Article #211-2 | Gutenberg Articles

Excerpt

Excerpt from The Aspern Papers, by Henry James

Macmillan and Co., 1888.

I had taken Mrs. Prest into my confidence; in truth without her I
should have made but little advance, for the fruitful idea in the whole
business dropped from her friendly lips. It was she who invented the
short cut, who severed the Gordian knot. It is not supposed to be the
nature of women to rise as a general thing to the largest and most
liberal view--I mean of a practical scheme; but it has struck me that
they sometimes throw off a bold conception--such as a man would not have
risen to--with singular serenity. “Simply ask them to take you in on the
footing of a lodger”--I don’t think that unaided I should have risen to
that. I was beating about the bush, trying to be ingenious, wondering
by what combination of arts I might become an acquaintance, when she
offered this happy suggestion that the way to become an acquaintance was
first to become an inmate. Her actual knowledge of the Misses Bordereau
was scarcely larger than mine, and indeed I had brought with me from
England some definite facts which were new to her. Their name had been
mixed up ages before with one of the greatest names of the century, and
they lived now in Venice in obscurity, on very small means, unvisited,
unapproachable, in a dilapidated old palace on an out-of-the-way canal:
this was the substance of my friend’s impression of them. She herself
had been established in Venice for fifteen years and had done a great
deal of good there; but the circle of her benevolence did not include
the two shy, mysterious and, as it was somehow supposed, scarcely
respectable Americans (they were believed to have lost in their long
exile all national quality, besides having had, as their name implied,
some French strain in their origin), who asked no favors and desired no
attention. In the early years of her residence she had made an attempt
to see them, but this had been successful only as regards the little
one, as Mrs. Prest called the niece; though in reality as I afterward
learned she was considerably the bigger of the two. She had heard Miss
Bordereau was ill and had a suspicion that she was in want; and she had
gone to the house to offer assistance, so that if there were suffering
(and American suffering), she should at least not have it on her
conscience. The “little one” received her in the great cold, tarnished
Venetian sala, the central hall of the house, paved with marble and
roofed with dim crossbeams, and did not even ask her to sit down. This
was not encouraging for me, who wished to sit so fast, and I remarked
as much to Mrs. Prest. She however replied with profundity, “Ah, but
there’s all the difference: I went to confer a favor and you will go
to ask one. If they are proud you will be on the right side.” And she
offered to show me their house to begin with--to row me thither in her
gondola. I let her know that I had already been to look at it half a
dozen times; but I accepted her invitation, for it charmed me to hover
about the place. I had made my way to it the day after my arrival in
Venice (it had been described to me in advance by the friend in England
to whom I owed definite information as to their possession of the
papers), and I had besieged it with my eyes while I considered my plan
of campaign. Jeffrey Aspern had never been in it that I knew of;
but some note of his voice seemed to abide there by a roundabout
implication, a faint reverberation.

Explanation

**Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from The Aspern Papers by Henry James**

1. Context of the Work

The Aspern Papers (1888) is a novella by Henry James, a master of psychological realism and subtle narrative tension. The story follows an unnamed literary scholar and biographer who becomes obsessed with obtaining the private letters of Jeffrey Aspern, a deceased Romantic poet (loosely based on real-life poets like Lord Byron or Percy Bysshe Shelley). These letters are in the possession of Juliana Bordereau, Aspern’s former lover, now an elderly recluse living in Venice with her niece, Miss Tina. The narrator devises a scheme to infiltrate their household under false pretenses to gain access to the papers.

This excerpt is the opening of the novella, introducing the narrator’s motivations, his relationship with Mrs. Prest (a fellow expatriate in Venice), and his first observations of the Bordereau women. The passage establishes the themes of deception, obsession, and the ethical dilemmas of artistic pursuit, all hallmarks of James’s work.

2. Summary of the Excerpt

The narrator recounts how Mrs. Prest, a well-connected American woman living in Venice, suggests a bold strategy to get close to the reclusive Misses Bordereau: he should pose as a lodger in their decaying palace. He admits that he would not have thought of this plan himself, praising Mrs. Prest’s female intuition (though with a hint of condescension toward women’s "practical" thinking).

He then describes the Bordereaus’ mysterious, isolated existence:

They live in a crumbling Venetian palace, cut off from society.
They are American expatriates (though their name suggests French ancestry), viewed with suspicion by Venetian society.
Mrs. Prest had once tried to visit them out of charity but was coldly received by the niece (Miss Tina), who did not even offer her a seat.
The narrator, however, believes his own motives (seeking the letters, not offering charity) will be more welcome because the Bordereaus are proud and private.

The passage ends with the narrator’s fascination with the house, which he has already stalked multiple times, feeling a ghostly connection to Aspern despite the poet never having lived there.

