Nathaniel Hawthorne

American Romanticism
“Dark Romantic”
(Gothic Literature)

1804-1864
Born in Salem, Massachusetts
Descended from a prominent Puritan family. (*He was not a
Puritan and was born 112 years after the Salem witchcraft trials.)
Like other Dark Romantics, he believed that evil was a
dominant force in the world – think of Melville’s Moby Dick
Dark insight into the human heart
Writing fueled by an awareness of the guilt that accompanies a

Puritan conscience—bothered by ancestor’s actions.

 Nathaniel Hawthorne
American Romanticism
“Dark Romantic”
(Gothic Literature)

Sea captain father died when Hawthorne was young

Added the “w” to his family name
He and his wife lived at the communal Brook Farm for a while
with Emerson & Thoreau (transcendentalists-people are good,
nature is good, people are one with nature, etc.)
Anti-transcendentalist=examines both good AND BAD in world
-- the “romantics” valued youth…what would Hawthorne say?
Best known for The Scarlet Letter
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Connecting to the Literature

If you could start your life over again – wipe

the slate clean and start over – would you?
Would you relive your life differently?
Would you make the same mistakes?
 What choices do you think most people would
make?
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Literary Focus

Allegory: a story or poem in which characters,

setting, and events stand for abstract ideas or
moral qualities (hope, wisdom, courage, etc.).
This story can be read on two levels:
literal & allegorical
Symbol: person, place, thing, or event that
stands for itself and something else.
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Literary Focus

Pay attention to the description of characters,

along with the character’s actions and words.

An allegory also contain a moral, look for a
moral – a lesson to be learned
Hawthorne’s writing is usually subtle, and
ambiguous.
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Character Chart
As you read, record description details in the chart below:
Key Actions and What the Character
Character Description Words Represents
Mr.
Medbourne
Colonel
Killigrew
Mr.
Gascoigne
Widow
Wycherly
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Literary Focus
Pay attention
to the central event. (What happened?)
to the setting. (Where did it happen?).
to the characters. (To whom did it happen?)
to the use of symbolism
to the climax
to the resolution
Read the story beginning on page 228.
Complete your character chart as you read.
Write out answers to questions 1-8 on page 237
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

A Broader Scope

The search for eternal youth – reversing the aging

process – is an archetypal plot
 Greek mythology-Orpheus (page 236)
 the fountain of youth – Ponce de Leon
 Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray
 Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Do people today try to reverse

the aging process?
Diet and exercise
Hair color or facial creams
Botox
Plastic surgery
Cryogenics
Do these actions ever lead to bad outcomes?
What would you risk to be “forever young”?
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Symbols to Examine
Can you match the symbol its meaning and explain your answer?

black book medicine / science

water magic
mirror beauty/love/mistakes
portrait of Sylvia Ward death (skeleton in the closet)
rose and butterfly stages of life
bust of Hippocrates rebirth
oaken cabinet truth
“Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Symbols to Examine
Can you match the symbol its meaning and explain your answer?

black book medicine / science

water magic
mirror beauty/love/mistakes
portrait of Sylvia Ward death (skeleton in the closet)
rose and butterfly stages of life
bust of Hippocrates rebirth
oaken cabinet truth
 “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”

Access the link below

and then scroll down the page
to enjoy a comic book style
version of “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=dr+heidegger%27s+experiment&view=detail&id=4616807F6
8CBAD5399A34B9BE61E602479893FBA&first=1&FORM=IDFRIR

How does this short story fulfill the elements of gothic

literature that deal with the supernatural, a dark and
mysterious atmosphere, dark location, heightened
emotions, etc.?