Washington Square

            Washington Square by Henry James is about a girl named Catherine who struggles to maintain relationships with her family and her lover, Morris Townsend. At first glance, Catherine is assumed to be a weak-minded, docile girl who cannot think for herself. As the story progresses, it is clear that Catherine is a dynamic character who eventually gathers enough courage to speak for herself instead of becoming doll-like.

            The melodramatic elements used in this story all relate to major themes such as family, betrayal, and social class. Catherine comes from a wealth family, so she is expected to behave as an upper-class woman in society. This means that she must obey her father, and that a suitable husband for Catherine would be a wealthy or upper-class man who could support both himself and her, along with any future children they may have. In contrast to Morris, he would be deemed unsuitable as Catherine’s husband-to-be, so it is understandable as to why Dr. Sloper disapproved of him as a possible son-in-law. Catherine not only has to face the disapproval her father has of her and her choices, but she also has to deal with meddling from uninvolved parties such as her Aunt Lavinia, who instead of wanting to help Catherine seems to cause more trouble for her and is instead just interested in fulfilling her own curiosity.

            Within in the first few pages of the novel, it is clear that Catherine is the character to be sympathized with by readers. On page 5, it says “…Mrs. Sloper gave birth to a second infant – an infant of a sex which rendered the poor child, to the Doctor’s sense, an inadequate substitute for his lamented first-born…The little girl was a disappointment”, portraying Dr.Sloper as a father who preferred a son. While Dr. Sloper did not abuse Catherine, the way he seemed to reject her subtly would psychologically negatively affect Catherine. As a reader, we are immediately convinced that we should pity Catherine and hate her father. Throughout the development of the novel, Dr.Sloper tries to make it seem like Catherine is a trouble-maker, but in reality it seems like he instead is the one who causes the most drama with his passive aggressive attitude towards her. While it can also be seen as him fulfilling his duty as a father by being overprotective of his daughter, it is clear that he tries to rule over Catherine as a tyrant instead, saying that “If she doesn’t let go, she will be shaken off – sent tumbling into the dust! That’s a nice position for my daughter,” (150).  Although Catherine seems oblivious to the insults her father uses, she still loves him and tries to salvage her relationship with him while being in a relationship with Morris.

            When Morris was first introduced, his and Catherine’s relationship was described to be between a handsome young man and an ordinary, plain-looking girl. Based on the fact that this novel contained melodramatic content, it was reasonable to say that Morris was suspicious for suddenly claiming that he fell in love with Catherine after just one meeting. There were sentences that seemed to raise even more suspicions about Morris, such as on page 94 when he believed Lavinia’s house was “a devilish comfortable house,” or on page 92 when he questions Lavinia about whether or not Dr.Sloper included Catherine on his will. This relates back to the theme of social class, as money was very important in this period of time. At this point, it is clear that Morris is not really in love with Catherine, but is instead after her inheritance money. Morris had questioned more than once about Catherine’s inheritance, so it was not out of curiosity but out of greed that he asked Lavinia such personal questions. This is one instance of betrayal that Catherine experiences, as the lover she believed in so much was only after her money. The final blow for Catherine would be when Morris leaves her and ends up marrying another woman, most likely for money. As readers, we are feeling the utmost sympathy for Catherine, but we also can highly respect her change in attitude when she rejects Morris’ futile attempt in wooing her back in the last chapter.

           Besides Dr.Sloper, Catherine’s aunts Lavinia and Elizabeth played a huge role in this novel as side characters. Elizabeth was the kind-hearted aunt who often had good advice that was usually ignored by her brother and father to Catherine, Dr.Sloper. Lavinia was a character that most readers would highly dislike along with Dr.Sloper and Morris. At first it seemed like she was supportive of Catherine’s desire to be with Morris, but it became clear afterwards that she was only involved for the gossip and to satisfy her own curiosity. Lavinia ends up betraying Catherine in that aspect, as she causes emotional distress for Catherine multiple times throughout the play. When Catherine finally has an outburst towards Lavinia’s unhelpful meddling, she tries to defend herself by calling Catherine “ungrateful”, hoping to cause guilt for her niece.

            Not only does Catherine struggle with the insincerity of Morris’ actions, she also has to deal with her deteriorating relationship with her father and the annoyance that is named Aunt Lavinia. One can only handle so much stress, so Catherine being pitiable is a melodramatic element. She deals with one betrayal after another, but instead of staying as a weak character who ends up losing everything, she gains something that no one would have been able to teach her – courage to stand up for herself.

Questions:

1)      As mentioned in the novel, Lavinia and Morris were compared to be mother and son. What do you think of this relationship?

2)      Do you think Dr.Sloper’s disapproval of Catherine’s relationship was because he was truly overprotective of his daughter and wanted the best for her, or just that he didn’t want to give up his fortune to someone like Morris?

3)      An explanation was not given in the end of the novel, but why do you think Catherine does not marry? How does this add to the melodramatic theme?