3. Key Themes in the Excerpt

A. Obsession and the Pursuit of Art

The narrator is fixated on obtaining Aspern’s letters, not just for scholarly purposes but as a personal quest for intimacy with genius.
His repeated visits to the house suggest an unhealthy fascination, bordering on voyeurism.
The letters symbolize the unattainable past, the romanticized artist, and the secrets of creative genius—all things the narrator desperately wants to possess.

B. Deception and Moral Ambiguity

The narrator’s plan is dishonest: he will pretend to be a harmless lodger while secretly scheming to acquire the letters.
Mrs. Prest’s advice—"the way to become an acquaintance was first to become an inmate"—highlights the manipulative nature of his approach.
The ethical dilemma is central: How far should one go for art? James explores whether betrayal is justified in the name of literary preservation.

C. Isolation and Decay

The Bordereaus live in physical and social decay: their palace is dilapidated, and they are shunned by Venetian society.
Their exile mirrors the fading legacy of Aspern, whose letters are the last remnants of his glory.
The cold, marble sala where Mrs. Prest was received symbolizes emotional barrenness—the Bordereaus are guarding their secrets like a fortress.

D. Gender and Power Dynamics

The narrator stereotypes women ("it is not supposed to be the nature of women to rise to the largest and most liberal view"), yet Mrs. Prest’s idea is the key to his plan.
The Bordereau women hold power over him because they possess what he desires—yet they are also vulnerable (poor, aging, isolated).
The niece’s refusal to let Mrs. Prest sit contrasts with the narrator’s hope that his own request (as a man, and as a supplicant) will be granted, revealing gendered expectations of hospitality.

E. The Past vs. the Present

The narrator is haunted by Aspern’s legacy, imagining his "voice" lingering in the house despite the poet never having been there.
The Bordereaus are relics of a bygone era, clinging to their secrets in a decaying Venice (a city itself symbolizing fading glory).
The letters represent the past’s hold on the present—something the narrator wants to unearth, control, and exploit.

4. Literary Devices & Stylistic Features

A. First-Person Unreliable Narration

The narrator is self-justifying and manipulative, presenting his scheme as clever rather than unethical.
His condescension toward women (both Mrs. Prest and the Bordereaus) reveals his bias and arrogance.
The reader questions his reliability—is he truly an admirer of Aspern, or is he driven by personal ambition?

B. Symbolism

The dilapidated palace = the decay of romantic ideals, the fragility of artistic legacy.
The cold, marble sala = the emotional distance of the Bordereaus, their resistance to intrusion.
The gondola ride = the narrator’s voyeuristic approach, gliding silently toward his prey.

C. Irony & Foreshadowing

The narrator believes his request will be welcomed because he is asking a favor, not offering one—yet his deception will later backfire.
Mrs. Prest’s failed charity visit foreshadows the narrator’s own struggles—the Bordereaus do not want outsiders, no matter the pretext.
The ghostly presence of Aspern hints at the supernatural or psychological haunting that will intensify as the story progresses.

D. Jamesian Psychological Realism

James excels at subtle character study, revealing motivations through indirect means (dialogue, observation, internal monologue).
The narrator’s self-awareness is limited—he does not fully recognize his own moral compromises.
The tension between appearance and reality is a hallmark of James’s style (e.g., the narrator appears polite but is scheming).

5. Significance of the Excerpt

This opening sets the stage for the novella’s central conflict:

Will the narrator succeed in his deception?
What will he sacrifice (morally, emotionally) to obtain the letters?
How will the Bordereau women respond to his intrusion?

The passage also introduces James’s recurring themes:

The artist’s legacy and the cost of preserving it.
The ethics of biography and historical research.
The power dynamics between men and women, especially in matters of art and possession.
The decay of old worlds (Venice, the Bordereaus) versus the relentless pursuit of the new (the narrator’s ambition).

6. Conclusion: The Narrator as a Flawed Pursuer of Truth

The excerpt presents the narrator as a calculating, obsessed figure, willing to manipulate two vulnerable women for the sake of literary glory. His justifications ("they are proud, so they’ll prefer a supplicant") reveal his self-serving logic. The house itself becomes a character—a silent witness to past passions and present decay, drawing the narrator deeper into his morally ambiguous quest.

James does not judge his protagonist outright but instead invites the reader to question:

Is the pursuit of art worth moral compromise?
Can the past ever truly be possessed, or does it always slip away?
Who really "owns" an artist’s legacy—their lovers, their biographers, or the public?

This psychological and ethical complexity makes The Aspern Papers a masterful exploration of obsession, deception, and the ghosts of artistic genius.

