How did walking inspire Henry James?
In Frédéric Gros’s A Philosophy of Walking, he describes
the fourth stage of life’s journey per Hindu philosophy. It is that of a
pilgrim in which, “The sage has now renounced everything and attained the
highest level of freedom: that of perfect detachment. He is no longer involved,
either in himself or in the world.”[1]
Even as a young child, it was reported that Henry “liked ‘the joy of lonely
walks.’ He also liked company, though he had a sense of the company of his
imagination and the pleasure of sentient observation.”[2]
In Chapter VII, An English Easter, James stated, “I
walked down to Westminster Abbey on Good Friday afternoon – walked from
Piccadilly across the Green Park and through that of St. James.”[3]
Later in this chapter, he describes a cathedral at Canterbury, “It is a long
walk, beneath the walls, from the gateway of the close to the farther end of
the last chapel. Of all that there is to observe in this upward-gazing stroll I
can give no detailed account; I can, in my fear to pretend to dabble in the
esoteric constructional question – often so combined with an absence of other
felt relations – speak only of the picture, the mere builded scene. This is altogether delightful.”[4]
In Chapter IX, Two Excursions, he
reflected on Oxford, “Before going to bed I took a turn through the streets and
renewed in the silent darkness that impression of the charm imparted to them by
the quiet college-fronts which I had gathered in former years. The
college-fronts were now quieter than ever, the streets were empty, and the old
scholastic city was sleeping in the warm starlight.”[5]
Almost every chapter contains some reference to walking as in Chapter X, In Warwickshire, “Of course, however, I
did walk over to the castle; and of course the walk led me through leafy lanes
and beside the hedgerows that make a tangled screen for large lawn-like
meadows.”[6]
[1]
Frédérick Gros, A Philosophy of Walking, (London,
Verso, 2015), 8-9.
[2]
Fred Kaplan, Henry James: The Imagination
of Genius A Biography (New York, William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1992),
17.
[3] Henry
James, English Hours (New York, Weidenfeld
& Nicolson, 1989), 95.
[4]
Ibid., 104.
[5]
Ibid., 129.
[6]
Ibid., 136.
Happy is the walker who can enjoy "a sense of the company of his imagination and the pleasure of sentient observation" - as Henry evidently could. He also enjoyed a good bikeride.
ReplyDeleteHenry “liked ‘the joy of lonely walks but later stated that was always happy in his own company. I can relate
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