Romanticism in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown, The Birthmark, and Rapp

Romanticism in Young Goodman Brown, The Birth-Mark, and Rappaccinis Daughter Nathaniel Hawthorne gives his own rendering of romanticism in the usher in to The Ho custom of Seven Gables. According to Hawthorne, the writer of a romance whitethorn claim a accredited latitude and may deepen and better the shadows of the picture, as long as he does not swerve divagation from the truth of the human heart. The writer of a romance will be wise...to mingle the Marvelous as long as he does it to a slight, however if he disregards this caution, he will not be committing a literary crime (Hawthorne, House of Seven Gables, preface). Nathaniel Hawthorne consistently stays authoritative to his standards of romanticism. The application of these standards is most abundant and lucid in Young Goodman Brown, The Birth-Mark, and Rappaccinis Daughter. The chief(prenominal) difference between a novel and a romance as defined by Hawthorne, and in general, is that the writer of novel must grow to reality, whereas the writer a of romance, Hawthorne in this case, may claim a certain latitude (T.H.O.S.G., preface). This latitude is expressed in Rappaccinis Daughter, ...Dew-drops that hung upon leaf and blossom, and, while fine-looking a brighter beauty to each rare flower, brought everything in the limits of an ordinary pay off (Hawthorne, Rappaccinis Daughter 655). Although a large portion of the story is spent on describing the vegetation that grow in the garden, Hawthorne symbolizes the flowers as dark and mysterious, not realistic. Hawthornes use of exaggeration is seen more keenly in The Birth-Mark. Hawthorne exaggerates this birthmark to mythical proportions, awe-inspiring Hand or Crimson Hand is how he refers to Georgianas birth-mark.... ...ed that to be successful. Although, it is potential to write a romance without referring to the supernatural, and certainly many have through so, its the Marvelous, that keeps one coming back for more. In all three stories, Hawtho rne refers to the Marvelous, thusly remaining true to his definition of romanticism. One may ponder if Hawthornes definition of romanticism, as defined in the preface to the House of Seven Gables, was indite for that certain work or if his definition of romanticism applies to all his work. As the three works analyzed show, he follows his definition of romanticism passim his work. Hawthorne succeeds at setting appropriate standards for romanticism and then applying them in his work. Thus, he is remembered as one of the greatest Romantic authors of all time, both by his definition of romanticism and ours. (1057)