Hawthorne’s American Gothic: A Blackness Ten Times Black

Emerging onto the literary scene in the late 1820’s and early 1830’s, Nathaniel Hawthorne sought to distinguish himself as something unique from the forms and techniques of his predecessors. Prior to Hawthorne, there were very few gothic stories or novels published by American authors. The genre was largely a European one, with the strongest influence being that of the British. Of particular interest is the allegorical short story “My Kinsman, Major Molineux” (1832). While this story seems straightforward, there is a much richer dynamic waiting to be extracted. It could even be said that “Major Molineux” signifies the emergence of the American gothic as a distinct and separate experience apart from the earlier generation of British and European gothic writers. Hawthorne adopts uniquely American elements to construct this tale of evolving separation. In distancing itself from the British grandiose, this story helped to define precisely how American gothic writers would come to position themselves on the international writing scene. The dark and often humorous encounters of young Robin also paint pictures of a young writer struggling to make his mark in a world of literary achievement that was not quite envisioned for someone like him. Hawthorne rose to the occasion, achieving not only personal success, but also serving to blaze a trail for future writers to follow in his distinctive American gothic style

Fine Southern Gentlemen: The Three Beaux of Edna Pontellier

Much of the literary criticism on Kate Chopin’s The Awakening has focused upon the main character, Edna Pontellier, and her journey of self-discovery, but the surrounding cast is rich with personalities as diverse and enlightening as Edna’s own. While most of the characters seem clearly defined as to their values, desires, and how they reconcile any dissonance they might face, and Edna Pontellier might seem like the only person suffering the torment of this discord, each character is actually negotiating a careful playing field replete with rules, regulations, and strict penalties if one is to run afoul. This essay explores the function gender roles play with regard not to the women in the story, but to the men. The events in the story show how the sociocultural demands and expectations placed upon the men are equally as divisive as those placed upon the female characters of the same social status in this upper middle class, Creole, white community. The shackles which constrained men and women, particularly the Creole folks with whom Chopin interacted most, were being stretched to their limits, and it was only a matter of time before they shattered under the stress of social progress. This novel is an important benchmark in the timeline of America both for its depiction of southern Creole values, but also the delicate balance of the gender binary which was about to be disturbed by the Women’s Suffrage movement. By challenging this limiting status quo, Chopin proves a keen observer of the harm resulting from these restrictions and the liberating quality of their abolition