A young girl working in a Mayfair post office is privy to the
brief yet substantial messages telegraphed by wealthy,fashionable
people to their similar friends. As she reads, she develops her
own particular intimacy with various scandals, amours, and
intrigues. Her mind captive in the cage of her workplace, and with
only the prospect of a rather dull marriage to look forward to,
she surrenders to her powerful imagination, her chosen
entertainment being the sporadic visits of the dashing Captain
Everard, and the 'extravagance,selfishness, immorality, and
crimes' of the idle rich.
In this novella, Henry James, an American in London, creates
an unremarkable yet beguiling heroine to elaborate the gaze of one
observing the rituals of her elders and betters. The poignant and
revealing result is a very modern story of communication and
misunderstanding, technology and codes, and the professional and
personal dilemmas that arise in the space between wishful thinking
and settling for one's lot in life.
目录
Foreword by Libby Purves
In the Cage
Biographical note
