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Viewing Guide for The American
By Susan Thurman
Over the years, many filmmakers have brought Henry James'
characters to the silver screen. His intricate plots and thoroughly developed characters offer not only intrigue but also great insights into human nature. Hence, combining the watching of The American
with a reading of the actual novel will provide students with multidimensional perspectives on the power of the written word.
Below is a guide to help your class get the most from such an
experience. This guide contains information to benefit students of all grade levels and abilities. You may access the information according to the following sections:
I. Preparation, Comprehension and Analysis
Pre-Viewing/Reading Discussion Questions
Post-Viewing/Reading Discussion Questions
Quotes to Write About
Writing/Research Topics
II. Supplemental Information
Literary Devices
Vocabulary Lists
I. Preparation, Comprehension and Analysis
Pre-Viewing/Reading Discussion Questions
Below is a list of sixteen discussion questions for you to pose to your students
before viewing the film or reading the novel. These questions serve to stimulate students' thinking about the various key messages in The American.
1. Have you ever felt you were snubbed by
someone or a group of people? What reason do you think these people had for snubbing you? What was your reaction to the snubbing?
2. Would you agree with the idea that there are certain national
cultures that are better than others? Why would you agree or disagree?
3. Do you feel that there exists a social hierarchy in the United States? Support your opinion.
4. How
severely would you have to be injured before you would try for revenge? In other words, what type of action by another would make you think about revenge?
5. How long should two people know each other before they become engaged?
6. What qualities will you look for in a spouse?
7. Christopher Newman, the main character in The American
, says that certain characteristics are important in his search for a wife. Using a scale of 1 (not important to you) to 5 (extremely important to you), rate the qualities that Newman listed:
Beautiful (handsome) in mind |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Beautiful (handsome) in manners |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Beautiful (handsome) in person |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Being someone others admire |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Being someone others notice |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Possessing goodness |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Possessing intelligence |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Possessing a fine education |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Possessing personal elegance |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
8. If you have ever lived in another area (especially in another country), what kinds of traditions
or customs did you find that you had to adjust to?
9. If someone were described as being "noble," what would that mean to you?
10. Where do you go to try to escape from your problems?
11. If you were wealthy enough to choose anywhere in the world, where would you choose to live? Why would you choose that place?
12. Suppose you were romantically interested in someone. Would you be willing to enlist that person's sibling to "plead your case"? Why or why not?
13. To what degree, if any, should a person be judged by his/her family?
14. Would you rather become wealthy by inheriting money or by earning it? Why?
15. What would you do if you were forced by your family to break up with your boyfriend or girlfriend?
16. Do you believe in curses? Do you believe it is possible to put a curse upon a house?
Post-Viewing/Reading Discussion Questions
Here are several thought-provoking questions for classroom discussion:
1. Who "won"—the Bellegardes or Newman? What was "won"?
2. Who was right, Tristram or Newman?
3. Is Newman really "a good fellow wronged"? How?
4. Were the Bellegardes right in saying Newman was "too commercial"? What does it mean to be "too commercial" anyway?
5. Should Newman have destroyed the piece of paper?
Quotes to Write About
Henry James' novel is full interesting, carefully crafted dialogue and descriptions. The following list contains quotes from The American; each quote is paired with a writing prompt.
1. Newman said, "I know the best can't be had for mere money, but I rather think money will do a good deal. . . ." Do you or disagree?
2. Newman said, "I want the biggest kind of entertainment a man can get. People, places, art, nature, everything!" What would be your "biggest kind of entertainment"?
3. Mrs. Tristram asked Newman if he had any objections to a foreigner as a wife, and her husband, Tristram, interjected, "No Irish need apply." What does that say of Tristram?
4. "Tristram lost no time in calling [Newman's] attention to their principal household treasures, the gas-lamps and the furnace-holes." If you were showing a visitor around your house, what
"household treasures" would you point out?
5. Of Mrs. Tristram, it was said, "Her observation, acutely exercised here, had suggested to her
that a woman's first duty is not to be beautiful, but to be pleasing." What would you consider to be "a woman's first duty"?
6. M. de Bellegarde said, "Sometimes [quarrelling is] a duty—or at least it's a pleasure." Do you agree or disagree with this?
7. M. de Bellegarde said to Newman, "What I envy you is your liberty, your wide range, your freedom to come and go, your not having a lot of people . . . expecting something of you." Are
there any people whom you envy? What about these people or their lifestyles do you envy?
