Wakefield is a story which Hawthorne gives free rein to the reader to think and formulate ideas.
Hawthorne recollects a story featured in an old journal about a man he calls Wakefield, so the protagonist’s name here is not the real one. He narrates the story about this strange man who made a decision to go on a journey and instead moved into a nearby house.
"unheard of by his wife and friends, and without the shadow of a reason for such self-banishment, dwelt upwards of twenty years."
After twenty years, Wakefield returns home one evening. The strange thing was that his demeanor was without any expression or explanation. The narrator as well as the reader is left to contemplate why a man would abandon his home and his wife, only to take up residence in the neighborhood, where he could view his former life everyday.
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Even though the story does not have a plot or a climax, I feel Hawthorne leaves us to imagine and conclude with our version of not just why Wakefield did it, but also curious insights into human behaviour, alienation and marriage.
Wakefield’s behaviour
The story never fully reveals Wakefield's motives. Wakefield is not a rash man and a creature of boring and routine habit, yet he surprises himself and his neighborhood.
Solitude
The primary message of the story is the respect given to a person’s wish for solitude. The narration could have meandered into many directions and reached the destination of a climax suited to Hawthorne. But its an open-ended story, and so I would like to see the emphasis on a person’s desire to be alone - irrespective of the duration. Wakefield, in this instance, is perhaps going through marital anxiety or inability to make his wife happy and so would want a time aside and distance to sweep away the cobwebs of his life.
Even though the story does not have a plot or a climax, I feel Hawthorne leaves us to imagine and conclude with our version of not just why Wakefield did it, but also curious insights into human behaviour, alienation and marriage.
Wakefield’s behaviour
The story never fully reveals Wakefield's motives. Wakefield is not a rash man and a creature of boring and routine habit, yet he surprises himself and his neighborhood.
Solitude
The primary message of the story is the respect given to a person’s wish for solitude. The narration could have meandered into many directions and reached the destination of a climax suited to Hawthorne. But its an open-ended story, and so I would like to see the emphasis on a person’s desire to be alone - irrespective of the duration. Wakefield, in this instance, is perhaps going through marital anxiety or inability to make his wife happy and so would want a time aside and distance to sweep away the cobwebs of his life.
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