Daisy Miller - The title character and heroine of the book, Daisy is a young, beautiful American girl traveling in Europe. Winterbourne

falls in love with her, as does Mr. Giovanelli. But because she does not conform to the social etiquette of her European setting, she is eventually shunned from society. Due to reckless behavior, she dies of the Roman fever.

Randolph Miller - Nine or ten years old, Randolph is Daisy Miller's younger brother. He is greedy and self-righteous about his own country. He seems to represent one personification of America.

This story is, by and large, of the "novel of manners" literary genre. As in other works of this genre (for example, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence and The House of Mirth), Daisy Miller focuses on the behavior of its characters in social situations. Most of the action involves Daisy's social missteps, followed by discussion of those missteps. Characters constantly refer to their social statuses and are engaged in bettering their places. Such social maneuvering was crucial in late nineteenth century society, both in Europe and in America. Because of the intricacies of the ranking, some characters will not be introduced to others. And, those lower on the social scale, like Daisy, may not be forgiven of their wrongs as easily as are those higher on the scale.

By the time Winterbourne arrives in Rome, Daisy has already become the talk of the town. She is reported by Mrs. Costello to parade around with a group of Italian men, who are of no distinguishing rank. As it turns out, she has one suitor in particular, Mr. Giovanelli, with whom she seems to have fallen in love. Winterbourne encounters Daisy in the parlor of Mrs. Walker. After this encounter, Daisy insists upon walking outside with Winterbourne and Giovanelli, even though Mrs. Walker advises against such a flirtatious display. Mrs. Walker throws a party several days later, and Daisy arrives late with Giovanelli. Mrs. Walker believes her to be wreaking revenge upon her for the advice, so Mrs. Walker decides to stop speaking to Daisy. Although embarrassed by Mrs. Walker's snub, Daisy continues to spend time with Giovanelli. Winterbourne also visits Daisy, but she is never without her Italian love. Winterbourne inquires whether they are engaged, but Daisy g

Some topics in this essay:
Daisy Miller, Henry James, Europe America, Giovanelli Walker, Rome Daisy, Daisy Miller's, Americans European, Henry James', Colosseum Daisy, Daisy Furthermore, daisy miller, daisy randolph, late nineteenth century, nineteenth century, europe america, love winterbourne, responsible downfall, late nineteenth, randolph miller, european customs, daisy miller's,