Hawthorne Blog

Hawthorne’s view of Merrymount was quite different from that of William Bradford. Perhaps the mood of each man’s writings has an effect on what I think they think about the place. The first sentence of Hawthorne’s short story sets up a happy place: “Bright were the days at Merry Mount, when the May-Pole was the banner-staff of that gay colony!” (401). Even the descriptions of the seasons provoke aesthetic images to come to mind: “Spring decked the hallowed emblem with young blossoms and fresh green boughs; Summer brought roses of the deepest blush, and the perfected foliage of the forest” (405). The entire setting is described by Hawthorne as a warm, welcoming place.

                This idea of Merrymount contrasts with that of Bradford. Bradford sees the place as one that needs more structure and order. He writes as though it needs to be fixed. Hawthorne, although he recognizes they are not the most organized people, the people of Merrymount are happy. The way that he describes their dancing around the May-Pole shows the mirth and happiness that surrounds the area. This type of happiness is absent in the writings of the other authors we have looked at.

                Yet another way Hawthorne is different from the other writers is his outlook on the Puritans. He refers to them as “A party of these grim Puritans, toiling through the difficult woods.” This is far from the happiness of those around the May-Pole. A particularly haunting scene is when the Puritan officer decides to have a dancing bear (you can’t get more happy than a dancing bear) shot through the head because of witchcraft. None of the other authors had this outlook on the Puritans, and it is clear that Hawthorne is not a fan of the group.

In contrasting the styles of Morton and Bradford, one thing that stands out to me is the differing views on religion. Both reference religion, specifically Christianity, multiple times in their writing. The way and style that they write, however, differs for each writer.

                We spoke a little bit about Bradford’s concern with divine providence in class. Bradford gives a lot of credit to God. In reading Bradford, I almost get the sense that he thought God’s providence traveled with him and blessed the separation from England. At the same time, God’s providence sometimes comes in forms not typical of the “Christian way.” Bradford cites God’s providence in the death of one of the sailors, as well as conflicts with the Native Americans.

                When reading Morton, there still references to religion, but they do not seem to be more than references. Morton does not seem to give as much credit to providence in his ventures. Instead, his references are in passing, referencing Samson and Delilah and a few other passages. No credit is given. In addition, Morton’s work has a lot of reference to Greek and Roman mythology. These references are more prevalent than those coming from Biblical passages.

                Bradford, like Morton, does reference mythology in his writing, but the references are nowhere near as common as either Morton’s references to mythology or Bradford’s Biblical references. Perhaps Bradford was simply a more religious (or more Biblically literate) than Morton. Perhaps Bradford had intentions of reaching a different audience than Morton. Whatever the case may be, the references used in each author’s writing stuck out to me.

In comparing the movie “Even the Rain” to the literature from Columbus, de Casas, and de Vaca, what I found to be the most compelling is the idea of the “noble savage.” This idea comes up briefly in the literature that we read, but it is not a main theme. It is mentioned that the natives are very generous to the Spaniards, even though they have very little to give and are always hungry. This idea also comes out in the movie. While rehearsing, a line comes up that says, “treat them well, we need their food.” The Spaniards definitely took advantage of the noble nature of the natives.

The idea of the noble savage is expressed more in the film than in the literature that we read. The biggest reason for this is that there are more individual accounts in the film. The literature mentions the generosity of the natives, but individual accounts and interactions are not prevalent. The film shows David, who might be the shining example of noble. He is more concerned about getting water for his entire town, even when it means giving up on the opportunity for more money than he has ever seen in his life. He represents the “savages” that Columbus encountered, caring more about the wellbeing of others than just themselves.

There are also scenes from the film within the film that show off the nobility of the natives. Some of these scenes, like the generosity, are seen in the literature. Other scenes that are shown in the film are the drowning of the babies and the calm death that the grandmother shows from the dogs. The noble nature of the natives is contrasted by the brutal nature of the Spaniards coming in. A line from the film states that fifty men could come in and take over the natives, making them do anything they want. The film, as well as the literature, shows the nature of the native people, which leads me to believe it was something that was clearly observable.