EXERCISE VI

HAWTHORNE AS A STORY WRITER

OBJECT:

To determine or illustrate Hawthorne's method as a story writer.

MATERIAL:

The results of previous exercises, especially IV and V.; the American Note-Books; a life of Hawthorne; other stories by Hawthorne. The chief collections of his stories are: Mosses from an Old Manse, Twice Told Tales, and The Snow Image and Other Twice Told Tales. They may be loosely grouped under the following heads:

(1) Stories in which a moral idea is presented in an allegorical or symbolic way, as: "The Great Stone Face," "Rappaccini's Daughter," "The Snow Image," "Drowne's Wooden Image," "The Birth Mark," and The Great Carbuncle."

(2) Stories in which a moral idea is presented by a type or example as: "Ethan Brand," "Roger Malvin's Burial," "The Gray Champion," "The Minister's Black Veil," and "Young Goodman Brown."

(3) Stories that are developments of some whimsical fancy, generally with some significance, as: "Fancy's Showbox," "Dr. Heydigger's Experiment," "The New Adam and Eve," "The Intelligence Office," "The Virtuoso's Collection," "The Celestial Railroad," and "The Hall of Fantasy."

(4) Stories in which the idea, if there is any, seems of minor importance, as: "Wakefield," "The White Old

Maid," "Peter Goldthwaite's Treasure," "The Gentle Boy," "Endicott and the Red Cross," and "Old Esther Dudley."

(5) Stories that are little more than character sketches or descriptive pieces, as: "Little Annie's Ramble," "Sights From a Steeple,' ""Rills from the Town Pump,' 99 66 Main Street," "A Bell's Biography," and "A Sunday at Home."

DIRECTIONS:

(1) It will probably be found most useful to make assignments of stories from groups (1), (2), and (4) above. The stories of group (5) are really not to be called stories at all, nor are those of group (3) much more so. The student should as far as possible apply the directions (1), (2), (3), and (4) of Exercise IV to the particular story at hand. It must, of course, be admitted that many of Hawthorne's stories have what we may call morals, but it does not follow from that fact that Hawthorne ever considered the moral the main thing in his work. We find, for instance, in the American Note-Books of 1838, "A person to catch fireflies, and to try to kindle household fire with them. It would be symbolical of something." Here Hawthorne evidently thought of a story which suggested a moral, but had little idea as to what the moral The suggestion of "The Great Stone Face" not only had originally no moral idea connected with it, but in one of its forms—the face in the stone—the idea which was finally developed was practically impossible. So we may be sure that however his idea developed, it was sometimes a story that suggested itself first without any especial significance. Yet we must judge from his work that his mind was constantly running over moral ideas and moral questions, and there can be no doubt that they

was.

often found a place in his work, just as other ideas found a place in other men's work.

(2) One may gather from the writings of people who knew Hawthorne some ideas as to his methods of work. For instance, his daughter says: "Theory of plot or principle was as much beneath him as the cobble-stones; from self-righteous harangues he turned as one who heard a divine voice that alone deserved to declare." (Memories, p. 124.) Let us suppose that Hawthorne had no definite or systematic theories of art. Still he presumably thought that his stories were better written in one way than another. He must have been guided by some sort of artistic instinct that told him that this way or that way was right, and the other ways wrong, as when he felt that the moral of "The Great Stone Face" was too plain and manifest. Further we may be sure that a combination of such artistic impulses must have been harmonious, and indeed something of an artistic theory, though Hawthorne himself perhaps never considered it in any such way. By looking carefully at his work, we may be able to get at something of this theory, as for example, when we determine that he made the story to fit the idea, or else developed an idea out of a story, whichever we may have already decided.

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER WORK:

(1) Make a general comparison between the style and method of Hawthorne and that of Irving.

(a) How far do the things we have noted as characteristic of Irving appear in Hawthorne?

(b) In what ways does Hawthorne differ from Irving?

(2) How far does Hawthorne show a realistic interest in things? The sketches in (5) above will be useful here.

One may compare also many passages in the Note-Books. How far do we find this element in the stories?

(3) Can you find anything of an autobiographical nature in Hawthorne's works? (See Hawthorne's Country, the Note-Books, any life of Hawthorne, "The Great Stone Face," and "Ethan Brand.")

(4) Did Hawthorne make story-writing his business, or was it an avocation?

SUMMARY:

The student should summarize his work on Hawthorne, including a statement of what he understands the method and chief characteristics of Hawthorne to be.

EXERCISE VII

THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER

OBJECT:

By EDGAR ALLAN POE

To determine the chief aim of the author in this story, and how it is carried out.

MATERIAL:

The story; Poe's Letters (Contained in the Complete Works of Poe, Edited by James A. Harrison); Poe's article in review of Hawthorne's Twice Told Tales; Poe's "Philosophy of Composition."

This last mentioned article may or may not be a good criticism of Hawthorne; that is a matter which is not important just now. In using this essay here, we want to determine its value in the criticism of Poe. He was ap- . parently stating here his ideas on story writing. But he was often not unwilling to mystify people; perhaps his well known article on "The Raven" told rather what he imagined than what he remembered. Still with all due caution, it seems as if we had here some of the ideas that really influenced Poe in his work.

DIRECTIONS:

(1) Read Poe's article in review of Hawthorne's Twice Told Tales and note carefully the author's ideas on the necessary qualifications of the brief prose tale.

(a) Note what is said concerning the length of the tale. What reasons does Poe give for saying that