Up until the end of the book, I have really enjoyed Daisy Miller. I liked the controversy of how different nations view flirting and relationships. However, I did not like how James ended the novella. I think it was because he wanted Daisy to pay for her consequences. But, were her actions even that bad? At the end, I felt sympathy for Daisy. I began to understand where she was coming from. She did not know any better because she was accustomed to her ways at home. I do recognize that fact that Daisy was warned by Winterbourne and Mrs. Walker, but still, she did not believe she was harming her own reputation, however, part of me thinks she knew she was ruining her reputation, but another part of me believes she really did not understand the fuss people were making over and Mr. Giovanelli.
I never liked Mr. Giovanelli from the start. To be honest, he seemed like a pig who was taking advantage of a poor American girl who did not know any better. But at the end, I became extremely infuriated with him because he took Daisy to the Coliseum knowing what could happen to her. By going to the Coliseum at night and breathing in the bad air, visitors can catch “Roman fever,” which is essentially malaria. Mr. Giovanelli knew what could possibly happen to Daisy and because he was selfish, he took Daisy there anyway. What do you think happened? Yes, Daisy caught malaria, became very ill and died shortly after. When Winterbourne confronted Mr. Giovanelli about why he took Daisy there, Mr. Giovanelli gave a selfish answer, claiming that he loved Daisy but he knew he never would have been able to marry her. I took this as the fact that Mr. Giovanelli could not bear the thought of Daisy falling in love with someone else, so he took her there in the hopes that she would catch malaria. How selfish can you get?
Shortly after Daisy’s death, Mrs. Miller called on Winterbourne because she wanted to speak with him. She told him that all along Daisy had highly respected his opinion and that she cared about he thought after all. I thought this was a great thing to add at the end of the novella. Winterbourne had to deal with the fact that the girl he loved was gone forever, but he realized she truly believed every word he said and that made him believe that Daisy might have possibly been in love with him.
One of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much is because there is so much controversy you could argue about with the problems between nations. Everyone looks at America because in this case they are seen as flirtatious and open about relationships. They can also come across as conceited and snotty, but look at Mr. Giovanelli. He was not from America and he treated women horribly. Italian men are supposed to be gentlemen to all ladies. It just goes to show, that stereotyping a nation does not apply to every individual who lives there.
I never liked Mr. Giovanelli from the start. To be honest, he seemed like a pig who was taking advantage of a poor American girl who did not know any better. But at the end, I became extremely infuriated with him because he took Daisy to the Coliseum knowing what could happen to her. By going to the Coliseum at night and breathing in the bad air, visitors can catch “Roman fever,” which is essentially malaria. Mr. Giovanelli knew what could possibly happen to Daisy and because he was selfish, he took Daisy there anyway. What do you think happened? Yes, Daisy caught malaria, became very ill and died shortly after. When Winterbourne confronted Mr. Giovanelli about why he took Daisy there, Mr. Giovanelli gave a selfish answer, claiming that he loved Daisy but he knew he never would have been able to marry her. I took this as the fact that Mr. Giovanelli could not bear the thought of Daisy falling in love with someone else, so he took her there in the hopes that she would catch malaria. How selfish can you get?
Shortly after Daisy’s death, Mrs. Miller called on Winterbourne because she wanted to speak with him. She told him that all along Daisy had highly respected his opinion and that she cared about he thought after all. I thought this was a great thing to add at the end of the novella. Winterbourne had to deal with the fact that the girl he loved was gone forever, but he realized she truly believed every word he said and that made him believe that Daisy might have possibly been in love with him.
One of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much is because there is so much controversy you could argue about with the problems between nations. Everyone looks at America because in this case they are seen as flirtatious and open about relationships. They can also come across as conceited and snotty, but look at Mr. Giovanelli. He was not from America and he treated women horribly. Italian men are supposed to be gentlemen to all ladies. It just goes to show, that stereotyping a nation does not apply to every individual who lives there.
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