Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables
Hawthorne’s The House of the Seven Gables is a text about haunting on many levels: Hawthorne himself is haunted by his family history and by the literary influence of British gothic; the house is haunted by literal ghosts, signaling the unresolved nature of past events; the novel’s characters are ha...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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European Association for American Studies
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| Series: | European Journal of American Studies |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/20585 |
| _version_ | 1797310447142043648 |
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| author | Justyna Fruzińska |
| author_facet | Justyna Fruzińska |
| author_sort | Justyna Fruzińska |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Hawthorne’s The House of the Seven Gables is a text about haunting on many levels: Hawthorne himself is haunted by his family history and by the literary influence of British gothic; the house is haunted by literal ghosts, signaling the unresolved nature of past events; the novel’s characters are haunted by the family history and their own unfulfilled futures. The book is also haunted by the Pyncheon nostalgia for the old aristocratic order, as well as by capitalist exploitation of racial and class others. This paper uses Jacques Derrida’s concept of hauntology to explore those different facets of the ghostly. As a result, the reading of Gables’ ghosts reveals a tension at the heart of the novel between a pessimistic and an optimistic reading of human life and how much it is determined by the past. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T01:43:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4502a6ee7aec40e4bcf4820953dcf614 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1991-9336 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T01:43:04Z |
| publisher | European Association for American Studies |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Journal of American Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-4502a6ee7aec40e4bcf4820953dcf6142024-02-14T13:19:29ZengEuropean Association for American StudiesEuropean Journal of American Studies1991-933618310.4000/ejas.20585Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven GablesJustyna FruzińskaHawthorne’s The House of the Seven Gables is a text about haunting on many levels: Hawthorne himself is haunted by his family history and by the literary influence of British gothic; the house is haunted by literal ghosts, signaling the unresolved nature of past events; the novel’s characters are haunted by the family history and their own unfulfilled futures. The book is also haunted by the Pyncheon nostalgia for the old aristocratic order, as well as by capitalist exploitation of racial and class others. This paper uses Jacques Derrida’s concept of hauntology to explore those different facets of the ghostly. As a result, the reading of Gables’ ghosts reveals a tension at the heart of the novel between a pessimistic and an optimistic reading of human life and how much it is determined by the past.https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/20585Nathaniel HawthornehauntologyThe House of the Seven Gablespastphantomghost |
| spellingShingle | Justyna Fruzińska Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables European Journal of American Studies Nathaniel Hawthorne hauntology The House of the Seven Gables past phantom ghost |
| title | Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables |
| title_full | Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables |
| title_fullStr | Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables |
| title_full_unstemmed | Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables |
| title_short | Breaking the Spell of Past Misdeeds: A Hauntological Reading of The House of the Seven Gables |
| title_sort | breaking the spell of past misdeeds a hauntological reading of the house of the seven gables |
| topic | Nathaniel Hawthorne hauntology The House of the Seven Gables past phantom ghost |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/20585 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT justynafruzinska breakingthespellofpastmisdeedsahauntologicalreadingofthehouseofthesevengables |