8. M. de Bellegarde said to Newman, "Ah, but your poverty was your capital. Being an
American, it was impossible you should remain what you were born, and being born poor . . . it was therefore inevitable that you should become rich." Do you think that people from other
countries still think that it is "inevitable" that all Americans will become rich?
9. M. de Bellegarde said, "People are proud only when they have something to lose, and humble
when they have something to gain." Do you agree or disagree with this?
10. Newman said, ". . . I have always had rather a good opinion of myself; a man who is
successful can't help it." Do you agree or disagree with his statement?
11. Newman said, ". . . All men are equal—especially men of taste!" Do you agree or disagree with this statement?
12. Bellegarde said, "In a general way I don't see why a widow should ever marry again." Do you agree or disagree with his statement?
13. Bellegarde said, "'Time is money!' Is that what you say in America?" Do you agree or disagree that "Time is money"?
14. Newman said, "Familiarity breeds contempt; I have made myself too cheap." What did he mean by this?
15. "Love, [Newman] believed, made a fool of a man. . . ." Do you agree or disagree with this belief?
16. Madame de Cintre said of Lord Deepmere, "He is our seventh cousin, you know, and blood is thicker than water." Do you agree or disagree with her statement?
Writing/Research Topics
Below is a list of topics that may serve as the focal points of writing and research assignments.
Depending on how assignments are structured, they may require students to (1) conduct research through library and Internet resources; (2) think in a multidisciplinary fashion; and (3)
make creative leaps in their analysis and interpretation of the novel.
1. Dueling
2. Grand Tour
3. Musical glasses (instruments)
4. Wedding customs of the day
5. Transportation of the day (types of horse-drawn carriages, use of steamers)
6. Telegraph
7. Fashions of the day
8. Paris Opera House
9. Burke's Peerage
II. Supplemental Information
Literary Devices
Below are examples from The American that illustrate Henry James' use of literary devices:
Allusion
When Valentin says, ". . . let us eat and drink, for to-morrow . . ." his allusion refers to the proverb which ends "we will die."
An allusion to Hamlet
, Act I, scene v, occurs in this quote: "A vague sense that more answers were possible than his philosophy had hitherto dreamt of. . . ."
When Tristram says, "Listen to the voice of the spread eagle!" he makes an allusion to the Great Seal of the United States.
Tristram's allusion "The Mysteries of Fifth Avenue!" refers to Ann Radcliffe's novel
The Mysteries of Udolpho.
Bellegarde says of his sister, "She looks like a statue which had failed as stone, resigned itself to
its grave defects and come to life as flesh and blood, to wear white capes and long trains." This allusion refers to the Greek myth of Pygmalion.
Valentin says of M. Nioche, ". . . the old man will not do what Virginius did." This allusion refers to a character in Roman de la Rose who killed his daughter in order to save her virtue.
Speaking of his relationship with Mlle. Nioche, Valentin says, "Andromeda has found another Perseus than I." This allusion refers to the Greek myth of Princess Andromeda, who was freed
from a sea monster by Perseus.
Urbain de Bellegarde says of his sister, ". . . [My mother] . . . would rather her daughter should
become Sœur Catherine than Mrs. Newman." This allusion refers to St. Catherine of Alexandria, the first nun.
Anachronism
James writes, "[Lord Deepmere] . . . came to Paris for the new Offenbach things." The reference seems to be to Offenbach's Pomme d'Api, but that was not produced until five years after Newman's visit.
James describes the duchess whom Newman visits as having ". . . a pile of pink-covered novels on the other [side of her] . . ." This is another apparent anachronism, as those George Sand
novels (known for their unique bindings) were not reissued until several years after the setting of The American.
Euphemism
M. Nioche says of his deceased wife, "She has gone to her account."
Foreshadowing
Madame de Bellegarde: "I am a very proud and meddlesome old woman."
M. de Bellegarde: "You are a man of the world with a vengeance!"
Valentin Bellegarde of Noémie Nioche: "And in one gift—perfect heartlessness—I will warrant she is unsurpassed."
Madame de Cintré: "I have very little courage; I am not a heroine."
Newman: "I shouldn't wonder if [Mme. de Bellegarde] had murdered someone—all from a sense of duty, of course."
Madame de Cintré: ". . . I fancy [my brother] will have some great trouble—perhaps an unhappy end."
