Overlooking the International Cultural Values in "The Portrait of a Lady".

Henry James' The Portrait of a Lady is an excellent assessment of the application of American cultural values in European society. The novel cautions against assuming that the principles that govern one's country of birth can be applied to another society without any repercussions. An overview of the origin of key American cultural values and their significance from the characters' perspective is exposed. A close examination of the beliefs of several characters and the protagonist's reaction to these convictions follows. In addition, James' earlier work The American is also evaluated for the cultural principles exposed in comparison to those in The Portrait of a Lady. The results of this study show that, in spite of innocence and inexperience, the main character's refusal to accept and adopt the principles of the new society where she resides is greatly responsible for her self-deception.