This dissertation argues that Henry James deliberately and ingeniously wrote The Ambassadors (1903) as a double-plotted novel. The traditional plot which follows Lambert Strether to Paris provides cover for the detailed story of Strether’s experiences in Paris as a homosexual man seeking his identity. James conveys the Other Plot by means of code, the primary signifiers of which are references to the well-established homosexual subcultures of London and Paris. In-depth historical research on diverse aspects of homosexual life in the nineteenth century are presented in order to demonstrate how James addresses an audience sympathetic to same-sex love without raising condemnation from moral and literary critics.
","abstract_html":"<p>This dissertation argues that Henry James deliberately and ingeniously wrote <em>The Ambassadors</em> (1903) as a double-plotted novel. The traditional plot which follows Lambert Strether to Paris provides cover for the detailed story of Strether’s experiences in Paris as a homosexual man seeking his identity. James conveys the Other Plot by means of code, the primary signifiers of which are references to the well-established homosexual subcultures of London and Paris. In-depth historical research on diverse aspects of homosexual life in the nineteenth century are presented in order to demonstrate how James addresses an audience sympathetic to same-sex love without raising condemnation from moral and literary critics.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Rapp, Martha"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"English, PhD","degree_level":"Restricted to Claremont Colleges Dissertation","degree_discipline":"School of Arts and Humanities","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Eric Bulson","Mark Eaton"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:39:44Z","subjects":["The Ambassadors","Henry James","Homosexuality","Subcultures","Paris","Literature in English, British Isles","Literature in English, North America","Literature in English, North America, Ethnic and Cultural Minority"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/105","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Eric Bulson","Mark Eaton"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Rapp, Martha"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2017-04-17T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["School of Arts and Humanities"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Restricted to Claremont Colleges Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["English, PhD"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["The Ambassadors","Henry James","Homosexuality","Subcultures","Paris","Literature in English, British Isles","Literature in English, North America","Literature in English, North America, Ethnic and Cultural Minority"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/105"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation argues that Henry James deliberately and ingeniously wrote The Ambassadors (1903) as a double-plotted novel. The traditional plot which follows Lambert Strether to Paris provides cover for the detailed story of Strether’s experiences in Paris as a homosexual man seeking his identity. James conveys the Other Plot by means of code, the primary signifiers of which are references to the well-established homosexual subcultures of London and Paris. In-depth historical research on diverse aspects of homosexual life in the nineteenth century are presented in order to demonstrate how James addresses an audience sympathetic to same-sex love without raising condemnation from moral and literary critics.
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