The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James (1881)

The Portrait of a Lady is a novel by Henry James, first published in 1881.

The novel follows the life of Isabel Archer, an American woman who inherits a large fortune and moves to Europe to live a life of independence.

She is soon courted by two men, Gilbert Osmond and Caspar Goodwood, who each have different ideas of what her life should be.

Isabel chooses Osmond, however, she soon finds herself in a loveless marriage and realizes she has made a grave mistake.

Isabel begins to break away from her husband and finds solace in her travels and in her relationship with Goodwood.

As she is finally able to gain her freedom, she is forced to confront difficult truths about the way she has been living her life.

The novel examines the dynamics between men and women and how Isabel's struggles to gain her own agency are often met with resistance.

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