Publisher's Synopsis
In this book, the author draws a parallel between Freud's "Das Unbehagen in der Kultur" and James' idea of the "restlessness" that he identified in British and American culture and investigates why it is often a discomforting experience to read James' work. He stresses the way in which the muffled rage in James' work is controlled and acknowledges the dilemmas this can cause for the reader.;The book follows a mainly chronological path through James writing, beginning with a general survey of the resources upon which he drew and going on to investigate recurring topics in his work, for example the theme of "initiation" often expressed in terms of Americans trying to enter the baffling structures of European society. Other chapters investigate the least obviously rewarding of his books ("The Princess Casamassina" and "The Tragic Muse") and go on to look at his treatment of sexual politics and their entanglement with modern forms of power and property.
