Cultural Collision and Fusion in Henry James’s The American and The Europeans

Among Henry James’s numerous literary works, novels of international themes have received considerable attention from the critical community. In his novels, he often compares European and American cultures. These works reflect the collision of cultural trends between the old and new continents. James’s international novels have attracted the attention of many readers and critics since their publication. Critics use critical methods such as psychoanalysis, new criticism, feminism, and cultural studies to study the novel's techniques, character portrayal, and themes. In the first part, I analyze the cultural conflicts between European and American cultures and their underlying causes, as depicted through the hardships and obstacles faced by the male and female protagonists during their emotional development in the two novels. In the second part, I demonstrate and analyze the fusion of European and American cultures through the friendship and love gained by the male and female protagonists in a new environment. Ultimately, it expresses support for cultural fusion. James pursues the realization of the ideological concept of exploring the fusion of European and American cultures through the characterization and characterization of characters in such types of novels. He hopes to combine European idealism with American realism to build an ideal atmosphere of cultural fusion. (Chungnam National University)