Name
Class
Date
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The Wives of the Dead
By Nathaniel Hawthorne
(1804-1864)
The story starts with two women named Mary and Margaret, who are moaning for their lost husbands. Both were married to two brothers who continued living together even after the marriages. The women had a small parlour on the second floor. They got the news of the brothers who had recently passed away one after the other. One brother died in Atlantic Ocean while other died in Canadian war. Both of them are suffering from same pain as they are newlyweds and they lost their husbands as well as brother in law.
People came to comfort the women, but they did not want anyone’s company instead they wanted to live alone. They found
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comfort with each other as they could understand each other. Mary could not cry anymore so she decided to sleep, but Margaret was did not stop crying. Both of them went to their rooms and kept the door open for each other. They wanted to be left alone and did not wanted to be with anyone, so everyone had to leave them on their own. Mary convinced Margaret that they should sleep now as she could not cry more, but Margaret was full of sadness that she did not want to give it a thought, she replied "There is no blessing left for me, neither will I ask it," cried Margaret, with a fresh burst of tears.
"Would it were His will that I might never taste food more."
Mary went to sleep, but Margaret become sadder with the passage of night. She was sobbing while she heard a knock on the door. She kept on staring at the surroundings which reminded her of the died souls. Margaret picked up a lamp to look out of the window, at the door. It was Goodman Parker, the local innkeeper. She asked him for the reason of knocking. He replied that he got the news about his husband from a man, that he still is alive.
This made her so happy that she rushed to tell Mary about it, but at the door she got confused whether she should tell her or not. She dropped the idea to tell Mary and decided to let her sleep. She was of the view that Mary would be hurt and she would certainly think of herself as the most misfortunate of all. She did not wanted to feel the happiness after giving pain to her sister in law, she went back to her room and fell
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asleep. Mary got up later that night after hearing a knock on the door.
She went to the window to look outside. She saw Stephen in sailor’s uniform, she recognized him, as he was interested in her before her marriage. She asked him why he was here so late at night. It made her furious that he might be here to grab the opportunity to meet her. He told that he learnt about her husband’s death from his mom, but he saw him yesterday, so he is alive and he will be coming home the next day.
She was so excited that she wanted to tell Margaret about it. She found the door shut and she opened the door and thought of waking her up with joy. But then she changed her plan because if she would tell her about this news, Margaret would think she is the most unlucky woman on earth. She had the same feelings as Margaret that she cancelled her idea to deliver this news, and left it on the next day.
Mary tried to manage her clothes so that she would not be disturbed and sleep at her best "But her hand trembled against Margaret's neck, a tear also fell upon her cheek, and she suddenly awoke" (68). This depicts that Margaret woke up due to her tear which she tried to
control. The story is a beautiful portrayal of depression and anxiety of two women, yet they are so caring for each other that they do not want to show their happy news to each other, just not to hurt each other. The story is interesting as well as full of suspense. It is story of light theme which makes it more beautiful. The tale has many structural parallels within it. Both the women are witnessing same situations, as they lose their husband in the start, and then they are awakened one by one. Both of them got the same news and they have same response to the news that they become happy for them but sad for each other. The story has the dramatic emphasis like autumn day which suggests it’s really a beautiful tale. The story unveils the most unfortunate realities which can break homes and hearts. Both the women are sisters in law but they came closer due to witnessing same situations. The story is simple but it is Hawthorne uses his long imagination to deliver his message to the audience in an efficient manner. The story has interesting start and a beautiful end. Work cited Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "The Wives of the Dead." The Oxford Book of American Short Stories. Ed. Joyce Carol Oates. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1992. 63-68.
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