The Portrait of a Lady

When New York native Isabel Archer moves to England with her long-lost aunt, her life appears to take a turn for the better. She meets new family members who love her, is pursued by wealthy men who want to marry her, and inherits a hefty fortune from her uncle who wants her to maintain her independence. But everything goes sour when she is tricked into a marriage with a poor man who only wants to use her and claim her as his object. The Portrait of a Lady (1881) by American-British writer Henry James (1843-1916) examines themes of personal freedom and independence, manipulation and betrayal, and responsibility and gender roles.

The Author of The Portrait of a Lady: Henry James

The Portrait of a Lady was written by American-born British novelist Henry James. It was first published serially in The Atlantic Monthly and Macmillan's Magazine between 1880-1881 before appearing as a complete novel in 1881. It is considered one of James's most popular novels.

Like the protagonist in The Portrait of a Lady, James was born in New York and first traveled to Europe with family. James fell in love with France and England, moving to London in 1876. He then spent the last three decades of his life in Europe, only returning to the United States twice and renouncing his American citizenship a year before his death.

Like many of James's other novels, The Portrait of a Lady examines the social differences between the "New World" of the United States and the "Old World" of Europe. Although she strives for independence and freedom, James's American protagonist ultimately finds herself the naive victim of a ruthless English couple who use her to make themselves rich and climb the social ladder. All of Isabel's American values come to naught when put up against the cunning of the Old World.

Fig. 1: The novel considers the divisions between the Old World and the New World.

The Portrait of a Lady Summary

Isabel Archer is an American woman in her early 20s raised by her single father to be independent and freethinking. Isabel is beautiful but does not want to marry for fear of losing her independence. After her father dies, Isabel's mysterious aunt from Europe, Mrs. Touchett, comes to see her. Mrs. Touchett invites Isabel to stay with her for a time, and Isabel accepts. Isabel leaves behind her American suitor, Caspar Goodwood, telling him she needs at least a year in Europe to think before she can consider his marriage proposal. With that, Isabel and Mrs. Touchett make their way to England and the Touchetts' manor, Gardencourt.

Isabel is enamored with her long-lost family in England, including wealthy Mr. Touchett, his chronically ill son Ralph, and their various dogs. Isabel's uncle and cousin love her back fiercely and vow to protect her.

The Touchetts' neighbor, Lord Warburton, immediately falls in love with Isabel. Warburton is wealthy and aristocratic, but Isabel rejects his marriage proposal once again in favor of her independence.

Fig. 2: Isabel refuses to marry at first, wanting to hold onto her independence and personal freedom.

Isabel's journalist friend, Henrietta Stackpole, comes to visit her in England, hoping to write a news article about European life. She secretly brings Caspar, who once again asks Isabel to marry him. Still, she refuses, and Henrietta worries life in Europe is changing Isabel for the worse. This time, Isabel tells Caspar she needs two years to think and asks him to return to the United States. Meanwhile, Henrietta meets Mr. Bantling, one of Ralph's old friends. Bantling is immediately taken with Henrietta and agrees to travel through Europe with her.

Mrs. Touchett's old friend, Madame Merle, keeps her company during Mr. Touchett's final days. During their time together, Isabel and Merle become quick friends. Merle becomes particularly interested in Isabel once Isabel receives her inheritance from Mr. Touchett. Merle introduces Isabel to Gilbert Osmond, who has no wealth or social status, encouraging the two to marry. Osmond is a narcissistic man who enjoys putting beautiful things on display to give himself some semblance of power and sophistication. A widower, Osmond keeps his young daughter, Pansy, locked in a convent. He is open to the marriage and woos Isabel.

Fig. 3: Osmond keeps Poppy in a convent to teach her to be submissive and dependent on him.

Undeterred by the protests from her family and friends, Isabel convinces herself she's in love and decides to marry Osmond. She moves to Rome with him, but their marriage turns out to be a wretched one. First, her only child dies six months after he's born. Then Osmond turns cold and begins to control her. Cut off from her family in England, Isabel's only joy is Pansy, who falls in love with a young, poor art collector. Isabel is still fiercely independent, but she also believes she has to fulfill her duty to her husband. Feeling trapped, she stays in the marriage.

