Jessica Perkins

Whatley

American Literature

November 12, 2104

A Gift from Wakefield

In his stories, Nathaniel Hawthorne always gives the reader something to think

about or reflect upon. His works often corresponded with the times in which he lived.

One of his later stories, Wakefield is a fine example of the way that Hawthorne makes

the reader reflect upon his or her life after reading about the way the characters behave

in the story. Wakefield can be interpreted in many different ways. It is a very peculiar

story, and he carries on his tradition of being ambiguous, by presenting a story of

possibilities based on a true account that he read in a newspaper. This literary work

could be interpreted as a teaching method. Hawthorne was using Mr. Wakefields

motives, actions, and the consequences of his actions to teach the reader a lesson.

The story opens with the author telling the reader that he read a true account

similar to the one he is telling in some old magazine or newspaper. Some critics, such

as Ruth Perry, believe it could be an article in one of the volumes of the Gentlemans

Magazine by Mr. William King, about a man named Mr. Howe who did leave his family

for seventeen years and return to live a harmonious life with his wife until death. The

narrator then introduces the characters Mr. and Mrs. Wakefield. The reader learns that

Mr. Wakefield is middle age and married, but his marriage is dull. The reader finds that
Mr. Wakefields whole life could be described as dull. He is bright but is not very

original or creative; yet, the reader discovers that he is crafty in the sense of being sly.

He is not the type of person one would assume would leave his wife and his home for

such a long period of time. The reader also learns that his wife observes a quiet

selfishness in him along with a peculiar sort of vanity. Mr. Wakefield decides to

conduct an experiment. He tells his wife he is leaving but does not tell her how long he

will be gone. Mrs. Wakefield knows how her husband loves to be secretive and crafty,

so she does not question him. She does not ask for any specifics, like where he is going

or how long he will be gone. Instead, she lets him go without any probing. When he

leaves, it is his crafty smile that haunts her, not realizing she will not see him again for

twenty years.

One may ask what sparks Wakefields desire to leave for such a length of

time in hopes of seeing his life from the outside world. Everyone at some point in time

wants to see his life as others see it, but Mr. Wakefield takes the want to the extreme.

He ends up living in solitude for twenty years. According to George Monteiro, Mr.

Wakefield finds his life dull and disappointing. He decides to set out on an adventure, do

something drastic. So he decides that leaving for an uncertain amount of time is the

best way to do it. He will move into a house down the street so that he can see his

wifes reaction and grief. However, Monteiro proposes that there is a deeper underlying

reason for Mr. Wakefields desired absence. He says that it is an issue of authority. He

says that he wants to see what kind of power he has over his wife. Mr. Wakefield wants

to see just how damaging it would be for him to leave for so long without any word of his

whereabouts or safety. However, Mr. Wakefield drastically overestimates the results of

his experiment. Mrs. Wakefield does have a grieving period, but it does not last as long

as Mr. Wakefield anticipated. She does not let the grief effect the rest of her life. While

Mr. Wakefield intends not to return until he has frightened her to death, Mrs. Wakefield

carries on through life without her husband. He is, like a child who runs away from

home, vowing that he will make his insufficiently appreciative family miss him when he

is gone (Perry).

Mr. Wakefields motive can also be interpreted as Wakefield wanting to become

a different man and live a different life. He is obviously bored with his life which seems

to him to be dull. His long absence is a way for him to escape and step outside of his

own life. Perhaps that is why he does not return until twenty years later. Perhaps he

enjoyed seeing his life outside the normal social realm. However, this decision came

with consequences. He left in the middle of his life, and in a sense watched his life go

by, rather than live it. Although he did get an outsiders view of his life, he was not there

to enjoy it. Instead, he was observing from the outside (Cameron). How many happy

moments did he miss? How much did he really enjoy his years of solitude? Would it

have been satisfying to leave home for that long, and return to find those twenty years

of life were wasted? These are the questions that the reader may ask when he or she

realizes the consequences of Wakefield removing himself to solitude for so long.

Mr. Wakefield also saw the ramifications of his voluntary twenty year solitude.

Wakefield has accomplished what most people would love to achieve. He has seen

himself from the outside world. He has successfully stepped outside the realms of

society without leaving life itself. He is able to see how those around him would react if

he were permanently gone. He is able to escape his environment and live in solitude.
However, Hawthorne does warn readers that there are dangers of acting as Wakefield

did. Hawthorne says, It is perilous to make a chasm in human affections, not that they

gape so long and widebut so quickly close again! (Perry).

This is an example of Hawthornes narrator giving advice to Mr. Wakefield

throughout the story. He is warning Wakefield that if he creates a gap in affections with

his wife, that gap will never leave. If he damages the relationship, the damage will be

there forever. However, Wakefield being gone so long also shows another aspect of his

personality. He tends to move into habits and stay there, which reflects his life before he

left. The narrator even tells the reader that his marriage was sobered into a calm,

habitual sentiment. He is enjoying the chaos he has created and has fallen into the

habit of being away from his wife and seeing her reaction to him being away

(Rohrberger).

The reader can learn a lot from Mr. Wakefield and the way he lived his life. Mr.

Wakefield took the good life he had for granted and left, all for the sake of being noticed

and appreciated. He left his wife and all that he knew for twenty years just to see how

society would be affected without him. Although he accomplished what he set out to do,

the reader has to ask if it was worth it. Hawthorne wanted the reader to understand that

life is precious. He wanted the reader to realize that relationships were a gift, and could

fade away and end if they were taken for granted. Mr. Wakefield allowed pride and

vanity to take control. He did what he thought was necessary, and even though he was

able to step outside the boundaries of society, as many would like to do from time to

time, he missed out on a huge part of life. Even though Wakefields life was purely

fictional, it would be safe to say that his character provides a life lesson and reflection
for the reader. It makes the reader realize that there may be a little bit of Wakefield in

everyone.
 Works Cited

Cameron, Sharon. The Self Outside Itself: Wakefield. Nathaniel Hawthornes Tales:

A Norton Critical Edition. Ed. James McIntosh. 2nd ed. New York: Norton, 2013.

Print

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. Wakefield. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Ed.

Nina Baym. 8th ed. Vol. B New York: Norton, 2012. 396-401. Print.

Montiero, George. "Hawthorne, James, and the Destructive Self." Texas Studies in

Literature and Language 4.1 (1962): 58-71. Web. 25 Oct. 2014

Perry, Ruth. The Solitude of Hawthornes Wakefield. American Literature 49.4

(1978): 613-619. Web. 25 Oct. 2014

Rohrberger, Mary. "Wakefield: Overview." Reference Guide to Short Fiction. Ed. Noelle

Watson. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. Literature Resource Center. Web. 25

Oct. 2014.