Henry James

Partial Portraits examines the work of a range of authors, such as Emerson, Eliot, Trollope, and Stevenson. It includes one of James's most famous essays, The Art of Fiction, in which he argues that writers should not be limited in their subject matter, and that the only obligation a writer has is to make the work interesting.

Those whose palates are accustomed to the subtle flavours of the wines of the Rhine and Moselle can smack their lips and name the vintage at the first taste. Likewise any one fairly familiar with the work of Mr. James during his forty years of literary activity can, after the reading of a single page taken at random, judge with a remarkable accuracy the date of its composition. Yet the transition has not been abrupt and the styles of writing which...