Scarlet Letter 红字.docx

Scarlet Letter 红字.docx

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ScarletLetter红字

ScarletLetter

BornJuly4,1804,NathanielHathornewastheonlysonofCaptainNathanielHathorneandElizabethClarkeManningHathorne.（Hawthorneaddedthe“w”tohisnameafterhegraduatedfromcollege.）FollowingthedeathofCaptainHathornein1808,Nathaniel,hismother,andhistwosisterswereforcedtomoveinwithMrs.Hathorne’srelatives,theMannings.HereNathanielHawthorngrewupinthecompanyofwomenwithoutastrongmalerolemodel;thisenvironmentmayaccountforwhatbiographerscallhisshynessandintrovertedpersonality.

ThisperiodofHawthorne’slifewasmixedwiththejoysofreadingandtheresentmentoffinancialdependence.WhilehestudiedatanearlyagewithJosephE.Worcester,awell-knownlexicographer,hewasnotparticularlyfondofschool.Aninjuryallowedhimtostayhomeforayearwhenhewasnine,andhisearly“friends”werebooksbyShakespeare,Spenser,Bunyan,and18thcenturynovelists.

DuringthistimeMrs.HathornemovedherfamilytolandownedbytheManningsnearRaymond,Maine.Nathaniel’sfondestmemoriesofthesedayswerewhen“Iranquitewild,andwould,Idoubtnot,havewillinglyrunwildtillthistime,fishingalldaylong,orshootingwithanoldfowlingpiece.”Thisidylliclifeinthewildernessexerteditscharmontheboy’simaginationbutendedin1819whenhereturnedtoSalemtopreparetwoyearsforcollegeentrance.

Education

In1821,HawthorneenteredBowdoinCollegeinBrunswick,Maine.AmonghisclassmateswereHenryWadsworthLongfellow,whowouldbecomeadistinguishedpoetandHarvardprofessor,andFranklinPierce,future14thpresidentoftheUnitedStates.Anotherclassmate,HoratioBridge,waslatertoofferaBostonpublisheraguaranteeagainstlossifhewouldpublishHawthorne’sfirstcollectionofshortstories.

Hawthornegraduatedmiddleofhisclassin1825.Regardinghisaspirations,hewrote,“Idonotwanttobeadoctorandlivebymen’sdiseases,noraministertolivebytheirsins,noralawyertolivebytheirquarrels.So,Idon’tseethatthereisanythingleftformebuttobeanauthor.”

HisEarlyCareer

Forthenext12years,Hawthornelivedincomparativeisolationinanupstairschamberathismother’shouse,whereheworkedatperfectinghiswritingcraft.Healsobegankeepingnotebooksorjournals,ahabithecontinuedthroughouthislife.Heoftenjotteddownideasanddescriptions,andhiswordsarenowarichsourceofinformationabouthisthemes,ideas,styleexperiments,andsubjects.

In1828,hepublishedhisfirstnovel,Fanshaw:

ATale,athisownexpense.Fanshawwasashort,imitationGothicnovelandpoorlywritten.Dissatisfiedwiththisnovel,Hawthorneattemptedtobuyupallthecopiessothatnoonecouldreadit.Hedidnotpublishanothernovelforalmost25years.By1838,hehadwrittentwo-thirdsoftheshortstorieshewastowriteinhislifetime.Noneofthesestoriesgainedhimmuchattention,andhecouldnotinterestapublisherinprintingacollectionofhistalesuntil1837,whenhiscollegefriendHoratioBridgebackedthepublishingofTwice-ToldTales,acollectionofHawthorne’sstoriesthathadbeenpublishedseparatelyinmagazines.Hisschoolmateandfriend,Longfellow,reviewedthebookwithglowingterms.EdgarAllanPoe,knownforhisexcoriatingreviewsofwriters,notonlywrotewarmlyofHawthorne’sbookbutalsotooktheopportunitytodefinetheshortstoryinhisnowfamousreview.Twice-ToldTalesisconsideredamasterpieceofliterature,anditcontainsunmistakablyAmericanstories.

FinancialBurdensandMarriage

In1838,HawthornemetSophiaAmeliaPeabody,andthefollowingyeartheywereengaged.ItwasatthistimethatHawthorneinvestedathousanddollarsofhismeagercapitalintheBrookFarmCommunityatWestRoxbury.TherehebecameacquaintedwithRalphWaldoEmersonandthenaturalistHenryDavidThoreau.ThesetranscendentalistthinkersinfluencedmuchofHawthorne’sthinkingabouttheimportanceofintuitionratherthanintellectinuncoveringthetruthsofnatureandhumanbeings.HawthorneleftthisexperimentinNovember1841,disillusionedwiththeviewpointofthecommunity,exhaustedfromthework,andwithoutfinancialhopethathecouldsupportawife.Fromthisexperience,however,hegainedthesettingforalaternovel,TheBlithedaleRomance.

InatriptoBostonafterleavingBrookFarm,HawthornereachedanunderstandingaboutasalaryforfuturecontributionstotheDemocraticReview.HeandSophiamarriedinBostononJuly9,1842,andleftforConcord,Massachusetts,wheretheytookupresidenceinthenow-famous“OldManse.”

Hawthorne’slifeatthe“OldManse”washappyandproductive,andtheseweresomeofthehappiestyearsofhislife.Hewasnewlymarried,inlovewithhiswife,andsurroundedbymanyoftheleadingliteraryfiguresoftheday:

RalphWaldoEmerson,HenryDavidThoreau,MargaretFuller,andBronsonAlcott.Duringthistime,HawthornewrotefortheDemocraticReviewandproducedsometalesthatwouldbepublishedin1846inMossesfromanOldManse.

