The Lesson of the Master

By Henry James

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"The Lesson of the Master" by Henry James tells the story of Paul Overt, a young writer who meets and becomes friends with Henry St George, a famous author whom he has admired for years. Henry St George gives Paul advice and tells him that in order to be an incredible writer it must be your entire life. Paul struggles with this advice.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trajectory, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781632095848

Henry James

Henry James (1843-1916), the son of the religious philosopher Henry James Sr. and brother of the psychologist and philosopher William James, published many important novels including Daisy Miller, The Wings of the Dove, The Golden Bowl, and The Ambassadors.

Reviews for The Lesson of the Master

[markbstephenson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A very funny story indeed.

[janepriceestrada · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A young writer, Paul Overt, befriends St. George, a famous master whose later work, while popular, is less artistically strong. Enmeshed in their social dance are St. George’s wife, who it becomes apparent directs the master’s artistic and business life, and Marian Fancourt, a young intellectual beauty who captures Paul’s heart. Revolving around themes of marriage and its effects on the artistic life (anyone care to guess?), The Lesson is a dense, rich novella full of twists and turns. There is a bit of humor here. Particuarlly St. George’s response to Paul’s question of whether the artist is a man - ”I mostly think not.”What the master wishes for the student: “The sense of having done the best – the sense which is the real life of the artist and the absence of which is his death, of having drawn from his intellectual instrument the finest music that nature had hidden in it, of having played it as it should be played.”

[rbeffa_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This short novel charmed me. A nice change of pace. It's sensibilities are quite dated but what should one expect for 1888? What it has to say about writers and their creations is probably timeless. James likes to use twenty words where two might do but I suppose that is part of the charm. I think the older author (The Master) really plays a trick on the younger author in the story, but perhaps his advice was sincere to some extent. The younger author was naïve and too much into hero worship to realize he was being played. I think that is all I need to say.

[stillatim · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"So, MFA class, what did you think of this?"
"Well, I don't like how he starts it. I mean, we don't really get to know Paul Overt very much, right, and those first few sentences are just so confusing. I mean, who is this guy? Why should I care about him?"
"This strikes me as a bit, I don't know, it's kind of sexist. Like, why can't you have Miss Fancourt take control of her own destiny, because she seems right now like she's just waiting for someone to propose to her."
"You shouldn't write about writers, I think."
"Also, it's like, the lesson of the master seems to be that women get in the way of artistic genius. Is it meant to be homoerotic? I just can't relate to someone who doesn't care about sex. But then, it's also kind of sexist, as if women are just getting in the way of good writing. Unless good writing is a metaphor for gay sex? Is that what you're after?"

And so on; I've had bad experiences with MFA fiction over the last couple of weeks, and this is a glorious breath of pre-Hemingwayan competence, subtlety, and ambiguity. Also, great length for an afternoon's read.

And since I am not Henry James, I should say the lesson of the master really is completely ambiguous. Those who favor a simplistic interpretation of it are interpreting themselves, not the text.

[janemarieprice · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A young writer, Paul Overt, befriends St. George, a famous master whose later work, while popular, is less artistically strong. Enmeshed in their social dance are St. George’s wife, who it becomes apparent directs the master’s artistic and business life, and Marian Fancourt, a young intellectual beauty who captures Paul’s heart. Revolving around themes of marriage and its effects on the artistic life (anyone care to guess?), The Lesson is a dense, rich novella full of twists and turns. There is a bit of humor here. Particuarlly St. George’s response to Paul’s question of whether the artist is a man - ”I mostly think not.”What the master wishes for the student: “The sense of having done the best – the sense which is the real life of the artist and the absence of which is his death, of having drawn from his intellectual instrument the finest music that nature had hidden in it, of having played it as it should be played.”