STUDYING HAWTHORNE: ONE
WRITER’S FASCINATION WITH
HUMAN NATURE
AP English IV
English 1302
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE: AMERICAN
ROMANTICIST
Hawthorne and Human
Nature
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Hawthorne’s works
demonstrate a
fascination with the
human psyche and
human motivation.
Hawthorne's works
probe into human
nature, especially its
darker side.
Overall, Hawthorne’s
works demonstrate a
“haunting” of his
Puritan past.
Hawthorne 1804-1864
He set many stories against the somber
background of Puritan New England, the world
of his ancestors.
 Unlike most fiction writers of his time, he was
not primarily interested in stirring the reader by
sensational or sentimental effects.
 Hawthorne called his writing "romance," which
he defined as a method of showing "the depths of
our common nature."
 To Hawthorne, romance meant confronting
reality, rather than evading it. Hawthorne often
dealt with the themes of morality, sin, and
redemption
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MAJOR THEMES IN HAWTHORNE’S WORKS
Hypocrisy v. candor
 Presumed guilt v. innocence
 Belief in fate or free will
 The penalties of isolation
 Crimes against the human heart
 Patriarchal power
 Truths available to the mind via dream or reverie
 The impossibility of earthly perfection
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“THE MINISTER’S BLACK VEIL”
A tale of inherent sin and hypocritical human
nature.
 Set in an 18th century Puritan town.
 Critiques the Puritan perspective of original sin
(ancestral sin—man is born into sin because of
Adam’s fall)
 Symbols: the veil symbolizes the practices of
Puritan society.
 A Parable: a story that teaches a lesson. What is
the lesson of this narrative?
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“YOUNG GOODMAN BROWN”
“Goodman” is not the character’s first name, but
a term of respect used to refer to one another,
similar to “Mr.” “Goody” is the female form.
 Set in Puritan New England, the town prides
itself on both its sense of community and its
religious values.
 When YGB watches his wife, minister, religious
leaders, and peers participate in a Satanic ritual,
he is forced to make a difficult decision.
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CONNECTIONS TO ROMANTICISM
Consider how these stories contain elements of
the strange/sinister.
 How do these stories analyze the role of guilt in
people’s lives?
 How do these stories capitalize on notions
regarding human nature?
 What is the nature and purpose of knowledge?
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“THE BIRTHMARK”
Examines the human obsession with perfection.
 Symbolism: the birthmark represents many
things throughout the story, but perfection and
morality are its primary representation.
 From a Romantic perspective, the story also
touches on the dangers of scientific exploration.
Consider how Alymer is like Victor.
 Alymer’s pursuit of perfection is tragic. His
refusal of “the best nature has to offer” becomes
his destruction as well as the destruction of those
around him.
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