Teaching Hawthorne in a Cultural Context
Led by Gale Temple, Ph.D., Associate Professor of American Literature, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the most widely taught writers in early American literature, and yet it can be difficult to articulate just exactly what we want our students to learn from his works. Should we discuss Hawthorne as the epitome of American romanticism, focusing on his often cryptic symbolism and his portrayal of the mysterious recesses of the human psyche? Or should we instead teach Hawthorne as a timeless purveyor of universal truths, a sort of prescient genius whose observations about the human condition are just as valid today as when Hawthorne wrote them? Or, finally, should we view Hawthorne merely as one among many antebellum voices, a writer whose hyper-canonical status has resulted more from habit than transcendent genius?

In this workshop, we will explore questions such as these, as well as effective methodologies and goals for teaching Hawthorne’s works. We will cover in particular detail strategies for teaching Hawthorne as a writer in dialogue with many of the most important sexual, economic, and political debates and discourses of his age. The primary text we will use is The Scarlet Letter (1850), Hawthorne’s most famous, most widely taught, and perhaps most enigmatic book. When we teach The Scarlet Letter as a novel conversant with antebellum issues such as slavery, women’s rights, and the entrenchment of a market economy, it becomes a richer, more comprehensible novel, and thus more satisfying and rewarding for students and teachers alike.

Location: Birmingham, Alabama Humanities Foundation

Date: Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Times: Program runs 8:30am to 4:30pm. Lunch provided

Format: One-day workshop.

CEUs: 8 hrs

Session topics, program activities and materials are tentative and subject to change.

For all other inquiries contact
Thomas E. Bryant: tbryant@ahf.net 205-558-3997