James does not always rely on ambiguity as a strategic device to encourage the reader he is often inconclusive because he does not know how to end his story,” writes Rowe. “My work with them has led me to a rather odd conclusion for a scholar who has spent much of his life celebrating James’s genius. Rowe was partially inspired by a USC Dornsife course he teaches on Henry James, in which he asks his students to examine the reasons for James’s popularity. He explores why James has remained so influential long into the new century, documenting his findings in his latest book, Our Henry James in Fiction, Film, and Popular Culture (Routledge, 2022). Maybe not, says John Rowe, USC Associates Chair in Humanities and professor of English, American studies and ethnicity and comparative literature at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, who has been teaching students about James for nearly 50 years. John Rowe has written several books on Henry James, as well as books on American literature and culture. His writing has been adapted for film and television over 150 times, from miniseries to movies, starring luminaries like Marlon Brando, Cybill Shepherd and Nicole Kidman.Īt first glance, his books, which follow the romantic entanglements and inner lives of turn-of-the-century aristocrats, seem like an odd fit for modern Hollywood. You may not have read anything by Henry James, but you’ve likely seen his work on the silver screen.

James was an early expatriate writer, perhaps the first to glamorize writing about America from abroad, and influenced many subsequent expat writers.He was writing at a time of changing gender roles, and struggling with his own homosexuality.Although he was published before movies were popularized, Henry James anticipated our viewing interests: aristocracy, romantic entanglements and psychological weirdness.Even if you haven’t read his books, you’ve likely watched his plots. Some 150 (and counting) film and TV adaptations of Henry James novels have been produced.

The american by henry james