The Devil in Manuscript

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Devil in Manuscript (+Biography and Bibliography) (Glossy Cover Finish): On a bitter evening of December, I arrived by mail in a large town, which was then the residence of an intimate friend, one of those gifted youths who cultivate poetry and the belles-lettres, and call themselves students at law. My first business, after supper, was to visit him at the office of his distinguished instructor. As I have said, it was a bitter night, clear starlight, but cold as Nova Zembla, the shop-windows along the street being frosted, so as almost to hide the lights, while the wheels of coaches thundered equally loud over frozen earth and pavements of stone. There was no snow, either on the ground or the roofs of the houses.

Genres: Fiction, Horror, American Fiction, Short Stories

26 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1835

About the author

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. He is seen as a key figure in the development of American literature for his tales of the nation's colonial history.

Shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College, Hathorne changed his name to Hawthorne. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. In 1837, he published Twice-Told Tales and became engaged to painter and illustrator Sophia Peabody the next year. He worked at a Custom House and joined a Transcendentalist Utopian community, before marrying Peabody in 1842. The couple moved to The Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, later moving to Salem, the Berkshires, then to The Wayside in Concord. The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850, followed by a succession of other novels. A political appointment took Hawthorne and family to Europe before returning to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, leaving behind his wife and their three children.

Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England and many feature moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His work is considered part of the Romantic movement and includes novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend, the United States President Franklin Pierce.

Reviews

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This extremely short story (little more than a sketch) tells of an unsuccessful author named Oberon who, half-mad with literary failure, resolves to set his unpublished works on fire. You see, he has become convinced that some sort of devil lives within these poor rejected manuscripts.

Because the hero of this tale shares a first name with the protagonist of Hawthorne projected work The Story Teller” and because it was written around the same time as other “Oberon’ pieces (1835), it is thought that this little tale is either part of that sequence or a cynical farewell to the entire project. Whatever the case may be, this story has only a few things to recommend it: a few wry observations on authorship, two fine descriptions (one of a cold night, one of a fire), and a dramatic conclusion.

Here is Oberon discoursing on authorship:

“You cannot conceive what an effect the composition of these tales has had on me. I have become ambitious of a bubble, and careless of solid reputation. I am surrounding myself with shadows, which bewilder me, by aping the realities of life. They have drawn me aside from the beaten path of the world, and led me into a strange sort of solitude, — a solitude in the midst of men,-where nobody wishes for what I do, nor thinks nor feels as I do. The tales have done all this. When they are ashes, perhaps I shall be as I was before they had existence. Moreover, the sacrifice is less than you may suppose, since nobody will publish them.”

“. . . “They have been offered, by letter . . . to some seventeen booksellers. . . . [O]f all the seventeen booksellers, only one has vouchsafed even to read my tales; and he — a literary dabbler himself, I should judge — has the impertinence to criticise them, proposing what he calls vast improvements, and concluding, after a general sentence of condemnation, with the definitive assurance that he will not be concerned on any terms.”

“. . . [T]here does seem to be one honest man among these seventeen unrighteous ones; and he tells me fairly, that no American publisher will meddle with an American work, — seldom if by a known writer, and never if by a new one, — unless at the writer’s risk.”

“. . . But the devil of the business is this. These people have put me so out of conceit with the tales, that I loathe the very thought of them . . .

[Vaishali · Rating 4 out of 5]

And Mr. Hawthorne surprises me again! A whiny, melodramatic lawyer moonlights unsuccessfully as a writer. He then slowly descends into lunacy, setting his manuscript and the town ablaze. This is Hawthorne at his sarcastic best, though we need even more of his humor here.


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[Nahid Anvari · Rating 5 out of 5]

یک داستان کوتاه در ستایش قدرت ادبیات! اگر داستان‌ها و نویسندگان شکست‌خورده چنین توانایی‌هایی دارند، تکلیف موفق‌ها مشخص است. البته یک حکایت سمبولیک است و مانند هر شاهکاری از جنبه‌های مختلف می‌شود آن را بررسی کرد.

[Vaishali · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant and hilarious! A sarcastic narrator vs. his crazy protagonist.
Another work of mastery by the great Nathaniel Hawthorne <3

[Ana Truta]

Volumul conține mai multe povestiri scurte. Dintre ele amintesc două. În "Pata din naștere un om de știință dorește cu toată ardoarea să o scape pe soție de o pată în formă de mână ce se găsea pe obrazul ei. După diverse încercări acesta obține o substanță care încercând-o pe o plantă ce avea și frunze veștede, se regenerează și inverzește toată. Aceasta substanță îi este administrată și soției doar că drept rezultat v-a muri.

