Quotes by Henry James

Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.

— Henry James

Wisdom

Do not mind anything that anyone tells you about anyone else. Judge everyone and everything for yourself.

— Henry James

Wisdom

There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea.

— Henry James

Life

It takes an endless amount of history to make even a little tradition.

— Henry James

Wisdom

What is character but the determination of incident? What is incident but the illustration of character?

— Henry James

Wisdom

Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind.

— Henry James

Life

We work in the dark - we do what we can - we give what we have. Our doubt is our passion and our passion is our task. The rest is the madness of art.

— Henry James

Success

Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea.

— Henry James

Life

To criticize is to appreciate, to appropriate, to take intellectual possession, to establish in fine a relation with the criticized thing and to make it one's own.

— Henry James

Wisdom

It is art that makes life, makes interest, makes importance... and I know of no substitute whatever for the force and beauty of its process.

— Henry James

Life

Money's a horrid thing to follow, but a charming thing to meet.

— Henry James

Wisdom

Cats and monkeys; monkeys and cats; all human life is there.

— Henry James

Life

Deep experience is never peaceful.

— Henry James

Wisdom

The right time is any time that one is still so lucky as to have.

— Henry James

Wisdom

Young men of this class never do anything for themselves that they can get other people to do for them, and it is the infatuation, the devotion, the superstition of others that keeps them going. These others in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred are women.

— Henry James

Wisdom

However British you may be, I am more British still.

— Henry James

Wisdom

If I were to live my life over again, I would be an American. I would steep myself in America, I would know no other land.

— Henry James

Life

The only reason for the existence of a novel is that it does attempt to represent life.

— Henry James

Life

It is, I think, an indisputable fact that Americans are, as Americans, the most self-conscious people in the world, and the most addicted to the belief that the other nations of the earth are in a conspiracy to under value them.

— Henry James

Life

A man who pretends to understand women is bad manners. For him to really to understand them is bad morals.

— Henry James

Wisdom

Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven't had that what have you had?

— Henry James

Life

There are two kinds of taste, the taste for emotions of surprise and the taste for emotions of recognition.

— Henry James

Wisdom

Though there are some disagreeable things in Venice there is nothing so disagreeable as the visitors.

— Henry James

Wisdom

I hate American simplicity. I glory in the piling up of complications of every sort. If I could pronounce the name James in any different or more elaborate way I should be in favor of doing it.

— Henry James

Wisdom