6 h 43 minAudiobook7 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when two charming Europeans bring a taste for pleasure into a household ruled by conscience?
In Henry James's The Europeans, Eugenia, Baroness Münster, and her brother Felix Young arrive from Europe to meet their New England cousins. Eugenia hopes to find security and a rich husband. Felix, a good-humored painter, finds delight almost everywhere. Their bright manners unsettle the serious Wentworth household.
Mr. Wentworth watches indulgence with suspicion, while his daughter Gertrude longs for a wider life. Nearby, wealthy Robert Acton feels drawn to Eugenia but keeps questioning her. As affection grows and habits come under strain, James turns the meeting of two ways of living into a gentle, sharp-eyed comedy.
What you’ll discover
- Charm against conscience Watch European ease meet New England duty, with each side making the other look strange.
- A guest with ambitions Follow Eugenia as her search for security meets Robert Acton's attraction and persistent doubts.
- The pleasure of Felix Meet a painter whose warmth and laughter turn a family visit into an adventure.
- A longing for more Share Gertrude's sense that her quiet world has limits, and feel her wish for something wider.
- Wit without cruelty Enjoy a narrator who smiles at human weakness while noticing what plain words can hide.
Is it for you?
This book suits you if you like witty social comedy, short novels, and quiet human drama more than action. It is a good first Henry James. If you want fast plots or big events, its gentle pace may feel slight.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Two travelers arrive with a plan
- The Wentworths live by conscience
- Felix charms a whole household
- Eugenia sets her sights on Acton
- Old World against New England
- How James tells it with a smile
Who’s who
- Eugenia, Baroness MünsterA graceful, clever woman of the European world, in a doubtful marriage, who hopes to find security and a rich husband in America.
- Felix YoungEugenia's brother, a good-humored painter who finds delight almost anywhere and wins people with his warmth.
- Mr. WentworthThe stern, anxious father of the family, guided by conscience and wary of anything that looks like indulgence.
- Gertrude WentworthA thoughtful younger daughter who feels the limits of her quiet life and longs for something wider.
- Charlotte WentworthGertrude's dutiful older sister, who runs the house and quietly cares for the young minister.
- Robert ActonA wealthy, well-traveled neighbor who is drawn to Eugenia but cannot stop questioning her.
- Mr. BrandA young minister, earnest and respected, who visits the Wentworths and is thought a good match for the family.
- Clifford WentworthThe easygoing son, sent down from Harvard, who is fond of Lizzie Acton and chafes at his father's strictness.
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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The Europeans
by Henry James· 1878
Two European siblings unsettle their New England relatives’ lives.
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Language: English
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
Two travelers arrive with a plan
The story opens in Boston, where a brother and sister have come from Europe. She is Eugenia, Baroness Münster, a woman of elegance who has lived at courts and in drawing rooms. Her brother is Felix Young, a cheerful painter and sometime performer who has knocked about the Continent with little money and a great deal of good humor.
Eugenia has a problem. She is married to a German prince, Adolf of Silberstadt-Schreckenstein, but the marriage is of the kind called morganatic. That means she does not share his rank, and his family wants it ended. She has come to America to look for relatives and, if she can, for a fortune. A rich husband of her own choosing would suit her very well.
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The author
Henry James
1843–1916 · American British novelist
Henry James was born in New York City in 1843. He settled in England in 1876 and became a British citizen in 1915. He wrote novels, stories, plays, and travel books. His works include Daisy Miller (1878), The Turn of the Screw (1898), and The Ambassadors (1903). He died in London in 1916.
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What is The Europeans by Henry James about?
It follows a baroness and her artist brother who travel from Europe to visit strict relatives in New England. Their charm and easy manners disturb the household and stir up love, ambition, and doubt.
Who are the main characters in The Europeans?
The main figures are Eugenia, Baroness Münster, and her brother Felix Young, with their cousins the Wentworths, including Gertrude and Charlotte, and the neighbor Robert Acton.
When was The Europeans written and is it a true story?
Henry James published it in 1878. It is fiction, though it draws on his own view of American and European manners, which he knew well from living in both.
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