determine her own fate, does not hesitate to turn down two eligible suitors. Then she finds herself irresistibly drawn to Gilbert Osmond. Charming and cultivated, Osmond sees Isabel as a rich prize waiting to be taken. Beneath his veneer of civilized behaviour, Isabel discovers cruelty and a stifling darkness. In this portrait of a 'young woman affronting her destiny', Henry James created one of his most magnificent heroines, and a story of intense poignancy.Part of a series of Penguin Classics editions of Henry James's works, this edition contains a chronology, further reading, notes and an introduction by Philip Horne, exploring the sources in life and fiction from which James determined to make his Portrait.
language: English
title: The Portrait of a Lady
titlecomplete: The Portrait of a Lady (Penguin Classics)
characters: Edward Rosier, Caspar Goodwood, Madame Merle, Lord Warburton, Lydia Touchett, Henrietta Stackpole, Gilbert Osmond, Pansy Osmond, Ralph Touchett, Isabel Archer
genres: Fiction, American, Classic Literature, Literature, Romance, Classics, Novels, 19th Century, Historical Fiction, Victorian
ratings_count: 79302
places: England, Florence, Tuscany, Rome, Italy
publisher: Penguin Classics