Henrietta comes to see Isabel and reveals she intends to marry Mr. Banting and relocate to England. Isabel feels disillusioned that even the indomitable Henrietta has conceded to marriage.

When Warburton and Ralph visit Isabel in Rome, Warburton begins to court Pansy to get close to Isabel again. Osmond pushes the match because of Warburton's status and tells Isabel to do the same. Isabel, however, tells Warburton that Pansy is already in love, and Warburton admits he was never interested in Pansy. Warburton goes home. Osmond and Merle are furious at Isabel, and Isabel suddenly realizes that they are lovers.

Fig. 4: Isabel is shocked to discover her husband and Merle are having an affair.

When Ralph's condition takes a turn for the worst, Isabel wishes to return to England to be by his side. Osmond forbids her, and Isabel struggles to decide if she should obey her husband or go home to her dying cousin. Osmond's sister, Countess Gemini, hears about Isabel's dilemma and pushes her to see Ralph. The Countess Gemini tells Isabel that Pansy is actually the illegitimate child of Merle and Osmond—Osmond's wife died the same time Pansy was born. Merle and Osmond claimed the wife died in childbirth to avoid a scandal. Merle convinced Osmond to marry Isabel for her money.

Horrified that she was tricked into a marriage under false pretenses, Isabel disobeys Osmond and rushes to Ralph's side. After Ralph's death, Isabel confides in Caspar, who has once again returned to England for her. Caspar begs her to run off with him, but despite being deeply unhappy, she returns to Osmond in Rome to fulfill her duty as a wife.

Characters in The Portrait of a Lady

Below are the main characters in The Portrait of a Lady.

Isabel Archer

The American protagonist of the novel Isabel is young, headstrong, and self-confident. Although she is expected to marry, she rejects several suitors to maintain her independence. She travels to Europe with her aunt to find herself, but instead finds herself drawn to the mysterious Gilbert Osmond. Although the two have a miserable marriage, Isabel stays with him to fulfill society's expectations of her as a wife, even after learning her husband has tricked her into marriage to exploit her money.

Gilbert Osmond

Isabel's manipulative husband, Gilbert Osmond marries Isabel for her money and beauty while continuing a long-standing affair with Madame Merle. Osmond does not have much status or wealth; together with Merle, he plans to use his young American wife to climb the social ladder. Osmond is controlling and demanding, forbidding Isabel from seeing family and friends and locking his adolescent daughter Pansy up in a convent.

Madame Merle

Osmond's lover, Madame Merle works with Osmond to trick Isabel into a marriage with him so they can acquire her money. Merle is Pansy's birth mother, although everyone believes Osmond's first wife died while giving birth to Pansy. Merle is manipulative and tricks the vulnerable Isabel under the guise of friendship.

Mrs. Touchett

Isabel's aunt, Mrs. Touchett invites Isabel to travel through Europe with her after Isabel's father has died. Mrs. Touchett acts like a mother to Isabel, introducing her to other family members and helping her acclimate to life in Europe. Mrs. Touchett has a strained relationship with her husband and prefers to spend the majority of the year traveling on her own instead of at home. Isabel admires her aunt's independence.

Ralph Touchett

Isabel's doting cousin, Ralph Touchett is Isabel's biggest advocator and closest friend. He convinces his father to give part of his fortune to Isabel since Ralph himself is ill and will not live long. Ralph wants Isabel to enjoy her independence and not have to marry for money. He is opposed to her union with Osmond.

Mr. Touchett

Isabel's beloved uncle, Mr. Touchett leaves half his fortune to Isabel at Ralph's request so she won't have to marry for money. Mr. Touchett has amassed a fortune for himself through banking, leaving Isabel very well-off when he passes.

Lord Warburton

Isabel's primary suitor in England, Lord Warburton falls in love with Isabel while she is staying with the Touchetts. He is rich, kind, and handsome, but Isabel turns him down because she wants to make something of her life on her own. Warburton later returns as a potential suitor for Pansy, but he only courts her to be close to Isabel once more.

Caspar Goodwood

Isabel's American suitor, Caspar Goodwood repeatedly (but unsuccessfully) proposes to Isabel. He even follows her to England, hoping to convince her to marry him. At the end of the novel, Isabel confides the true nature of her marriage to Goodwood, who once again asks her to run away with him.

