Book Review: Great Short Works by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Great Short Works by Nathaniel Hawthorne

A long time ago I picked up a copy of Nathaniel Hawthorne short stories from Barnes and Noble with the intent of eventually reading them. Finally, this year A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast covered The Scarlet Letter, which got me to read about half of the book. I decided to finish it off. Here's a story-by-story review...

1. The Scarlet Letter--reviewed here, because, let's be honest, this is a great work but not a short one.

2. My Kinsman, Major Molineux--A man comes to town searching for his kinsman. His inquiries are met with a mixture of rudeness and laughter. Being a country bumpkin, the man naively wanders about with little success. The ending has a nice twist and successfully humanizes the characters in the story.

3. Roger Malvin's Burial--Two soldiers, Roger Malvin and Reuben Bourne, are wounded in battle and try to return home. Roger's wounds are too severe to continue and he has a hard time convincing Reuben to return to civilization without him. Roger wants Reuben to take word to his daughter Dorcas of his fate in the woods. He also wants Reuben to marry his daughter. He finally convinces the young man that he may be able to bring back help, or at least come back and bury him properly after Reuben has recovered from his wound. Reuben makes it back to civilization and marries the girl but an inopportune lie keeps him from fulfilling his promise to return. Tragic results ensue. The story is touching if a little bleak.

4. Young Goodman Brown--Goodman Brown, against the advice of his wife Faith, goes for a walk after dark into the forest. He has an appointment that he really shouldn't be keeping, but he insists on going. He's meeting up with the Devil (or maybe just one of his minions) and along the way he meets most of the good folk of his town, who have apparently all done what he's about to do--join up with the wrong side. Goodman starts to have doubts but can he get out of a bad situation? I'm not quite sure if this story is lamenting the Puritan mindset that everyone is evil or lampooning that idea.

5. The Minister's Black Veil: A Parable--Mr. Hooper is minister to a small Puritan town. He shocks his congregation one Sunday morning by coming to the meeting house with a black veil that covers most of his face, leaving only his mouth and chin visible. A lot of whispered speculation happens behind his back. A lot of unease happens in front of his veiled face. He won't explain it, even to his fiancee Elizabeth. She breaks off the engagement. He continues his ministerial duties, often comforting the afflicted and the dying. The well have no need of such a physician, as can be seen when he brings down a wedding party at which he officiates. He wears the veil to his dying day and even to the grave. When a young minister tries to take it off Hooper while on his death bed, Hooper refuses and tells everyone there (including the nurse, his beloved Elizabeth) that they too wear black veils. Hawthorne's parable shows how we all have hidden sins and need to find consolation. Embracing that knowledge is a fearsome thing for all involved.

6. The Birthmark--A husband becomes obsessed with his wife's birthmark (on her left cheek). He's a brilliant scientist who had no time for love until he met her. At first he ignored the mark (a red, hand-shaped blemish) but soon his disgust is apparent to her. She's willing to have it removed so as to remove his revulsion. He tries several methods with continual failure. A final concoction works on a blemished plant. The wife gladly takes it, removing both her birthmark and her life. The story is an interesting allegory of someone obsessed with a minor flaw in another without noticing the major flaw in himself.

7. Rappaccini's Daughter--Giovanni, a poor student, moves to Padua for a university education. He takes a cheap room that overlooks a garden. The garden is tended by Doctor Rappaccini, a botanist who has been crafting his own breeds of plants. He has a beautiful daughter, Beatrice, who helps with the plants he can't come near. He uses gloves and sometimes a mask, presumably because the plants are less than healthful. Beatrice has no problems, especially the fantastic purple one next to the decrepit water fountain. Giovanni is smitten with Beatrice. One of Giovanni's teachers, Baglioni, warns Giovanni of the dangers of Rappaccini. Baglioni and Rappaccini are rivals, so he may not be the most objective source. There is something weird about the garden and Beatrice. The purple flowers are toxic to insects and the first bouquet Giovanni gives to Beatrice almost immediately starts to wilt. Tragedy ensues. The story is quite fascinating and full of rich and bittersweet details.

8. Ethan Brand--Bartam the lime-burner is the latest in a line of kiln-tenders who use Ethan Brand's kiln. Ethan left town twenty years ago in search of the Unpardonable Sin. Many stories have grown over the years about Ethan, e.g. that he summoned the devil inside the kiln to discuss his search. On this night, Ethan returns and proclaims his success. Ethan has an evil laugh and unkind words for the old guys who come from the town tavern to see him. In spite of being asked, he never reveals what the Unpardonable Sin is, though he gives plenty of hints of the evil that he has done on his journey. Now at his journey's end, Ethan says he'll watch the kiln overnight for Bartram, who has an unpleasant and mystifying discovery in the morning. This is another tale of dark and hidden sin that resides not just in Brand but in most of the characters. Perhaps Brand is the only self-aware person, or the only one to see and embrace his evil rather than see and ignore it. The story isn't as compelling as the other but is interesting and fits in with the themes of his other stories.

I enjoyed these stories a lot. They give you a lot to think about and present a time long ago in a familiar and convincing way. Julie and Scott comment on Rappaccini's Daughter and Young Goodman Brown in episode 194 of A Good Story is Hard to Find.

Highly recommended, though I don't think this version is in print anymore. It should be fairly easy to find a collection of his short stories and well worth the hunt.