Financialproblemscontinuedtoplaguethefamily,however.Thebirthoftheirfirstchild,Una,causedHawthornetoonceagainseekafinanciallysecurejob.Withthehelpofhisoldfriends,HawthornewasappointedasurveyorfortheportofSalem.Hisson,Julian,wasbornin1846.Althoughthenewjobeasedthefinancialproblemsforthefamily,Hawthorneagainfoundlittletimetopursuehiswriting.Nevertheless,duringthistime,hewasalreadyformingideasforanovelbasedonhisPuritanancestryandintroducedbyaprefaceabouttheCustomHousewhereheworked.WhentheWhigswonthe1848election,Hawthornelosthisposition.Itwasafinancialshocktothefamily,butitfortuitouslyprovidedhimwithtimetowriteTheScarletLetter.

TheGoldenYearsofWriting

DuringtheseyearsHawthornewastowritesomeofthegreatestproseofhislife.In1849,HawthornewroteTheScarletLetter,whichwonhimmuchfameandgreatlyincreasedhisreputation.Whilewarmlyreceivedhereandabroad,TheScarletLettersoldonly8,000copiesinHawthorne’slifetime.

In1849,whenthefamilymovedtoLennox,Massachusetts,HawthornemadetheacquaintanceofHermanMelville,ayoungwriterwhobecameagoodfriend.HawthorneencouragedtheyoungMelville,wholaterthankedhimbydedicatinghisbook,MobyDick,tohim.Duringthis—the“LittleRedHouse”periodinLennox—HawthornewroteTheHouseoftheSevenGablesandsomeminorworksthatwerepublishedin1851.

AroundthetimethatNathanielandSophia’sseconddaughter,Rose,wasborn,thefamilymovedtoWestNewton,whereHawthornefinishedandpublishedhisnovelabouttheBrookFarmexperience,TheBlithedaleRomance,andalsoAWonderBookforGirlsandBoys.Becausetherewaslittletonoliteraturepublishedforchildren,Hawthorne’sbookwasuniqueinthisarea.

LaterWritingandYearsAbroad

InConcord,theHawthornesfoundapermanenthouse,alongwithnineacresofland,whichtheypurchasedfromBronsonAlcott,thetranscendentalistwriterandfatherofLouisaMayAlcott.HawthornerenamedthehouseTheWayside,andinMay,1852,heandhisfamilymovedin.Here,Hawthornewastowriteonlytwoofhisworks:

TanglewoodTales,anothercollectiondesignedforyoungreaders,andALifeofPierce,acampaignbiographyforhisoldfriendfromcollege.Asaresultofthebiography,PresidentPierceawardedHawthornewithanappointmentasUnitedStatesconsulinLiverpool,England.TheHawthornesspentthenextsevenyearsinEurope.

AlthoughHawthornewrotenoadditionalfictionwhileservingasconsul,hekeptajournalthatlaterservedasasourceofmaterialforOurOldHome,acollectionofsketchesdealingwithEnglishscenery,life,andmannerspublishedin1863.WhileinItaly,Hawthornekeptanotebookthatprovidedmaterialforhisfinal,completeworkoffiction,whichwaspublishedinEnglandasTransformationand,inAmerica,asTheMarbleFaun.

Bytheautumnof1863,Hawthornewasasickman.InMay,1864,hetraveledtoNewHampshirewithhisoldclassmatePierceinsearchofimprovedhealth.Duringthistrip,hediedinhissleeponMay19,1864,inPlymouth,NewHampshire.HewasburiedintheSleepyHollowCemeteryatConcord.WidelyeulogizedasoneofAmerica’sforemostwriters,hisfellowauthorsgatheredtoshowtheirrespect.AmonghispallbearerswereLongfellow,Holmes,Lowell,andEmerson.TodayhereststherewithWashingtonIrving,Emerson,Thoreau,andtheAlcotts,aswellashiswife,Sophia.

INTRODUCTION

“ThelifeoftheCustomHouselieslikeadreambehindme….Soon,likewise,myoldnativetownwillloomuponmethroughthehazeofmemory,amistbroodingoverandaroundit;asifitwerenoportionoftherealearth,butanovergrownvillageincloud-land,withonlyimaginaryinhabitantstopeopleitswoodenhouses,andwalkitshomelylanes,andtheunpicturesqueprolixityofitsmainstreet…Itmaybe,however,—oh,transportingandtriumphantthought!

—thatthegreat-grandchildrenofthepresentracemaysometimesthinkkindlyofthescribblerofbygonedays….”

Inthemid-1800swhenNathanielHawthornewrotethesewordsintheCustomHouseprefacetoTheScarletLetter,hecouldnothaveimaginedthemillionsofreadersacenturylaterwhowould“thinkkindlyofthescribblerofbygonedays”andcontinuetomakehisnovelabest-seller.ThemistofimaginationthatfallsoverSalem,Massachusetts,inhisdescriptionisthesameaurathatpermeatesthesettingofhisnovel.LookfortheBostonof1640inhistorybooks,andyouwillnotfindthemagicalandGothicelementsthataboundinHawthorne’sstory.ForthemindofgeniushascreatedaBostonthatisshroudedindarknessandmysteryandsurroundedbyaf