Daisy Miller: A Study

The novel ’’Daisy Miller’’ by Sir Henry James first appeared in The Cornhill Magazine in June-July 1878 and was published as a book the following year. It features Daisy Miller, a beautiful American girl, being courted by Winterbourne, a sophisticated member of her country. Her flirtatiousness, which is frowned upon by the other expatriates when they gather in Switzerland and Italy, hinders his pursuit of her. In Vevey, Switzerland, Frederick Winterbourne and Annie ＂Daisy＂ Miller first cross paths. The novel presents a scenario of Winterbourne allegedly vacationing from his studies (an attachment to an older lady is rumored) They are introduced by Randolph Miller, Daisy’s nine-year-old brother. Daisy Miller is described as a flower in full bloom, without inhibitions, and in the springtime of her life. Henry James uses Daisy’s story to talk about the stereotypes he thinks Americans and Europeans have of one another as well as the prejudices that exist in all cultures. Novelist Henry James’ Winterbourne is torn between attachment and his suffocating social milieu. The novella’s final act has yet to unfold, but we cannot help but conclude that the real tragedy lies here in Winterbourne’s relief over Daisy’s behavior.