Pansy Osmond

The illegitimate daughter of Osmond and Merle, Pansy Osmond is kept submissive and obedient by her father. She grew up in a convent and is now too scared to disobey her father on anything, including marriage to a man she loves. Pansy is a large part of why Isabel returns to her miserable marriage in Rome.

The Portrait of a Lady Analysis

While The Portrait of a Lady is about Isabel's personal life in Europe, it is also a symbolic novel that juxtaposes society in the New World with that of the Old World. The American characters—Isabel, Henrietta, and Caspar—represent the radical ideas of the New World, while the European characters—Osmond, Merle, Warburton, and Pansy—symbolize sophistication, order, and tradition in the Old World.

Isabel and Henrietta are radical because they do not want to marry. Instead, they are happy to retain their freedom and independence and create a meaningful life for themselves. Henrietta finds her calling traveling through Europe and writing journalistic pieces, while Isabel hopes to find her own calling during her time in Europe. Although Isabel receives several marriage proposals from respectable suitors, she turns them down in favor of living for herself.

In his own way, Caspar is also a symbol of scrappy, determined, unrelenting America. He pursues Isabel into England and repeatedly asks her to be with him. Although he lacks sophistication and poise, Caspar is full of grit and potential, just like the young United States.

Fig. 5: The American characters represent the scrappy, young, determined values of the United States.

The European characters, likewise, symbolize the Old World way of life. They are acutely aware of status and the importance of marrying someone into a respectable family. Warburton is mesmerized by Isabel's uniqueness and confidence, just as part of European culture is drawn to the newness and novelty of American society. But at the same time, there are those like Pansy who uphold the status quo, never questioning what they are told or breaking out of the restricting social limitations of the past. And Merle and Osmond symbolize an Old World society that is ruthless and cunning, willing to do whatever it takes to get ahead (as Europe did with imperialism and slavery for centuries).

At the novel's end, the American characters are almost all bested by the craftier Europeans. Isabel and Henrietta both give in to the demands of marriage and duties in European society, becoming submissive housewives and obeying their husbands. Caspar is dismayed he has lost Isabel to Osmond and the European way of life.

The Portrait of a Lady Themes

The main themes in the novel are personal freedom and independence, manipulation and betrayal, and responsibility and gender roles.

Personal Freedom and Independence

The one thing Isabel values above all others is her freedom and independence. She turns down Caspar, a man she actually likes, in the United States because she feels a marriage would inhibit her freedom. She also turns down handsome, wealthy, aristocratic Lord Warburton because she doesn't want her identity to be absorbed into his through marriage. The only man she does not reject is Osmond, who has no title or money, making her believe she can finally be his equal and retain her autonomy in a relationship with him.

Isabel is, of course, very wrong about that. Instead of being an equal partner, Osmond attempts to take full control of her life—telling her who she can and can't see and yelling at her when she disobeys him. Under Osmond's domineering hand, Isabel becomes the portrait of a lady alluded to in the title: she maintains her beauty but loses her sense of self and independence, becoming a piece of art that Osmond shows off to display his sophistication and power.

Fig. 6: Instead of remaining an autonomous woman with personal freedom, Isabel becomes a superficial portrait of her former self.

Manipulation and Betrayal

After years of marriage, Isabel feels deeply betrayed when she realizes her union with Osmond was merely a trick. Osmond manipulated her into thinking he loved her, pressuring her to marry him and give up her freedom. Young, idealistic, and naive, Isabel agreed. She realizes he only wants her for her money and looks. Their marriage was never about love or respect. Realizing their entire relationship was built on a falsity, Isabel disobeys her husband and goes to England.

She also feels betrayed by Merle, who manipulated Isabel when she was most vulnerable during Mr. Touchett's final days. Merle coaxed Isabel to let her guard down under the ruse of friendship, then convinced Isabel to marry Osmond. Isabel is horribly betrayed by the two Europeans, who only want her for her money.

Responsibility and Gender Roles

The only reason Isabel does not leave Osmond is because of her desire to settle into European society as a dutiful wife. She loathes her husband and wants her freedom back, but Isabel is unwilling to shirk her social responsibility. There is extra pressure on Isabel because one of the most socially expected gender roles for a woman is to care for her home and husband. Ultimately, Isabel returns to her unhappy family in Rome to care for Pansy, her stepdaughter, and Osmond, her husband.