tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post4811510513542380572..comments2024-03-10T09:24:45.565+02:00Comments on Dispatches from Vilnius: The Blithedale RomanceJames Fergusonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05901612633415337879noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-71454506313289066692013-08-25T16:52:04.559+03:002013-08-25T16:52:04.559+03:00Glad you liked my comments & that your vacatio...Glad you liked my comments & that your vacation was lots of fun.<br /><br />Never read Zissimos Lorenzatos but I understand he was always highly regarded in Greece. Perhaps some day I'll read one or two.<br />Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-24847751011687009802013-08-25T16:47:51.131+03:002013-08-25T16:47:51.131+03:00Trust me, the book makes for very quick reading. ...Trust me, the book makes for very quick reading. Unlike me you can likely finish it in just a handful of reading sessions. And yes, it is a great book!<br /><br />:)Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-74333730515881737292013-08-25T16:39:28.002+03:002013-08-25T16:39:28.002+03:00Enjoyed your comments, trip, and will post more th...Enjoyed your comments, trip, and will post more thoughts. Just got back into town yesterday. Twelve days of wonderful warm sun and sea in the Greek islands -- Kos, Santorini and Paros. Not much reading done. What I did read was from Zissimos Lorenzatos Aegean Notebooks,<br /><br />http://deniseharveypublisher.gr/books/aegean-notebooksJames Fergusonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05901612633415337879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-45129094958561494572013-08-25T00:20:34.948+03:002013-08-25T00:20:34.948+03:00Sorry, Trippler. I've been busy with other com...Sorry, Trippler. I've been busy with other commitments. From all the comments, sounds like I missed a good book. I really like Hawthorne and have never read this one.avrdshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07997163948247445009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-35431112767810569402013-08-24T18:03:29.019+03:002013-08-24T18:03:29.019+03:00At the present moment I am reading via audio book:...At the present moment I am reading via audio book:<br /><br /><br />The Forgotten Founding Father<br />Noah Webster's Obsession and the Creation of an American Culture<br /><br /><br />http://theforgottenfoundingfather.com/<br /><br /><br /><br />I would like to have more comments on Blithedale and hope Gintaras and Arvds among others may post a few thoughts on this wonderful book.Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-72645503591081946342013-08-21T19:45:44.486+03:002013-08-21T19:45:44.486+03:00~ conflicted ~
A guy who has gone through "...~ conflicted ~<br /><br /><br />A guy who has gone through "miles", is introspective, terribly self-absorbed, seeking to bring about changes in this world, in search of a utopia, terribly indecisive about his views of Hollingsworth and his ideals, in denial over his feelings for Priscilla and then confesses to his love for her ... I would venture to guess he was conflicted before Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-53263111553928585582013-08-20T13:39:16.777+03:002013-08-20T13:39:16.777+03:00This is a curious book. I wonder how reliable Cov...This is a curious book. I wonder how reliable Coverdale is as narrator. He seems conflicted throughout the book, but the question remains: was he so conflicted during the time he spent at Blithedale or did he only become so after the fact?<br /><br />Rick Diguettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09556088192579865532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-7323096598674986212013-08-19T21:33:20.621+03:002013-08-19T21:33:20.621+03:00I returned the book to the library today as its le...I returned the book to the library today as its lending period was limited and could not be extended. So rather than post analytical notes, I'll post a question:<br /><br /><br />Who or what was the ultimate cause of Zenobia's death?<br /><br /><br />When I read the book half an eternity ago the simple answer was, unrequited love killed her.<br /><br />But is it as simple as that?<br /><Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-76102291136560857922013-08-19T07:07:22.957+03:002013-08-19T07:07:22.957+03:00{Off Topic}
http://allthingsliberty.com/2013/08/...{Off Topic}<br /><br /><br />http://allthingsliberty.com/2013/08/ages-of-revolution-how-old-1776/<br /><br /><br />''Ages of Revolution: How Old Were They on July 4, 1776?''<br /><br /><br /><br />•Andrew Jackson, 9<br />•Thomas Young, 12<br />•Deborah Sampson, 15<br />•James Armistead, 15<br />•Joseph Plumb Martin, 15<br />•Peter Salem, 16*<br />•Peggy Shippen, 16<br />•Marquis Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-47338934844766745612013-08-19T00:38:03.034+03:002013-08-19T00:38:03.034+03:00If Coverdale were alive today, this is how he woul...If Coverdale were alive today, this is how he would have ventured out to Blithedale:<br /><br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZ1tF6LgB40<br /><br /><br />He would have had these sentiments on his mind:<br /><br /><br />Whenever I need to leave it all behind<br />Or feel the need to get away<br />I find a quiet place, far from the human race<br />Out in the country<br /><br />Before the Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-17016904361247848422013-08-18T18:43:38.715+03:002013-08-18T18:43:38.715+03:00"cover"dale
Hmmm - interesting name.
