Mistakes in Dr. Heidegger's Experiment by Nathaniel Hawthorne

859 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Dr. Heidegger's Experiment

In his short story "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", Nathaniel Hawthorne makes a point to grant all of the characters varying human vices to try and instill in the reader a lesson about learning from their mistakes. When the reader is first introduced to Dr. Heidegger and his guests, the author gives some background on all of the characters. It becomes clear that Mr. Medbourne is known for his love of money, Widow Wycherly for her pride, Colonel Killigrew for lusting after sinful pleasures, and Mr. Gascoigne for his abuse of power and hypocrisy. From what is shown, all of the characters possess the trait of greed. When given the chance to return to their youth, they repeat the same mistakes. The first guest that the reader is introduced to in the story is Mr. Medbourne, who was known for his tendency to devise money making schemes. He proved himself to be the most prominent example of greed in the story. Greed, also known as avarice, is an intense selfish desire for something such as material wealth or gain. At the beginning of the short story, it was said, “Mr. Medbourne, in the vigor of his age, had been a prosperous merchant, but had lost his all by a frantic speculation, and was now little better than a mendicant.” (Dr. Heidegger 502). In other words, Mr. Medbourne had been his own demise and was now of little social stature as a beggar. Despite knowing this, when given the chance to return to his youth he goes straight back to scheming. Vanity is excessive pride in or admiration of one's own appearance or achievements. In the story the person who most accurately embodies this vice is Widow Wycherly. When given the chance to return to her youth she squanders it on admiring herself in the mirror. During their second chance at you... ... middle of paper ... ...et rich quick money making schemes and Colonel Killigrew immediately returned to drinking and lusting. Meanwhile, Widow Wycherly began admiring herself and Mr.Gascoigne was once again concerned with politics. They were all ordinary people that Dr. Heidegger had hand picked for his experiment however, every guest displayed or showed some form of greediness. Dr. Heidegger was able to use his friends to confirm his suspicion that people never really learn from their mistakes. His friends, to him, were simply guinea pigs used to prove a point. Works Cited Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “Dr. Heidegger's Experiment.” The Language of Literature. Ed. Arthur N. Applebee. Evanston, Illinois: McDougal Littel, 2000. 500-513. Print Poe, Edgar Allan. Critical Essay on “Dr. Heidegger's Experiment.” Short Stories for Students. Ed. Sarah Constantakis. Vol 30. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Examples Of Greed In The Great Gatsby

    2143 Words  | 5 Pages

    Money can cause people to act selfish and arrogant, especially when they have so much money they do noteven know what to spend it on. In the novel,

    Read More

  • Greed in Salem: The Crucible

    547 Words  | 2 Pages

    The minister, Reverend Parris, is an excellent example of greed. Reverend Parris says, “Man don’t a minister deserve a house to live in” (Miller 1250). Reverend Parris is the minister of Salem and should be happy and satisfied with what he has. However, he is describing how he believes that because he is the minister, he should have a better house to live in. Reverend Parris also shows another example of greed in the play by saying, “I am paid little enough without I spend six pound on firewood” (Miller 1250). In this quote, the Reverend is complaining about how little he is paid for being the town minister. Again, he thinks that he should get the firewood without paying for it because of who he is. Reverend Par...

    Read More

  • Dealing With Guilt in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

    680 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne attempted to expose the varying ways in which different people deal with lingering guilt from sins they have perpetrated. The contrasting characters of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale ideally exemplified the differences in thought and behavior people have for guilt. Although they were both guilty of committing the same crime, these two individuals differed in that one punished themselves with physical and mental torture and the other chose to continue on with their life, devoting it to those less fortunate than they.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Rhetorical Devices

    801 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthorne uses allusion, alliteration and symbolism to tell the perfect story. Anyone can infer from this novel that adultery is obviously wrong. Adultery doesn’t only affect the two people who have committed it, but also affects the townspeople. Keeping quiet causes extreme pain and suffering. The townspeople are always suspicious of each other and no one can trust anyone. Because Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale kept his secret bottled up and Hester admitted to the whole thing, he was left to suffer from guilt. If Dimmesdale came out and told the truth, maybe he would have been spared, lived a free life and survived long enough to spend time with the one he truly loved, Hester Prynne. That means the prison and cemetery wouldn’t mean anything in the future.

    Read More

  • Greed In The Great Gatsby and The Grapes of Wrath

    929 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... The greed portrayed by these characters has no explanation, at least that Fitzgerald offers, and thus should not exist; proving that these characters are simply greedy and deserve all that comes to them. And thus these two authors differ in the reasons why the greed occurs and, effectively, the difference in the short, 1-day gap from October 24 into October 25, 1929. And so greed exists in the modern period, saturating its two of its most famous novels and a theme of two of its most famous authors, portraying all evil as caused by greed, illustrating the true cynicism of the era. Works Cited Stenbeck, J. a.

