Nathaniel Hawthorne
Author
Description
Hawthorne's son Julian edited and published his father's last, unfinished novel-"undress rehearsals"-in 1882. A story involving the narrator, an archetypal mad scientist, a lovely young woman, and a sexy maid creates a real science-fiction type romance. A New England setting and a Gothic theme give the novel a feeling of completeness, despite its lack of a true end.
Author
Description
The narrative of Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'Young Goodman Brown' unfolds like a horror film, as the pious protagonist goes to an appointment in the woods near the town of Salem. The author's use of tongue-in-cheek humor serves to intensify the ultimate horror of the story. One by one, a series of revelations shakes Brown to the core. First he meets a figure with the combined features of a demon and of his grandfather, then he sees the shadow side of his...
24) Septimius Felton
Author
Description
Published posthumously in 1872, this novel was very much a work-in-progress at the time of Hawthorne's death. Nevertheless, it is of interest for its dramatic qualities-featuring an attempt to achieve immortality through science-and for its tragic story of greed and love.
Author
Description
Hawthorne struggled in vain to complete this fragment of a romance for more than twenty years. Based on an old English legend of a bloody footprint, it illuminates many of the themes Hawthorne touched on in his greatest works, as well as his methods of composition. It was published posthumously in 1883.