Nathaniel Hawthorne Dark Romanticism American Literature Nathaniel Hawthorne

Nathaniel Hawthorne & Dark Romanticism American Literature

Nathaniel Hawthorne • Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. • Changed his last name so he would be disassociated with relatives that were involved in the Salem Witch Trials

• Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England, many works featuring moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. • His fiction works are considered part of the Romantic movement and, more specifically, dark romanticism

• His themes often center on the inherent evil and sin of humanity, and his works often have moral messages and deep psychological complexity.

• As he looked back on this period of his life, he wrote: "I have not lived, but only dreamed about living". • He contributed short stories, including "Young Goodman Brown" and "The Minister's Black Veil", to various magazines and annuals, though none drew major attention to the author.

• Salem Custom House • where Hawthorn Worked. . . Describe the architecture

• Hawthorne returned to writing and published The Scarlet Letter in mid-March 1850 • This is probably his most famous work.

• Literary style and themes • Hawthorne was predominantly a short story writer in his early career. His four major romances were written between 1850 and 1860: The Scarlet Letter (1850), The House of the Seven Gables (1851), The Blithedale Romance (1852) and The Marble Faun (1860).

• Hawthorne's works belong to romanticism or, • more specifically, dark romanticism, cautionary tales that suggest that guilt, sin, and evil are the most inherent natural qualities of humanity. Many of his tales and novels focus on a type of historical fiction, though Hawthorne's depiction of the past is used only as a vehicle to express themes of ancestral sin, guilt and retribution.

• Statue of Hawthorne in Salem, Massachusetts.

Some Works • • • • Selected short stories "My Kinsman, Major Molineux" (1832) "Young Goodman Brown" (1835) "The Gray Champion" (1835) "The White Old Maid" (1835) "The Ambitious Guest" (1835) "The Minister's Black Veil" (1836) "The Man of Adamant" (1837) "The Maypole of Merry Mount" (1837) "The Great Carbuncle" (1837) "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" (1837) "A Virtuoso's Collection" (May 1842) "The Birth-Mark" (March 1843)

DARK ROMANTICISM AMERICAN LITERATURE

WHAT IS IT? • Dark romanticism is a literary subgenre that emerged from the Transcendental philosophical movement popular in nineteenth-century America. • Works in the dark romantic spirit were influenced by Transcendentalism, but did not entirely embrace the ideas of Transcendentalism.

SAY WHAT? • DARK ROMANTIC works are notably less optimistic than Transcendental texts about mankind, nature, and divinity. • Authors considered most representative of dark romanticism are Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, poet Emily Dickinson and Italian poet Ugo Foscolo.

ORIGIN • Dark Romanticism's birth was a mid- nineteenth-century reaction to the American Transcendental movement.

CHARACTERISTICS OF DARK ROMANTICISM • Dark Romantics are much less confident about the notion that perfection is an innate quality of mankind, as believed by Transcendentalists. • Dark Romantics present individuals as prone to sin and self-destruction, not as inherently possessing divinity and wisdom.

More Characteristics • The Dark Romantics adapted images of anthropomorphized evil in the form of Satan, devils, ghosts. . . vampires, and ghouls. • Secondly, while both groups (T & DR) believe nature is a deeply spiritual force, Dark Romanticism views it in a much more sinister light than does Transcendentalism, which sees nature as a divine and universal organic mediator. •

How Dark Romantics Portray the World • For Dark Romantics, the natural world is dark, decaying, and mysterious; when it does reveal truth to man, its revelations are evil and hellish. Finally, whereas Transcendentalists advocate social reform when appropriate, works of Dark Romanticism frequently show individuals failing in their attempts to make changes for the better

Examples of Dark Romantics • The Birth-Mark" (1843) • "The Minister's Black Veil" (1843) by Nathaniel Hawthorne • Moby-Dick (1851) by Herman Melville • Bartleby the Scrivener" (1856) by Herman • • Melville "Tell-Tale Heart" (1843) “The Fall of the House of Usher" (1839) “Dream-Land” (1844) "The Raven" (1845) by Edgar Allan Poe