..."cover"dale<br /><br />Hmmm - interesting name. <br /><br />Mr COVERdale walks "miles" in search of a new Utopia. One he does not find. Instead of being the Spring [symbolizing birth] of a new life, it turns out to be an Autumn [decline which ultimately leads to a cold death for Zenobia] for him and others. <br /><br />What exactly was he "covering" up for? Hard Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-79894028688134950242013-08-16T23:19:54.739+03:002013-08-16T23:19:54.739+03:00~ feminism ~
A movement that had its origin in t...~ feminism ~<br /><br /><br />A movement that had its origin in that era starting with the Seneca Falls conference of 1848. While many intellectuals of that era welcomed this "revolutionary" movement, others (especially the majority of people at that time) did not. The reason being that Christianity and the Bible were the biggest influences upon people's lives. Both taught that Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-92152956317319282992013-08-16T18:55:51.654+03:002013-08-16T18:55:51.654+03:00~ fire and ice ~
"artistically contrasted li...~ fire and ice ~<br /><br />"artistically contrasted light and shade"<br /><br /><br />Ch 1 ends at the hearth at home<br /><br />Ch 2 begins with the "cheery blaze" of the hearth at Blithedale - "Paradise anew"<br /><br />Ch 3 as the women cooked the men brought in fire wood <br /><br />Ch 4 the kitchen hearth had a large "blaze" which made Zenobia look Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-2504109819217300792013-08-15T23:54:38.344+03:002013-08-15T23:54:38.344+03:00Speak of the Devil and here he comes ...
Professo...Speak of the Devil and here he comes ...<br /><br />Professor Westervelt fills this role quite readily as he is a charlatan who engages in theatric hypnosis. His victim is the fragile Priscilla both at the beginning of the book and in its crucial climax. But so is everyone else as it eventually leads to the downfall of the community.<br /><br />"Every human being, when given over to the Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-59420519222647602172013-08-14T21:12:40.648+03:002013-08-14T21:12:40.648+03:00Speaking of the spirits, Old Moodie was given to d...Speaking of the spirits, Old Moodie was given to drink and he may well be the person who ultimately caused the outcome of the story:<br /><br />"He was an elderly man, dressed rather shabbily, yet decently enough, in a gray frock-coat, faded towards a brown hue, and wore a broad-brimmed white hat, of the fashion of several years gone by. His hair was perfect silver, without a dark thread in Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-77645872751811000222013-08-13T19:40:23.946+03:002013-08-13T19:40:23.946+03:00This segment with the revelers took place after Co...This segment with the revelers took place after Coverdale partook of some "deepest purple ... of intoxicating quality" grapes. Perhaps he imagined the entire scenario (?).<br /><br />Throughout the book, Coverdale displays a great fondness for wine. He starts his venture to Blithedale by drinking a bottle as I mentioned earlier. When he leaves the commune and enters a hotel, the first Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-62886935624409249052013-08-13T19:21:45.200+03:002013-08-13T19:21:45.200+03:00~ masquerades ~
The first sentence in Blithedale...~ masquerades ~<br /><br /><br />The first sentence in Blithedale reveals that the narrator attended a presentation of a "Veiled" Lady. The narrator is identified as "COVER"dale. He is accosted by an old man wearing an eye patch who stands behind a gate to hide his identity. Nothing is quite as it seems in the book but each plays a significant role in it. <br /><br />Late inTripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-58408535462044081222013-08-13T18:25:22.953+03:002013-08-13T18:25:22.953+03:00~ failed ~
