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jasonfurman 's review for:
The Aspern Papers
by Henry James
The Aspern Papers is an outstanding novella, not quite as spine tingling as The Turn of the Screw, but still it manages to build suspense around a simple plot of a literary critic masquerading as a lodger in the attempt to get the letters that a famous American poet, Jeffrey Aspern, wrote to an older woman living in an old palace in Venice with her niece. The novel beautifully describes the three main characters--with Venice as a beautifully described fourth character lurking not too far in the background.
The narrator is in many ways very unsympathetic, in that he is lying to his hostess and even pretending to be in love with the hostesses niece just to get his hands on papers they do not want to deliver. But he is also obsessed, serving the higher purpose of the poet Jeffrey Aspern, and also fully honest and transparent with himself about his motives and his means.
The older woman, who is believed to have had an affair with the famous poet in her youth, is in some ways even more interesting--cagey, mercenary, but also deeply private and protective of her legacy.
And then there's her niece, an elderly spinster who is portrayed as naive, loyal to her aunt, but also intrigued and excited about the new stranger who moves in with them.
All three of these characters are increasingly intertwined as the tension builds to a well constructed conclusion.
The narrator is in many ways very unsympathetic, in that he is lying to his hostess and even pretending to be in love with the hostesses niece just to get his hands on papers they do not want to deliver. But he is also obsessed, serving the higher purpose of the poet Jeffrey Aspern, and also fully honest and transparent with himself about his motives and his means.
The older woman, who is believed to have had an affair with the famous poet in her youth, is in some ways even more interesting--cagey, mercenary, but also deeply private and protective of her legacy.
And then there's her niece, an elderly spinster who is portrayed as naive, loyal to her aunt, but also intrigued and excited about the new stranger who moves in with them.
All three of these characters are increasingly intertwined as the tension builds to a well constructed conclusion.