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Conclusion

Promising the Past: “The Figure in the Carpet”

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 October 2023

Stuart Burrows
Stuart Burrows
Affiliation:
Brown University, Rhode Island
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Summary

My conclusion consists of a brief analysis of perhaps James’s most famous short story: “The Figure in the Carpet.” Here I argue that, for James, the promise of art is the only promise in which we can place our trust. The difficulty this poses is that such a promise can only be spoken by others, never by us.

Keywords

“The Figure in the Carpet”
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Chapter
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Henry James and the Promise of Fiction , pp. 169 - 172
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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  • Conclusion
  • Stuart Burrows, Brown University, Rhode Island
  • Book: Henry James and the Promise of Fiction
  • Online publication: 26 October 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009419710.008
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  • Conclusion
  • Stuart Burrows, Brown University, Rhode Island
  • Book: Henry James and the Promise of Fiction
  • Online publication: 26 October 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009419710.008
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Conclusion
  • Stuart Burrows, Brown University, Rhode Island
  • Book: Henry James and the Promise of Fiction
  • Online publication: 26 October 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009419710.008
Available formats
×