Nathaniel Hawthorne

BackgroundBorn: Salem, Massachusetts in 1804Long line of Puritans- including

William Hathorne: One of the first Puritan Settlers in New England

John Hathorne: Magistrate in the Salem Witch Trials

Wrote novels and short storiesBecause of insufficient funds as a writer Hawthorne

worked in the Boston Custom House. After The Scarlet Letter his career took off and he

could support his family on those funds.

Style & ThemeInspired by Puritan New EnglandCombines historical romance with heavy

emphasis on symbolsHis depictions of the past are a version of

historical fiction but he simply uses it as a vehicle to expressAncestral sinGuiltRetribution

Style & ThemeCautionary tales that suggest

that guilt, sin, and evil are the most inherent natural qualities of humanity.

Moral message with deep psychological complexity.

Later works show his distaste for the Transcendentalist movement

WritingStarted as a short story writer but

he thought very little of them.Wrote four major romances:

The Scarlet Letter (1850)The House of the Seven Gables

(1851)The Blithedale Romance (1852)The Marble Faun (1860)

Also wrote some nonfiction

Custom House