The Norton edition which I am using c...~ failed ~<br /><br /><br />The Norton edition which I am using contains Irving Howe's famous essay "Hawthorne: Pastoral and Politics". I tried to find the essay and post it here but couldn't get a link. While Howe (a former socialist) does a reasonably good analysis of the characters and the role of the Puritan heritage in the storyline, he calls the book a "great failure&Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-46803715981026711502013-08-12T19:04:11.323+03:002013-08-12T19:04:11.323+03:00One last note on reformers, here is Emerson's ...One last note on reformers, here is Emerson's famous essay on NEW ENGLAND REFORMERS:<br /><br /><br />http://digitalemerson.wsulibs.wsu.edu/exhibits/show/text/second-series/new-england-reformers<br /><br /><br />"Men are conservatives when they are least vigorous, or when they are most luxurious. They are conservatives after dinner, or before taking their rest; when they are sick, or Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-33239631497677921582013-08-12T18:42:36.725+03:002013-08-12T18:42:36.725+03:00Speaking of reformers, Coverdale alludes to "...Speaking of reformers, Coverdale alludes to "Eliot's Rock" which was supposedly a place where a Puritan minister preached to local Algonquins two centuries earlier:<br /><br />http://www.bu.edu/bridge/archive/2000/11-10/pulpitrock.html<br /><br />While there is plenty of evidence to prove he existed and engaged in that activity, there is no record of him preaching near the utopian Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-38040885939238480612013-08-12T04:50:59.866+03:002013-08-12T04:50:59.866+03:00Hog farmer Silas Foster is the one practically min...Hog farmer Silas Foster is the one practically minded character throughout the book and correctly predicts, "Here ends the reformation of the world, as far as Miles Coverdale has a hand in it." He leaves because Blithedale is ''faded, sunburnt, arid, blighted" and because of the falling out with Hollingsworth.<br /><br />When in town, Coverdale reflects on the normalcy of Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-5217998095452475982013-08-11T23:34:27.514+03:002013-08-11T23:34:27.514+03:00Part II
Hollingsworth protests that in the pursui...Part II<br /><br />Hollingsworth protests that in the pursuit of his ideal, he "has always been in earnest" while Coverdale was not. The latter muses "I have loved Hollingsworth ... but there was a stern and dreadful peculiarity in this man." That such single mindedness is harmful to people like him and to others. "They have no heart, no sympathy, no reason, no conscienceTripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-7273539051335732702013-08-11T18:45:51.676+03:002013-08-11T18:45:51.676+03:00Was hoping to finish the book before vacation but ...Was hoping to finish the book before vacation but didn't quite make it. I have been enjoying the book and the comments and will pick it up again when I return. Reading it on-line. Too bad I don't have a Kindle.<br /><br />It seems Hawthorne is offering a set of conceptions of the idealized communal state. Another early socialist and naturalist writer was Robert Owen who tried to James Fergusonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05901612633415337879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-67700674713964077082013-08-10T17:23:35.869+03:002013-08-10T17:23:35.869+03:00~ Hollingsworth = tiger ~
As I noted above, Hol...~ Hollingsworth = tiger ~<br /><br /><br />As I noted above, Hollingsworth was equated with a tiger in Coverdale's (actually, Hawthorne's) symbolism. I wonder if devil (one among several in the story) wasn't a more suitable designation. Come to think of it, cultist may have been more apropos. Jim Jones, L Ron Hubbard, and Melville's "The Confidence Man" came to mind Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9103772230302021699.post-8363295399258058372013-08-09T17:53:14.165+03:002013-08-09T17:53:14.165+03:00Good quote. And the lines which preceded it are j...Good quote. And the lines which preceded it are just as striking:<br /><br />"In truth, it was dizzy work, amid such fermentation of opinions as was going on in the general brain of the Community. It was a kind of BEDLAM ..."<br /><br />Tripplerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16568801152695491482noreply@blogger.com