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Analysis Of Daisy's Social Death In Daisy Miller

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The novella Daisy Miller by Henry James narrates the story of Daisy, a young American pretty girl who is travelling around Europe. Throughout the story we get to see how the tension arises between Daisy Miller and the sophisticated Americans in Europe. This tension reaches its climax with Daisy’s literal and metaphorical death. One could even go as far as to say it is a murder because each and every character in the novella, including herself, is to blame for her downfall. One of the main reasons for Daisy’s social death and the principal theme of the novella is the contrast between the New World (America) and the Old World. In the story the New World is represented by Daisy’s family; they have a different set of values and new traditions. Daisy doesn’t find etiquette important and for this reason she is said to be common “ But she is very common” [ Mrs. Costello says this without …show more content…

The young Italian man, Giovanelli, also causes Daisy’s reputation to fall as he is considered socially beneath her. “ They will show it disagreeably… They will give you the could shoulder”. Winterbourne informs Daisy about the opinion society has of her going round with Giovanelli; nevertheless she continues going round with him knowing the consequences. Giovanelli is to blame for her physical death because he took Daisy to the Colosseum “ This is the way people catch it [ Roman fever ] … for myself I am not afraid [ Giovanelli ] ”. This shows us Giovanelli’s true colours; we see how he doesn’t really care for Daisy “ Mr. Giovanelli hasn’t been near us since she was taken ill ”. the fact that he hasn’t been near Daisy since then makes us think that maybe he was truly a third- rate Italia, Roman fortune hunter ( as Mrs Costello describes him). However the fact that we appears genuinely saddened by her death “Giovanelli was very pale... At last he said, "She was the most beautiful young lady I ever saw, and the most amiable"; and then he added in a moment, "and she was the most

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