''The Reverberator'' is a short novel by
Henry James
Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...
, first published as a serial in ''
Macmillan's Magazine
''Macmillan's Magazine'' was a monthly British magazine from 1859 to 1907 published by Alexander Macmillan.
The magazine was a literary periodical that published fiction and non-fiction works from primarily British authors. Thomas Hughes had co ...
'' in 1888, and then as a book later the same year. Described by
web authorityon Henry James as "a delightful Parisian bonbon," the
comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
traces the complications that result when nasty but true stories about a
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
family get into the American scandal sheet of the novel's title.
Plot summary
George Flack is the Paris correspondent for an American
scandal sheet
Tabloid journalism is a popular style of largely sensationalist journalism (usually dramatized and sometimes unverifiable or even blatantly false), which takes its name from the tabloid newspaper format: a small-sized newspaper also known as ...
called ''The Reverberator''. Francie Dosson, a pretty but not always tactful American girl, confides to Flack some
gossip
Gossip is idle talk or rumour, especially about the personal or private affairs of others; the act is also known as dishing or tattling.
Gossip is a topic of research in evolutionary psychology, which has found gossip to be an important means ...
about the Proberts, the Frenchified (but originally American) family of her fiancé, Gaston Probert.
Predictably, to everybody except Francie, the nasty gossip winds up in ''The Reverberator'', much to the horror of the stuffy Proberts. Francie makes no attempt to hide her role in giving Flack the juicy details. Gaston is initially dismayed by his fiancée's indiscretions. But with the somewhat surprising support of his sister Suzanne, he decides to accept Francie, who never tries to shift the blame to Flack. Gaston stands up to the outraged members of his family and marries his fiancée.
Key themes
James had no love for
publicity himself, so he doesn't spare Francie's gaucherie in blabbing about the Proberts' dirty laundry. On the other hand, he doesn't mind drubbing the stick-necked
snobbery
''Snob'' is a pejorative term for a person who believes there is a correlation between social status (including physical appearance) and human worth.De Botton, A. (2004), ''Status Anxiety''. London: Hamish Hamilton ''Snob'' also refers to a per ...
of many members of the Probert family. In the last analysis, James clearly sides with his heroine and grants her a happy ending.
Flack, the archetypical
newspaper
A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...
man who can't wait to splatter the latest gossip in newsprint, comes in for a predictable trashing by James. "For the convenience of society" in identifying Flack, says James, "he ought always to have worn something conspicuous is a green hat or a yellow necktie." Francie has divided
critics somewhat. She's honest and appealing, but also naive to a fault. Gaston wavers and hesitates like many a Jamesian male, but he eventually does the right thing.
Critical evaluation
Even the ever-critical
William James
William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher, historian, and psychologist, and the first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States.
James is considered to be a leading thinker of the lat ...
liked his younger brother's work in this "Parisian bonbon." Almost everybody concedes the novel's charm, but some have demurred at the slightness of the material. Of course, after the critical failure of ''
The Bostonians
''The Bostonians'' is a novel by Henry James, first published as a serial in '' The Century Magazine'' in 1885–1886 and then as a book in 1886. This bittersweet tragicomedy centres on an odd triangle of characters: Basil Ransom, a political c ...
'' and ''
The Princess Casamassima'', James might have been gun-shy about weightier topics.
In the ''
New York Edition'' preface, James calls the novel a ''jeu d’esprit'' and "so slight a composition." But he then launches into a long, dense discussion of the structure, origins and characters of the book.
Stage adaptation
In 1952, the British writer Dodie Smith adapted the novel into a play ''
Letter from Paris
''Letter from Paris'' is a play by the British writer Dodie Smith which was first staged in 1952. After first being performed at the Theatre Royal in Brighton, it ran for 27 performances at the Aldwych Theatre in London. Inspired by Henry James's ...
'', which ran for 27 performances at
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
's
Aldwych Theatre
The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Aldwych in the City of Westminster, central London. It was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200 on three levels.
History
Origins
The theatre was constructed in th ...
.
References
* ''The Novels of Henry James'' by
Edward Wagenknecht (New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1983)
* ''The Novels of Henry James'' by Oscar Cargill (New York: Macmillan Co., 1961)
External links
*
*
The New York Edition text of ''The Reverberator'' (1908)*
ttp://www.loa.org/volume.jsp?RequestID=58§ion=notes Note on the various texts of ''The Reverberator''at
Library of America
The Library of America (LOA) is a nonprofit publisher of classic American literature. Founded in 1979 with seed money from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Ford Foundation, the LOA has published over 300 volumes by authors rang ...
web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reverberator, The
1888 British novels
1888 American novels
Novels by Henry James
Novels first published in serial form
Works originally published in Macmillan's Magazine
Novels about journalists