    Read More

  • The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    821 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hawthorne portrays a society filled with betrayel, secrecie, and sinners. The people of society do not show their true colors and hide their true intentions. Dimmsdale, Chillingsworth and Hester all have fallen to sin, however they all believe they are not the worse sinner and try to seek justice for themselves.

    Read More

  • Chillingworth is the Greatest Sinner in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, the reader is able to observe how one sin devastates three lives. Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth are all guilty of succumbing to temptation, anger, and desire, causing all to fit the definition of a sinner. Yet, Chillingworth's iniquities raise him up above Hester and Dimmesdale on the level of diabolic acts.

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby

    1429 Words  | 3 Pages

    The thought of having an immense sum of money or wealth bring certain people to believe that money can buy almost anything, even happiness, however in reality, it will only lead to lost and false hope. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, the author, F. Scott Fitzgerald writes a story about a man named Gatsby who is a victim of this so called 'false hope' and 'lost.' Throughout the novel, Fitzgerald clearly demonstrates and elaborates on the relationship between having money, wealth, and one's ethics or integrity by acknowledging the idea that the amount of money or wealth one has attained does affect the relationship between one's wealth and one's ethics whether or not in a pleasant manner. Although money and wealth may not be able to buy a person happiness, it surely can buy a person's mind and action given that a wealthy person has a great deal of power. Fitzgerald analyzes the notion that even though many people dream of being both rich and ethical, it is not possible, and therefore, being poor and ethical is much better than trying to be rich and ethical.

    Read More

  • Materialism In A Raisin In The Sun

    1269 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the beginning of the play, Walter is foolish and quarrelsome, with his heart set on becoming affluent. As he grasps how hard work his father worked and how hard his family works, he reasons that living by his standards is more important than gaining wealth, and he stops feeling resentful towards them. This play highlights how many members of society focus more on making money than living by their ethical

    Read More

  • What´s The Great Gatsby The Great American Novel?

    595 Words  | 2 Pages

    This novel depicts greed on several occasions through out the novel. One example of this is when Gatsby is left twenty five thousand dollars by Dan Cody as a legacy, but from what one is led to believe Ella Kaye refused to let

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter: The Response to Sin

    1857 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...to portray through Dimmesdale and Chillingworth, that without responsibility for wrongful deeds our world will eventually be destroyed just like these two individuals. However, Hawthorne, through the portrayal of Hester, shows that he has not given up on humanity. If our world is going to survive for future generations it has to model itself after Hester’s behavior. Yes, sin is inevitable but we must learn to respond to it with responsibility, forgiveness, and redemption rather than with guilt, revenge, and uncertainty. More importantly we must learn to remain honest and truthful in whatever action we carry out because in the end only God will have the power to grant us the ultimate forgiveness by saving us or damning us to Hell.

    Read More

  • Hawthorne On Puritanism

    1312 Words  | 3 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthorne's knowledge of Puritanism and his close relationship with the religion has impacted his views on those in the society. Hawthorne is critical of the Puritans and he thinks that they are hypocrites for having rules and morals that they do not follow. He sees the underlying sin that others may not. Through his many writings he makes known to his readers that everyone is guilty of sin. The Puritan's main goal was to save themselves from the sin in the world, but Nathaniel Hawthorne portrays their morals and society as troublesome through his works, "Young Goodman Brown," "The Minister's Black Veil," and The Scarlet Letter.

    Read More

  • The Evolution of the American Dream

    1649 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Money is the root of all evil”(Levit). Man and his love of money has destroyed lives since the beginning of time. Men have fought in wars over money, given up family relationships for money and done things they would have never thought that they would be capable of doing because of money. In the movie, based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the author demonstrates how the love and worship of money and all of the trappings that come with it can destroy lives. In the novel Jay Gatsby has lavish parties, wears expensive gaudy clothes, drives fancy cars and tries to show his former love how important and wealthy he has become. He believes a lie, that by achieving the status that most Americans, in th...

    Read More

  • Hawthorne

    434 Words  | 1 Pages

    “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment” contained mostly romantic symbolism. Dr. Heidegger is the perfect example of the scientific world gone mad. Medbourne is mostly interested in the economy and is a corrupted businessman. Killigrien is basically interested only in himself. Gascorgin is a corrupt politician. Wycherly is an example of social scandal and vanity. The allegory is that Hawthorne is concerned with women’s roles in a male dominant society and the dangers of applied science.

    Read More

  • Moral and Social Themes in Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

    648 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, there are many moral and social themes develped throughout the novel.  Each theme is very important to the overall effect of the novel.  In essence, The Scarlet Letter is a story of sin, punishment and the importance of truth. One theme which plays a big role in The Scarlet Letter is that of sin and its effects.  Throughout the novel there were many sins committed by various characters.  The effects of these sins are different in each character and every character was punished in a unique way.  Two characters were perfect examples of this theme in the novel.  Hester Prynne and The Reverend Dimmesdale best demonstrated the theme of the effects of sin.

    Read More

More about Mistakes in Dr. Heidegger's Experiment by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Open Document