Nathaniel Hawthorne 1804-1864. Childhood Born July 4, 1804 in Salem, MA Father died when Hawthorne...
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Transcript of Nathaniel Hawthorne 1804-1864. Childhood Born July 4, 1804 in Salem, MA Father died when Hawthorne...
Nathaniel Hawthorne1804-1864
Childhood
Born July 4, 1804 in Salem, MA Father died when Hawthorne was four
years old Sent to private school once his relatives
discovered his storytelling abilities Sent to Bowdoin College in Maine
Family History
His great-great-grandfather, William Hathorne, ordered the whipping of Anne Coleman and four others in the streets of Salem.
His great-grandfather, John Hathorne, was the magistrate (judge) presiding over the trial of the accused witches of Salem (1692).
College in Maine
Classmates included Franklin Pierce and Henry Longfellow
Pierce- future President of the USA Longfellow- poet, educator, linguist Graduated in 1825
Reclusive Years in Salem
He first anonymously published short stories and a novel, Fanshawe.
Hawthorne later formally withdrew most of this early work, discounting it as the work of inexperienced youth.
He burned most of his works from these years.
Concord Married to Sophia Peabody in 1842, then
moved to the Old Manse in Concord. Joined the writing circles of Thoreau,
Emerson, and Louisa May Alcott. The Transcendentalists believed that
human existence transcended the sensory realm, and rejected formalism in favor of individual intuition and imagination.
Themes Alienation - a character is in a state of
isolation because of self-cause, or societal cause, or a combination of both.
Initiation - involves the attempts of an alienated character to get rid of his isolated condition.
Problem of Guilt -a character's sense of guilt forced by the puritanical heritage or by society; also guilt vs. innocence.
Pride - Hawthorne treats pride as evil.
More Themes in Writing Moral
allegories
The sinful man
Hypocrisy
The Dark side of Human Nature
Final Days
Returned to Concord from Europe in 1860 Became ill and underwent a loss of literary
creativity Journeyed to the White Mountains hoping to
restore his health Died in Plymouth, NH on May 19, 1864 Buried in the Sleepy Hollow cemetery in
Concord
Who were the Puritans? Wanted a “pure” church
No candles No Images No stained glass windows
Rejected the “showy” church of England
Led very somber lives governed solely by a strict interpretation of the Bible
No “nonsense” – dancing, gambling, drama, etc
The Salem Witch Trials
May – October 1692: Salem, MA A series of investigations and persecutions
that caused 19 “witches” to be hanged and many others imprisoned
Period of public hysteria generated by false accusations and coerced confessions
Where was he born? And where is he buried?
What was the actual spelling of his last name and why did he change it?
What future president did he go to college with?
What was his wife’s name? What were some of the major
influences that modified Hawthorne’s writing?
Describe the Puritans?
Review