În "Tradafirel" autorul ne vorbește despre un copil care a fost trimis de către mama lui să trăiască la un învățător pe nume Zor care era foarte rău. Într-o zi copilul hotărăște să plece de la casa învățătorului înapoi la mamă deoarece nu dorea să mai meargă la școală și pe drum se întâlnește cu un călător misterios. Tot mergând, Trandafirel îl vede pe învățătorul Zor în diverși bărbați dar de fiecare dată însoțitorul său îi spune că respectivi sunt frații mult mai răi a-i dascălului. În cele din urmă Trandafirel ajunge la concluzia că tot la școală este mai bine. În acel moment însoțitorul îi arată școala iar atunci copilului îl vede pe Zor chiar în persoana acestuia. Astfel că deși a încercat din răsputeri să scape de învățător el s-a aflat tot timpul în tovărășia lui. "Fie că lucrurile stăteau sau nu astfel, micuțul Trandafirel a tras o învățătură bună și, de atunci înainte s-a dovedit silitor la lecții. .. Și când ajunsese să-l cunoască mai bine pe domnul Zor, începu să socoată că obiceiurile lui nu sunt chiar așa de nesuferite."

[Rhys Causon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m starting to suspect that Nathaniel Hawthorne is not a writer that I enjoy.

His stories never really capture my attention and this one follows that way.

I’m sure others like his stuff but I only got interested at the very end. And then it stopped. So unfortunately it’s a lower rating for this one.

[Sean Harding · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hawthorne Hawks #14
Another pretty good yarn from the old geezer, this one was more than a decent turn of phrase, it actually was one that interested me more than many of the others.
A good tale for the fourteenth book of the quest!

[Sohail · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great symbolic tale that has a lot more to offer than it seems.

[Maciej Sz. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kiedyś, dawno temu - chociaż czy to było kiedyś, czy dopiero będzie, jest rzeczą bez znaczenia - nasz wielki świat został tak przeciążony nagromadzonymi rupieciami, że jego mieszkańcy postanowili się ich pozbyć przy pomocy wspólnego dla wszystkich ogniska.

To jest sławetne Bagno Moralne (...) Ujma dla całej okolicy; tym większa, że tak łatwo może się zmienić w twardy grunt.

Drugim, zaraz po Edgarze Allanie Poe, pisarzem szeroko rozumianych opowieści niesamowitych, którego cenię najbardziej, jest Nathaniel Hawthorne. Jako jeden z nielicznych, posiada on ten rzadki talent literacki, pozwalający cieszyć się nie tylko fabułą opowieści, ale przede wszystkim ich językiem. Przyjemność czytania jego prac wytwarza się już na poziomie słowotwórstwa. Podstawą estetyczną dla tego pisarza jest oszczędna warstwa dialogowa, zastępowana najczęściej przez obszerne i niepokojące relacje pierwszoosobowego narratora, którego prawdomówności nie możemy być pewni. Prezentuje on prozę gęstą, refleksyjną, miejscami moralizatorską, ale przede wszystkim zadającą pytania o hierarchię wartości, przywiązanie do norm moralnych czy istnienie podwójnych standardów w życiu codziennym i religijnym. Hawthorn zdaje się kolekcjonować w swojej prozie postawy oraz idee odpowiedzialne za prześladowania, tragedie i cywilizacyjne kryzysy. To niewątpliwie autor sceptyczny i przenikliwy, ale przede wszystkim obdarzony narracyjnym talentem, co uwidacznia się w jego najlepszych utworach, takich jak: “Całopalenie ziemskie”, “Kolej niebiańska” czy “Wielka skalna twarz”.

[Richie Kercenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bitter cold night unites a sarcastic narrator and his half-mad friend in the solitude of the latter's rooms. Their exchange gradually reveals the mental deterioration of the downcast author who could not accept the truth behind his literary failure, and who sought instead a spiritual illusion to account for it.
His denial eventually culminates in the final outburst of madness when the building takes fire while he claims it is the doing of the devil residing in the works he had just burnt. Another enjoyable short story where the terror is one of a psychological and mental nature rather than a supernatural origin.