French Literature Reviews - 2026

A. Green, The Negative Adventure: A Psychoanalytic Reading of Henry James
Literary Theory, Linguistics and Stylistics

André Green, The Negative Adventure: A Psychoanalytic Reading of Henry James

Paris: Hermann, "Psychanalyse" series, 2009

• ISBN 13 (EAN): 9782705669157
• 25€

Publisher's Description:
“Henry James has accompanied me for many years and continues to do so. I remember the surprise and satisfaction of discovering that the same had been true for Winnicott in 1917, at the age of twenty-one, during his military service in the Royal Navy. He had read the work of Henry James aboard the Lucifer, which allowed him to sharpen his insight into the patients he would later care for. For me, this discovery came later, since James was not originally part of my cultural heritage. But since then, he has become inseparable from me.”
ANDRÉ GREEN, Extract from the Preface

André Green was born in Cairo in 1927. A Doctor of Medicine from the Paris Faculty and former clinical assistant in psychiatry, he served as Director of the Paris Psychoanalytical Institute and held the Freud Memorial Chair at University College London. He is the author of numerous works on psychoanalysis, including "Private Madness" (Gallimard, 1990), "The Work of Psychoanalysis" (PUF, 2003), and "The Castration Complex" ("Que sais-je" series, PUF, 2007).

This volume stands at the intersection of literary criticism and psychoanalytic theory, continuing a rich tradition of applying clinical concepts to complex narrative texts. By examining Henry James through the lens of psychoanalysis, André Green investigates the psychological underpinnings of character and authorial intent. The work bridges the gap between literature and the human sciences, offering scholars of modern fiction and psychoanalytic studies a nuanced perspective on how artistic creation reflects deep-seated psychic structures and emotional dynamics.

Readers interested in the intersections of psychoanalysis and literary criticism will find this study particularly valuable for its methodological approach. It illuminates how clinical intuition can inform the reading of classic prose fiction, shedding light on the unspoken motives that drive complex narratives. The book serves as an essential resource for academics, advanced students, and anyone seeking to deepen their understanding of how literature and psychoanalytic thought mutually enrich one another.