The Master

“He wrote down the story of that night and thought then of the rest of the story which could never be written, no matter how secret the paper or how quickly it would be burned or destroyed.”

The Pain of Repression and Self-Denial are at the heart of Henry James’s life story and this novel’s fictionalized account of it. Henry never feels free to explore his sexuality in the open, and he even turns down the advances of men in whom he is interested—primarily out of a fear that he has misinterpreted their actions. Although he is a solitary man by nature, he keenly feels the burden of repressing an essential facet of his identity, especially as he grows older and continues to lack a meaningful romantic relationship.

“Now he would walk home and keep his head down like a man who has committed a crime and is in imminent danger of apprehension.”

The inherent shame in this quotation can be seen in the visceral description of Henry’s slinking body language after the public’s rejection of his play. In many ways, the failure of the play serves as this novel’s inciting incident. Although Henry is an accomplished writer, he is not a very popular figure. His books are dense and character-driven, and they appeal to readers who are interested in high art, while the dramas designed for the stage—like those of Oscar Wilde—have a more widespread appeal. While Wilde’s works were immensely popular in their day, Henry’s play was not. Recovering from this intense professional failure proves to be a long, arduous road for Henry, but he ultimately feels better about himself when he writes a new novel.