The Bostonians

The Cambridge Edition of the Complete Fiction of Henry James provides, for the first time, a scholarly edition of a major writer whose work continues to be read, quoted, adapted and studied. The Bostonians is an extraordinary political and psychological drama narrating the struggle between Northern feminist Olive Chancellor and her cousin, former slaveholder and radical conservative Basil Ransom, for 'possession' of the beautiful, talented Verena Tarrant. The issues raised of the relations between the sexes, between North and South and between differing visions of 'progress' in America are as timely - and contentious - as when the novel first appeared. This fully annotated scholarly edition of one of James's most distinctive and important works features a detailed contextual introduction, full textual history and helpful explanatory annotation. It will be of interest to researchers, scholars and advanced students of Henry James, and of nineteenth- and twentieth-century British and American fiction and literature.

• Presents the first fully annotated scholarly edition of The Bostonians, giving readers access to a full textual history, detailed contextual introduction and helpful explanatory annotation
• Tracks the history of the novel's composition, publication and reception which was one of the most interesting in James's canon - the book was conceived in America but written in England; published in serial form in America but in volume form in England; caused a scandal in Boston when it first appeared, and has continued to divide critical opinion
• The editorial apparatus enables readers to navigate James's complex personal, familial and literary engagement with the issues in the novel, including the struggle for women's rights, identity politics, the nature of masculinity, same-sex relationships and the post-Civil War 'settlement' between North and South