
The Blithedale Romance
"Contexts" is thematically organized and includes a rich and varied selection of materials, both public and private, focusing on Hawthorne's inspirations for the novel. Included are letters, excerpts from journals, published accounts of Brook Farm and the growth of antebellum social reform, Hawthorne's letters to Sophia Peabody and Louisa Hawthorne about his first days at Brook Farm, and later letters describing his growing reservations about and decision to leave the utopian community. The Blithedale Romance raises interesting questions about the role of women, the popularity of mesmerism, and the growth of cities in mid-nineteenth-century America. Margaret Fuller, Charles Baudelaire, and Hawthorne, among others, provide invaluable insight.
"Criticism" begins with major contemporary reviews by Herman Melville, William B. Pike, George S. Hillard, James T. Fields, Henry Fothergill Chorley, and others that suggest The Blithedale Romance's initial reception. "Selections from Classic Studies" reprints key excerpts from influential essays published through the 1970s, including those by Henry James, D. H. Lawrence, Irving Howe, and James McIntosh.
"Recent Criticism" collects a striking range of scholarly interpretation by Nina Baym, Joel Pfister, Gillian Brown, Richard H. Brodhead, Lauren Berlant, Russ Castronovo, Robert S. Levine, and Richard H. Millington.
A Chronology and a Selected Bibliography are also included.
Millington, Richard H.: - Richard H. Millington is Sylvia Dlugasch Bauman Professor of American Studies and Professor of English at Smith College. He is the author of Practicing Romance: Narrative Form and Cultural Engagement in Hawthorne's Fiction and of essays on Hawthorne and Willa Cather. He co-edited Hitchcock's America, which includes his essay on North By Northwest.
ISBN/UPC:
9780393928617
Product:
Book, Paperback
Title:
The Blithedale Romance
Series:
Contributors
- Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Editor: Richard H. Millington
Publisher:
W. W. Norton & Company, 2010
Pages:
432
Languages:
English
Categories
Specification:
8.3 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches, 0.9 pounds

Acceptable: | Fairly worn but fully readable and intact. Pages may include notes, highlighting, or minor water damage. Dust jacket, CDs, product codes, or other inclusions may be missing or expired. |
Good: | Shows signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes or highlighting. Dust jacket, CDs, product codes, or other inclusions may be missing or expired. |
Very Good: | Item has seen limited use and has minimal signs of wear. Pages are clean without markings. Dust jacket, CDs, product codes, or other inclusions may be missing or expired. |
Like New: | Shows little to no signs of wear. Spine has no signs of creasing. Pages are clean without markings. CDs, product codes, or other inclusions may be missing or expired. |
New: | Brand new, unused, and in perfect condition. Includes all original packaging and accessories. |