Given the stature of Henry James as an author in Americal letters, his readership seems to focus on a narrow selection of his works, many some of the large novels, and a small selection of the novellas with very little variation. Of the short stories and novellas, only Daisy Miller, The Aspern Papers and The Turn of the Screw are widely read, while The Jolly Corner and The Beast in the Jungle are occasionally anthologized. However, Henry James wrote a vast number of short stories and novellas.

In 2012, the Hesperus Press published a volume which brings together two short stories / novellas, namely The Birthplace and "The Private Life". The edition includes a foreword by Mark Rylance. This seems an unhappy choice. Mark Rylance is the author of two works on Shakespeare, and was probably selected because in The birthplace Henry James satirizes the personality cult around Shakespeare. The introduction is weak.

The most well-known and most important book that is characterized by its use of capitalized personal pronouns is probably the Bible. Capitalization of pronouns, "He" and "Him" and "They" is also a prominent feature in The birthplace, out of reverence for an unnamed author, most likely meant to be Shakespeare.

The birthplace is an entertaining satire about a couple of librarians who are chosen to become the guardians of the birthplace of a renowned author. The fact that little is known about the author, either in general or by them, does not seem to matter: the audience, the visitors, will either know better or believe any utterance. Likewise, the word of the previous guardian is taken as gospel.

The second story, "The Private Life" is included with The birthplace for its assumed closeness in theme. "The Private Life" is about the contrast between a person's private appearance and public appearance. The story is much deeper felt, and more personal than its companion novella. Henry James is usually seen as an author who excels in large naturalistic and realistic description, but as the short story "The Real Thing" demonstrates, James was also interested in writing that can only be understood if the reader has an eye for symbolism.

"The Private Life" is an interesting exploration of symbolism, but Henry James does not explore it to the full limit. The story hinges on the proposition that some people have a "public persona" and a "private persona" who are actually two, physically identical individuals. In other people, the "public persona" is so "large" that the "private persona" is very small, actually less than one. However, this assertion is not tested. The suggestion is ingenious, and the story is meeted out very well to explore this idea.

It seems that "The Private Life" is a story whicj in essence is very close to Henry James personal life, although the mirroring duality in the life of the author is different from the situation in the short story. Critics are undecided about the issue to what extent Henry James should be seen as a closeted homosexual. The meaning of "The Private Life" may perhaps be extended to understand the author's view of his public appearance and his private, inner self.

The two short stories by Henry James are not often anthologized or read. The birthplace could be read as a curiosity, for all readers with a skeptical eye about the personality cultus around William Shakespeare. "The Private Life" is a story which is very interesting to be aware of, as it seems marginally related to "The Birthplace", but can, in other respects, create a better understanding of Henry James as an author. The non-realistic, symbolistic style of "The Private Life" is interesting, as it may help readers appreciate other work by James, such as The Turn of the Screw. ( )