Nathaniel Hawthorne Hawthorne was born on July 4th, 1804 in Salem, Mass. and died on May 18, 1864 in Plymouth, New Hampshire. Hawthorne’s connection to Salem haunted him; therefore, he took the ‘w’ out of his name to disassociate himself with the witch trials.** His great-grandfather John Hathorne was the chief-interrogator of the “Salem Witches.” He wrote several successful short stories which were collected in Twice-Told Tales (1837).** Unable to support his family by writing, in 1846 Hawthorne accepted a political appointment to the Salem Custom House as Surveyor of the Port . -Married Sophia Peabody after a 5 year engagement -Terminated from political position to then leave Salem altogether; “the abominable city”; nothing remained for him there

Nathaniel Hawthorne His themes often center on the inherent evil and sin of humanity, and his works often have moral messages and deep psychological complexity.** Some published works: The Scarlet Letter, Twice-Told Tales, The House of the Seven Gables, The Mable Faun, Our Old Home, and children’s books A Wonder Book, and Tanglewood Tales. Known as a Dark Romantic**— works are notably less optimistic than Transcendental texts about mankind, nature, and divinity. The natural world is dark, decaying, and mysterious; when it does reveal truth to man, its revelations are evil and hellish.**

The Minister’s Black Veil Set in the time of his Puritan ancestors characterized by “gloom and piety.” PARABLE— A short, usually simple story, based on events from ordinary lifem from which a moral lesson is drawn.** THEME— a main idea or an underlying meaning** Guilt vs. Innocence** – a character’s sense of guilt caused by Puritanical values/heritage SYMBOL— a person, a place, a thing, or an event that has meaning in itself and also stands for something beyond itself** Ex: The eagle is a symbol of bravery and courage. Ex: The tall tree that is rotted to the core from “The Devil and Tom Walker” is a symbol for false appearances and hypocrisy.