Critical Evaluation
The story has generally been a favorite of critics for the bittersweet account of each daughter's fate and the suavity of the narrator in relating the sometimes grim details. Although the story wastes little time on local-color description, the entire narrative is imbued with the atmosphere of primitive New England, as personified by the aged Mrs. Rimmle.
The domineering widow seems almost as old as the Salem witch trials and brings more than a little of their spirit into the story. In his book-length study of Nathaniel Hawthorne, James noted how adroitly the older novelist used New England's Puritan heritage to deepen and darken his tales. James achieves something of the same effect in "Europe".
Read more about this topic: Europe (story)
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