Chippings with a Chisel

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Chippings with a Chisel is a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4, 1804 - May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, the only judge involved in the Salem witch trials who never repented of his actions. Nathaniel later added a "w" to make his name "Hawthorne" in order to hide this relation. He entered Bowdoin College in 1821, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa in 1824, and graduated in 1825. Hawthorne published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828; he later tried to suppress it, feeling it was not equal to the standard of his later work. He published several short stories in various periodicals which he collected in 1837 as Twice-Told Tales. The next year, he became engaged to Sophia Peabody. He worked at a Custom House and joined Brook Farm, a transcendentalist 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 their return to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, and was survived by his wife and their three children. Much of Hawthorne's writing centers on New England, many works featuring moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His fiction works are considered part of the Romantic movement and, more specifically, Dark romanticism. His themes often center on the inherent evil and sin of humanity, and his works often have moral messages and deep psychological complexity. His published works include novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend Franklin Pierce. Hawthorne's works belong to romanticism or, more specifically, dark romanticism, cautionary tales that suggest that guilt, sin, and evil are the most inherent natural qualities of humanity. Many of his works are inspired by Puritan New England, combining historical romance loaded with symbolism and deep psychological themes, bordering on surrealism. His depictions of the past are a version of historical fiction used only as a vehicle to express common themes of ancestral sin, guilt and retribution. His later writings also reflect his negative view of the Transcendentalism movement.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

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 4 out of 5]

First published in United States Magazine and Democratic Review (September, 1838), this plotless narrative presents the fictional reminisces of an itinerant monument carver. Although it could be seen as little more than a vignette, its gothic theme and the aptness of its philosophical reflections make it a characteristic Hawthorne piece.

I was first struck by the fitness of this early passage. The narrator takes a walk through the rocky New England graveyard to comment on the nature of the Colonial headstones, and tells us this is a cemetery “where the dead have lain so long that the soil, once enriched by their decay, has returned to its original barrenness.” What a pity that even the last gift we give to the earth is as ephemeral as the rest!

Wigglesworth the tombstone carver spins story after story, about grieving husbands and practical wives, about sickly young maidens and hearty old skinflints who live long enough to bury their business rivals, and each of his stories shows us how we humans continue to live on, how our species continues to demonstrate its humanity even in its commerce with death.

When Wigglesworth ask the narrator what stone he would pick for himself, he answers:

”I care little or nothing about a stone for my own grave, and am somewhat inclined to scepticism as to the propriety of erecting monuments at all, over the dust that once was human. The weight of these heavy marbles, though unfelt by the dead corpse or the enfranchised soul, presses drearily upon the spirit of the survivor, and causes him to connect the idea of death with the dungeon-like imprisonment of the tomb, instead of with the freedom of the skies. Every grave-stone that you ever made is the visible symbol of a mistaken system. Our thoughts should soar upward with the butterfly--not linger with the exuviae that confined him. In truth and reason, neither those whom we call the living, and still less the departed, have any thing to do with the grave.”

[Val · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author spent some time in a stonemason's workshop, watching him carve headstones, talking to him and listening to the various customers who came in to order memorials. In among his accounts of these are some meditations on memorials and memories (which are not at all the same thing).
This is a very short story, a 'taster' for one of the Great American Novel writers. It was a free test download for my (then) brand new kindle and I enjoyed it.

[K. Anna Kraft · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've arranged my thoughts into a haiku, although the few syllables made me render them a bit too simplistic:

"Mortician nor priest
Meet death's glamour and conceit
Like the stone mason."

[Glen Engel-Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a thought(ful) piece than a story, this is a series of vignettes occasioned by the narrator’s friendship with a sculptor of tombstones, commenting on the many and varied things people have carved into such for the recently or (in some cases) nearly departed. There’s a moral here, though, about the usefulness and questionable necessity of granite markers for the dead that’s not quite as straightforward as one might expect.

[Forked Radish · Rating 3 out of 5]

It must be heartbreaking to commission a tombstone for a deceased relative only to find them still alive.

[Sean Harding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hawthorne Hawks #19
Another tale from Hawthorne, and this one was a average fare, some interest to be had, but not one that really grabbed me.
The quest continues unabated though.