The American (Norton Critical Editions) Book

The text reprinted in this volume is based on an examination of the five printed versions of The American (first published in 1877) which appeared in James's lifetime, and it is preceded by his "Preface to the New York Edition" (1907). The textual history of the novel is traced in A Note on the Text; a list of substantive variants and emendations; a facsimile manuscript page showing James's method of revision; and a list of the installments of the novel as they appeared in The Atlantic. "Backgrounds and Sources" includes relevant extracts from correspondence, reviews, and articles by James and others, and from his Notebooks and Hawthorne. "Contemporary Reception" of the novel is illustrated by twenty-one American and English reviews. "Twentieth-Century Criticism" is represented in essays by Leon Edel, Oscar Cargill, Irving Howe, Richard Poirier, Royal A. Gettmann, and James W. Tuttleton. A Selected Bibliography is included for further study. .Contents:PrefaceThe Text of The American?Preface to the New York Edition (1907)?The American?A Note on the Text?Textual Variants?Editor's Emendations?Installments of The American Appearing mThe Atlantic Monthly?Page of The American (original version), as revised byHenry James (1906)Backgrounds and Sources?Henry James to Mrs. Henry James, Sr.,October 13, 1869?Henry James to Gharles Eliot Norton,January 16, 1871?Henry James to Grace Norton, January 14, 1874?Henry James Review of A Foregone Conclusion?Henry James Review of Notes on Paris?Henry James to F. P. Church, December 1, 1875?Henry James From Parisian Sketches?Henry James to William Dean HoweUs,February 3, 1876?Henry James to F. P. Church, February 4, 1876?William Dean Howells to F. P. Church,February z9, 1876?Henry James to F. P. Church, March 3, 1876?William Dean Howells to F. P. Church,March 5, 1876?Henry James to William Dean Howells,May 28, 1876?......Read More