Questions

Question 1

The narrator’s description of Mrs. Prest’s suggestion—“Simply ask them to take you in on the footing of a lodger”—reveals an underlying tension between his perception of gender and practical cunning. Which of the following best captures the implicit critique embedded in this moment?

A. The narrator’s admiration for Mrs. Prest’s idea is undercut by his belief that women’s insights, though occasionally useful, lack systematic rigor.
B. The passage suggests that women’s social strategies are inherently more ethical than men’s because they prioritize indirect, non-confrontational approaches.
C. Mrs. Prest’s proposal exposes the narrator’s own intellectual limitations, as he could not conceive of a solution that relied on domestic intimacy rather than abstract scheming.
D. The narrator’s condescension toward women is performative, masking his genuine anxiety that their intuitive methods might surpass his own analytical capabilities.
E. The text subtly indicts the narrator’s gendered assumptions by demonstrating that his “masculine” ingenuity is, in fact, less effective than the “feminine” pragmatism he dismisses.

Question 2

The narrator’s observation that the Bordereau women “asked no favors and desired no attention” serves a structural purpose in the passage beyond characterisation. Which of the following most accurately describes its narrative function?

A. It establishes the women as tragic figures, their pride a fragile shield against the indignities of poverty and obscurity.
B. It foreshadows the narrator’s eventual failure, as their self-sufficiency will render his manipulative charm ineffective.
C. It contrasts their reclusiveness with Venetian society’s gossip, positioning them as victims of unjust social ostracism.
D. It underscores the irony that their very inaccessibility—what repels others—is what magnetizes the narrator, whose obsession thrives on obstacles.
E. It frames their isolation as a deliberate rejection of the past, a symbolic severing of ties to Aspern’s legacy that the narrator misinterprets as vulnerability.

Question 3

The “dim crossbeams” and “cold, tarnished Venetian sala” are not merely decorative details but operate as symbolic extensions of the Bordereau women’s psychological state. Which interpretation most aligns with the passage’s thematic concerns?

A. The decay of the palace mirrors the fading relevance of Aspern’s poetry in the modern era, a decline the narrator is desperate to arrest.
B. The architectural grandeur, though dilapidated, signals the women’s latent aristocratic pride, which the narrator intends to exploit through flattery.
C. The marble and dimness evoke a funerary atmosphere, suggesting the women are already emotionally entombed with Aspern’s memory.
D. The physical environment externalizes their defensive posture: the coldness is a barrier, the tarnish a sign of resistance to the narrator’s intrusive gaze.
E. The description critiques Venetian society’s neglect, implying that the women’s suffering is a product of systemic indifference rather than personal choice.

Question 4

When the narrator claims, “If they are proud you will be on the right side,” his logic relies on an assumption that the passage undermines in all the following ways EXCEPT:

A. His belief that pride can be strategically manipulated ignores the possibility that the women’s reclusiveness stems from trauma, not vanity.
B. He assumes the women’s pride is a fixed trait, when the passage hints it may be a reactive armor against past betrayals (e.g., Mrs. Prest’s rejected charity).
C. His confidence in his own supplicant role overlooks that the women may perceive all outsiders—even those asking favors—as threats to their autonomy.
D. He presumes the women’s pride is tied to material need, when their refusal of Mrs. Prest’s aid suggests it is rooted in a rejection of pity.
E. His reasoning depends on a gendered double standard: he expects deference as a man, though the women have shown no deference to Mrs. Prest.

Question 5

The narrator’s assertion that “some note of [Aspern’s] voice seemed to abide there by a roundabout implication, a faint reverberation” is best understood as:

A. a romantic delusion, exposing his tendency to project his obsessions onto inert objects to justify his intrusion.
B. an example of pathetic fallacy, where the house’s decay mirrors the narrator’s own moral corruption as he pursues the letters.
C. a supernatural hint, implying Aspern’s spirit lingers to protect his secrets from profane hands like the narrator’s.
D. a metaphor for the way artistic legacy persists not in direct transmission but in oblique, contested fragments that demand interpretation.
E. an ironic commentary on biographical research, suggesting that the “voice” of the past is always a fabrication of the present’s desires.

Solutions and Explanations

1) Correct answer: E

Why E is most correct: The passage critiques the narrator’s gendered assumptions by dramatizing their failure: his “masculine” ingenuity (beating about the bush, trying to be clever) is less effective than Mrs. Prest’s “feminine” pragmatism (the direct lodger suggestion). The irony is that he acknowledges the superiority of her idea while simultaneously dismissing women’s general capacity for “the largest and most liberal view.” This tension—between his reliance on her insight and his condescension—exposes the hollowness of his gendered hierarchy. E captures this structural irony, where the text enacts the undermining of his prejudices.