Symbols and Symbolism in Nathaniel Hawthornes Rappaccinis Daughter :: Rappaccinis Daughter Essays

The Use of symbolism in Nathaniel Hawthornes Rappaccinis Daughter Nathaniel Hawthornes Rappaccinis Daughter is perhaps the most complex and vexed of all Hawthornes short stories, but also the greatest. Nathaniel Hawthorne as a poet, has been characterized as a man of low emotional pressure who adopted through come out his entire life the role of an observer. He was always able to prove what he felt with remarkable words but he lacked twinge and energy. Hawthornes personal problem was his sense of isolation. He thought of isolation as the root of all evil. Therefore, he made evil the theme of umpteen of his stories. Hawthornes sense of the true human included intellectual freedom, passion and essence (Kaul 26). Hawthorne was also a symbolist who had enormous respect for the material humankind and for common sense reality. Hawthorne usually established a neutral grease somewhere between the real world and fairy land, where the actual and complex quantity me et. His ultimate purpose was always to open an intercourse with the world and out of this came symbolism (Kaul 66). For example, the cross -hybridization of the plants in the garden is called adultery (Newman 267). Rappaccinis Daughter was premiere print in December 1844 in the United States Magazine and elected Review under Hawthornes own name. Before the story was even published Julian Hawthorne read the unfinished manuscript to his wife and she asked how it was going to end. Hawthorne was not quite sure how he was going to let the story end. It has been state that Beatrices dilemma may have been a reflection of Sophias (Hawthornes wife) sheltered old age when she was younger at home with her mother. While Giovannis failure to save Beatrice or himself is a tragic reversal of Nathaniels and Sophias happiness together (Newman 258). In Rappaccini s Daughter, it is all-inclusive of symbols and symbolic allusions. Its setting is a fantastic garden filled with botany and poisonous flowers and in the center is a broken fountain. Hawthornes focus is on Beatrice as she is seen by Giovanni. Hawthorne presents a trapped and poisonous Beatrice who needs a special kind of redemption. She is a prisoner in the garden and her dead body is full of poison.