The Images Of Witch And The Mysteries Of Witchcraft In Hawthorne’s Works

Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on July4th,1804in Salem, Massachusetts. He is universally considered as one of the most famous and significant writers in the history of American literature. There have been numerous studies and research from different perspectives about Hawthorne himself and his works since he establishes his fame and reputation in American literature. Some common characteristics shared by many of his works refer to his description of the images of witch and of the mysteries of witchcraft. The present author endeavors to find out why Hawthorne wants to describe witch’s images and witchcraft; how Hawthorne presents the images of witch and the mysteries of witchcraft in his works:The House of the Seven Gables,"The Hollow of the Three Hills","Alice Doane’s Appeal","Young Goodman Brown" and "Feathertop:A Moralized Legend"; and what influences witch’s images and witchcraft have on Hawthorne’s works.Salem-born Hawthorne must be affected by the notorious historical Salem witch trials during his writing. In the1600s, there was hysteria regarding witches, wizards and satanic activity happening in the colonies. This was especially severe in Hawthorne’s hometown of Salem, Massachusetts where the Salem witch trials took place in1692. The historical event of the Salem witch trials, as a writing source, is one major factor that is tied into Hawthorne’s employment of witches’images and witchcraft in his stories.In chapter one of the thesis, the present author makes a brief introduction to Hawthorne’s life and his works, and reviews the historical Salem witch trials. In chapter two the author collects a multiple of articles at home and abroad written by other scholars who study Hawthorne’s works from various perspectives. The following chapter analyzes the reasons of Hawthorne’s creation of witches’images and employment of witchcraft from four aspects. In chapter four the author analyzes in details, using close reading, the images of witch and the mysteries of witchcraft exploited in Hawthorne’s works one by one. By studying Hawthorne’s works, the author reveals the employment of witches’images and witchcraft have influenced on themes, Gothic convention and writing techniques of his works. Then the author reaches the conclusion that through the description of the images of witch and the mysteries of witchcraft, on one hand, Hawthorne attempts to maintain over his readers. On the other hand, Hawthorne finds that they are at the root of human condition.