In the Cage is a novella by Henry James, first published as a book in 1898. This long story centers on an unnamed Londontelegraphist. She deciphers clues to her clients' personal lives from the often cryptic telegrams they submit to her as she sits in the "cage" at the post office. Sensitive and intelligent, the telegraphist eventually finds out more than she may want to know.
An unnamed telegraphist works in the branch post office at Cocker's, a grocer in a fashionable London neighborhood. Her fiancé, a decent if unpolished man named Mr. Mudge, wants her to move to a less expensive neighborhood to save money and to be near him at all times. She refuses because she likes the glimpses of society life she gets from the telegrams at her current location.
Through those telegrams, she gets "involved" with a pair of lovers named Captain Everard and Lady Bradeen. By remembering certain code numbers in the telegrams, she manages to reassure Everard at a particular crisis that their secrets are safe from detection. Later she learns from her friend Mrs. Jordan that Lady Bradeen and Everard are getting married after the recent death of Lord Bradeen. The unnamed telegraphist also learns that Everard is heavily in debt and that Lady Bradeen is forcing him to marry her, as Everard is really not interested in her. The telegraphist finally decides to marry Mudge and reflects on the unusual events of which she was a part.
Key themesedit
James frequently sent telegrams (over a hundred are still extant)[citation needed] and he got the idea for this clever tale from his experiences at the telegraphist's office.[citation needed] The unnamed protagonist of In the Cage can be seen as a version of the Jamesian artist, constructing a complex finished work from the slightest hints.[citation needed] Her knack of deducing the details of her customers' lives from their brief, cryptic telegrams is similar, in some ways, to James' ability to invent stories from the tiniest suggestions - an ability he often discussed in the New York Edition prefaces.[citation needed]
Critical evaluationedit
Critics[who?] have generally been very kind to this relatively little-known story.[citation needed] The detailed and convincing portrait of the telegraphist has garnered much praise.[citation needed] More politically-inclined critics[who?] have appreciated James's ability to present a working-class woman with sympathy and accuracy.
Some[who?] have compared the story to The Turn of the Screw, published just before In the Cage. The unnamed protagonists of both stories do display active imaginations, but the telegraphist seems much better grounded in reality. At least critics[who?] do not ask whether she has imagined Captain Everard and Lady Bradeen. A few critics have amused themselves by trying to guess exactly what the telegraphist deciphered from the telegrams between Captain Everard and Lady Bradeen. James himself said that he didn't know and he didn't want to know.
The young lady has read perhaps a few too many ha'penny novels, has a lively imagination and a nearly photographic memory. Her decision to marry her ordinary young man—as soon as possible—is a revolt against her discovery that the necessary "hero" and "heroine" she has created from their telegrams-aren't that at all. Although James sees the telegraphist as a member of her class, surely, the story is not one of class conflict. It is not that she believes all young, wealthy men and women are good, only that, well, her wealthy young man and women must surely be. Unfortunately, they prove to be more real than wonderful.
Referencesedit
Tales of Henry James: The Texts of the Tales, the Author on His Craft, Criticism edited by Christof Wegelin and Henry Wonham (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2003) ISBN0-393-97710-2
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For the song see In the Cage song This article includes a list of references related reading or external links but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations Please help improve this article by introducing more precise citations May 2018 Learn how and when to remove this message In the Cage is a novella by Henry James first published as a book in 1898 This long story centers on an unnamed London telegraphist She deciphers clues to her clients personal lives from the often cryptic telegrams they submit to her as she sits in the cage at the post office Sensitive and intelligent the telegraphist eventually finds out more than she may want to know In the CageFirst UK editionAuthorHenry JamesCountryUnited Kingdom United StatesLanguageEnglishPublisherDuckworth LondonHerbert S Stone amp Company ChicagoPublication dateDuckworth 8 Aug 1898Stone 26 Sept 1898Media typePrintPagesDuckworth 187Stone 229 Contents 1 Plot summary 2 Key themes 3 Critical evaluation 4 References 5 External linksPlot summary editAn unnamed telegraphist works in the branch post office at Cocker s a grocer in a fashionable London neighborhood Her fiance a decent if unpolished man named Mr Mudge wants her to move to a less expensive neighborhood to save money and to be near him at all times She refuses because she likes the glimpses of society life she gets from the telegrams at her current location Through those telegrams she gets involved with a pair of lovers named Captain Everard and Lady Bradeen By remembering certain code numbers in the telegrams she manages to reassure Everard at a particular crisis that their secrets are safe from detection Later she learns from her friend Mrs Jordan that Lady Bradeen and Everard are getting married after the recent death of Lord Bradeen The unnamed telegraphist also learns that Everard is heavily in debt and that Lady Bradeen is forcing him to marry her as Everard is really not interested in her The telegraphist finally decides to marry Mudge and reflects on the unusual events of which she was a part Key themes editJames frequently sent telegrams over a hundred are still extant citation needed and he got the idea for this clever tale from his experiences at the telegraphist s office citation needed The unnamed protagonist of In the Cage can be seen as a version of the Jamesian artist constructing a complex finished work from the slightest hints citation needed Her knack of deducing the details of her customers lives from their brief cryptic telegrams is similar in some ways to James ability to invent stories from the tiniest suggestions an ability he often discussed in the New York Edition prefaces citation needed Critical evaluation editCritics who have generally been very kind to this relatively little known story citation needed The detailed and convincing portrait of the telegraphist has garnered much praise citation needed More politically inclined critics who have appreciated James s ability to present a working class woman with sympathy and accuracy Some who have compared the story to The Turn of the Screw published just before In the Cage The unnamed protagonists of both stories do display active imaginations but the telegraphist seems much better grounded in reality At least critics who do not ask whether she has imagined Captain Everard and Lady Bradeen A few critics have amused themselves by trying to guess exactly what the telegraphist deciphered from the telegrams between Captain Everard and Lady Bradeen James himself said that he didn t know and he didn t want to know The young lady has read perhaps a few too many ha penny novels has a lively imagination and a nearly photographic memory Her decision to marry her ordinary young man as soon as possible is a revolt against her discovery that the necessary hero and heroine she has created from their telegrams aren t that at all Although James sees the telegraphist as a member of her class surely the story is not one of class conflict It is not that she believes all young wealthy men and women are good only that well her wealthy young man and women must surely be Unfortunately they prove to be more real than wonderful References editTales of Henry James The Texts of the Tales the Author on His Craft Criticism edited by Christof Wegelin and Henry Wonham New York W W Norton amp Company 2003 ISBN 0 393 97710 2 The Tales of Henry James by Edward Wagenknecht New York Frederick Ungar Publishing Co 1984 ISBN 0 8044 2957 XExternal links edit nbsp Works related to In the Cage at Wikisource nbsp Media related to In the Cage at Wikimedia Commons The New York Edition text of In the Cage including the author s preface 1908 Library of America note on the various texts of In the Cage nbsp In the Cage public domain audiobook at LibriVox Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title In the Cage amp oldid 1083272348, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