Madame de Bellegarde: "Lord Deepmere can't decide which he prefers, my sister-in-law or me. . . ."
Newman: "There is some foul play."
Metaphor
In Chapter II, the author writes, "Life had been for him an open game."
Oxymoron
When Mrs. Bread says, "And it seemed to me a cruel kindness. . . . "
Personification
When Newman says, "Oh, time's a great consoler!"
Similes
"She made, at eighteen, a marriage that was expected to be brilliant, but that turned out like a lamp that goes out; all smoke and bad smell."
The duchess said to Newman, "[The countess] is as difficult as a princess in a fairy tale."
Valentin of Mlle. Nioche: "[The dress] makes her look as white as new milk."
Newman to Valentin: "I ought to have treated you as a small boy."
Mme. de Cintre: "I am as cold as that flowing river."
". . . her eyes looked like two rainy autumn moons. . . ."
Valentin: ". . .you have been looking as black as thunder."
M. Nioche "[I am] as quiet as the grave."
Mrs. Bread: "I was as still as a mouse."
Marquise to Newman: "You are like a peddler with something to sell."
"…[The] days and years of the future would pile themselves above her like the huge, immovable slabs of a tomb."
Newman: "I feel like a widower.
Vocabulary List
Here is a list of terms that students may have particular difficulty in understanding as they watch the film or read the novel. (Note that you will find that British spelling predominates throughout the book.)
Chapters 1–9: A–L
acrimonious = testy, caustic, sarcastic
aesthetic = cultured, tasteful
anglicized
= made English
avidity = greed
belfry = a tower for a bell on the top of a building
bondage = slavery, captivity
bravado = boasting, bragging
brigadier-general = a military officer who ranks above a colonel
cadence = rhythm, beat
capricious = fickle, changeable
chaffing
= jesting, teasing
cleave = cling, stick
cockneyism = dialect of a section of London
coldblooded = emotionless, without feeling
connoisseur = expert (usually in art or wine.
counting-house = an office used for bookkeeping and transacting business
cowl = hood
debauchery = lechery, lust
deucedly
= devilishly (used as an oath.
dissipated = used up, depleted
divan = sofa
droll = amusing
dromedary = a camel
edifice = structure, building
effete = having lost strength or spirit
eloquent = well-spoken, articulate
espouse
= advocate, support
esprit = assurance, confidence
exhilaration = excitement, liveliness
expedient
= advantageous, wise
facades = the fronts of buildings
fastidious = difficult to please because of demands or sensitivity
finesse
= refinement, delicacy
fortnight = two weeks
franc = the basic currency of France
gallantry = fine manners, courtesy
gentility = refinement, breeding
gilded = covered with gold
gondola = a long, narrow boat famous for its use in Venice, Italy
grenadier
= solider
grotesque = hideous, deformed
hack = a horse-drawn vehicle
haughtiness
= arrogance, contempt
homeopathy = a type of medical practice
illumine = enlighten
implicitly = without questioning
impudent = brazen, sassy
inconstancy = betrayal, disloyalty
inevitable = bound to happen
inextricably = in a disorderly or mixed-up manner
inhospitable = cold, unfriendly
insatiable = unquenchable, unfulfilled
inscrutable = mysterious, inexplicable
interlocutor
= one who takes part in a dialogue
iron hand = stern or harsh control
jocosity = humor, merriment
languid = lackadaisical, inactive
Legitimist
= a person adhering to principles of political authority
Chapters 1–9: M–Z
M. = the French abbreviation for "Monsieur"
Madonna
= a painting or statue of the Virgin Mary
milliner = hat maker
monsieur = French for "mister"
nabob
= person of great wealth or influence
napoleons = former French gold coins worth twenty francs
nay = no
noblesse
= members of the French nobility
odious = repulsive, disgusting
Old World = European
parasols = umbrellas for protection from the sun
Parisienne
= a person from Paris
perceptible = noticeable
physiognomy = features
portentously = in a threatening or menacing way
portico
= a colonnade at the entrance to a building
portress = the doorkeeper at an apartment house
postprandial =occurring after a meal
probity
= honesty, integrity
profane = worldly
punctiliously = conscientiously, carefully
purgatory
= in religious terms, a place where souls go before they are admitted to heaven
rebuked = scolded, reprimanded
reckonings
= bills, tabs
recompense = repay
renouncing = disavowing, disclaiming
repartee = witty comebacks
reverie = preoccupation, daydream
rhapsodise
(note the British spelling) = rave, praise
sang-froid = imperturbability, calmness under pressure
scuttle = to sink
séance = spiritualist meeting to communicate with the spirits
secular = non-religious
seraglios = harems
solicitude care, concern
sou = a French coin
splendor
= excellence, magnificence, pomp
sublime = without equal, outstanding
suffice = be adequate or enough
symbolize = represent
talons
= claws of birds of prey
trepidation = alarm, fear
Ultramontane = one who favors Catholic supremacy over national authority
unscrupulous = unethical, corrupt
verily = truly
vexed = disturbed, troubled
volubly = fluently
Chapters 10–20: A–L
allusions
= suggestions, indirect references
amiable = friendly, sociable
analogy = comparison, similarity
anomalous = unusual, abnormal
antecedents = ancestors
arbitrary
= subject to judgment
audacious = brazen, insolent, outrageous
balm = salve, something for comfort
baseness = evil, meanness
bolster = a long pillow
bovine
= like an ox or cow; beef-like
cadaverous = like a corpse
capacious = roomy, spacious
collateral = from the same ancestors, but not in a direct line of descent
compatriot
= people from the same country (America)
compendium = summary, digest
countenance = face
coveted = desired
deference = reverence, extreme courtesy
discordant
= conflicting, clashing
domicile = house, residence
enjoin = prohibit, ban
enmity = loathing, animosity
enunciation = correct pronunciation, diction
epithet
= name, title
equanimity = poise, composure
ethnologist = one who studies cultures
execrable = cursed, detestable
explicit = clear, specific
felicitous
= appropriate, happy
fop = a man vain about his appearance
fraternal = brotherly
garrulous = talkative, verbose
haggard = gaunt, wan
hitherto = previously
immutably = permanently
impetuously = in an impulsive or spontaneous way
imprecation = curse, swearing
incisive = biting, severe
innocuous = harmless, inoffensive
insuperable = overwhelming, insurmountable
intrepidity = poise, coolness
invidious hypothesis = detestable, malicious assumption
legation = representative, council
luminous
= bright, radiant
Chapters 10–20: M–Z
madeira = a type of wine
marquise = a title for a French nobleman of hereditary rank
melancholy = sad, depressed
mercantile
= business, commercial
mercenary = wanting of money
obsequious = overly flattering, bootlicking
paternal = fatherly
pedigree = ancestry, heredity
perdition
= destruction, downfall
portentously = remarkable, extraordinarily
posterity = future generations
pretentious = pompous, showy
profundity = wisdom, astuteness
propriety
= decency, etiquette
punctiliously = carefully, conscientiously
rendezvous = meeting, appointment
renunciation = rejection, denial
repast = dinner, meal
repudiate
= reject
repudiate = renounce, disavow
sanguineous = bloody
saturnine = in a cold or gloomy way
septuagenarian = a person in his or her seventies
suave
= sophisticated, cultured
suffer = endure, tolerate
tantamount = equal, equivalent
unwonted= unaccustomed
urbane = suave, cosmopolitan
venerable = esteemed, respected
veneration = respect, reverence
venial = pardonable, allowable
vexed= annoyed, disturbed
visaged = faced
voluminous = extensive, ample
Chapter
21–26: A–Z
audacious = outrageous, bold
beguile = deceive, trick
bereavement = mourning
cavalier = knight
clemency = forgiveness, compassion
deprecate
= deplore, speak ill of
dirge = mournful chant
dissipation = evil, indulgence
eminent = famous, distinguished
enticed = lured, attracted
felicitous
= appropriate, fitting
ignoble = contemptible, mean
imbecile = idiot, fool
implacability = stubbornness, determination
iniquitous = wicked, immoral
iniquity
= gross injustice
lamentation = expressions of sorrow
lugubrious = bleak, dismal, depressing
mantilla = veil, scarf
multitudinous = abundant, plentiful
obeisance
= respect, courtesy
pertinacity = inflexibility
rancorous = hostile, antagonistic
reveries = daydreams, preoccupations
scintillations = glitters, twinkles
stealthily
= secretly, slyly
turpitude = corruption, evil
vicissitudes = unpredictable changes
Susan Thurman teaches at Henderson Community College in Kentucky. She has also created
viewing guides for other films. |
