John Armellino

ERH 206
Major Knepper
4/3/15
Option 2
The historian Louis Dupré stated, “What is uniquely Romantic… is that a person can become a question to himself.” If this statement is about literature, then I see no greater proponents (at least indirectly) of the theory than Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Their works are always sure to curiously poke at the mysterious inner workings of the narrators/main characters. Two specific works come to mind: Hawthorne’s “My Kinsman, Major Molineux” and Edgar Allan Poe’s “Hop-Frog.” In both these works the main characters display abnormal behavior, they do things that is not in line with their previous behavior. Robin (“Major Molineux”) and Hop-Frog (“Hop-Frog”) are both driven by extreme circumstance to engage in abnormal behavior and horrifying acts. I believe the authors were demonstrating the ability of the human mind to adapt to even the most terrible situations, and that Louis Dupré’s statement perfectly describes this particular genre of literature.
In “My Kinsman, Major Molineux” a young colonist named Robin is in Boston looking for the titular Major, who as a colonial governor, is a part of the British social elite. The Major is Robin’s wealthy uncle, and has promised the young man work. Now, the story is set during a time when many American colonists were not at all satisfied with their British benefactors. While looking for his kinsman, the young man is struck with the way the hardened Boston–dwellers treat him. While in Boston, he has “experienced little superfluous civility” that he gives and in turn expects from others. Robin is a naïve outsider with no idea that the citizens of Boston despise the Major and what he represents (the oppressive British). Robin seems to be wholly unaware of the plight of the American colonist against the British, which explains his being disturbed and intrigued by the hostility of those around him. After many strange episodes with the Boston locals, Robin finally discovers his “majestic” and stately uncle, the Major. When he finds him though, he is in a rather undignified and terrible situation. A rambunctious crowd of colonists is parading the violated body of Major Molineux, who has been through the awful process of being tarred and feathered, throughout the streets of Boston. The colonists are all cheering loudly and joyously until they at last reach Robin, where they fall silent. Taken by the shocking appearance of his disgrace kinsman, who recognizes Robin when he sees him, Robin begins to laugh uncontrollably, having been swayed by the maniacal crowd. After the ordeal, Robin asks an older gentleman he met earlier to guide him to the ferry, as in his eyes he no longer has a reason to stay in Boston. The gentleman beckons for Robin to stay and “rise in the world, without the help of your kinsman, major Molineux.”
What is unique about this work is that underneath the gothic horror and the light humor that is sprinkled throughout, it is a “coming of age story.” There is plenty of evidence to suggest that Robin and Molineux represent the colonies and Great Britain, respectively, but we will not be focusing on that. Instead, we will analyze the main character Robin as an ordinary individual thrust into an extraordinary situation.
Robin is a country boy. He is unaware of the workings of the city and of the general attitude of its people. As his search for Molineux continues, Robin displays extreme focus as well as naivety in the face of adversity. He rejects the advances of a prostitute, who at the very least offers the chance for shelter and comfort. Robin opts to continue his search for his uncle, even with no help. When finally arriving to find the gruesome scene of his uncle’s public torture, Robin is so “disillusioned” by the events of the night that he joins in on the crowd’s laughter. He surprises himself, his face is “somewhat pale” and he is startled easily. It is almost as if at that very moment, Robin was forced to grow up and realizes that he is now alone in a world he knows nothing about. He cannot rely on his well off uncle to assist him. The term “it takes a village to raise a child” comes to mind. Having been failed by his parents, Robin is properly educated in the violent ways of the world by the community of his new home, albeit all in one night. The “shrewd youth” has persevered through the story in search of help, but now realizes he is without any, and may not need it to survive. Ironically, Robin always thought of himself as capable, despite not being competent in this city setting. Now, when he learns how inexperienced he really is, Robin seems to have discovered the means to live without the support system of the wealthy Major. It is only when we acknowledge how little we know that we can begin to learn. Robin snapped in the face of the hostile crowd, and learned he was not as savvy and sophisticated as he thought he was.
“Hop-Frog” is a different beast. While it is told from a third-person perspective like “My Kinsman,” it is by no means a similar story (save for the fact that the main character is driven to display abnormal behavior). In an obnoxious and awful king’s court is the disfigured dwarf jester Hop-Frog. Hop-Frog, being the subject of abuse and ridicule by the king and his counselors is finally driven to the edge one day. Hop-Frog has a friend, a well-liked dwarf named Trippetta from the same country as himself. She uses her influence to help Hop-Frog whenever she can, but when Hop-Frog is forced to drink copious amounts of wine (which he knows he cannot handle well) by the king, Trippetta pleads directly with the king to show her friend some mercy and respect. The abuse Trippetta receives for daring to speak to the king in this way seems to spark Hop-Frog to destroy the “monster” and his companions. The wine drives Hop-Frog mad, and it seems that almost immediately after Trippettas abuse that he launches into his “scheme” to dress the king and his men into ourang-outang outfits and chain them up. The disturbing thing about this is I do not know if Hop-Frog has been planning this for sometime in his head, or if he improvised the gruesome scenario on the spot.
Both these theories have interesting implications. If Hop-Frog has already planned to burn the King and his counsel, then it appears the wine does indeed have an “instantaneous” effect upon the dwarf. This makes sense, considering Edgar Allan Poe’s growing alcoholism at the time of writing “Hop-Frog,” and the story’s somewhat autobiographical nature. But, I digress. It may be that Hop-Frog has always fantasized about murdering his tormentors but has lacked the constitution to perform the deed. It seems karmic that the wine drove Hop-Frog off the deep end after he was forced to drink it by the monstrous king.
The second, more disturbing theory (in my opinion) is that drinking the wine turned Hop-Frog into even more of a crazed, revenge-driven man than we thought he was. Perhaps immediately after drinking the wine, Hop-Frog improvised the scheme, having been turned into a monster seemingly instantaneously. This could be why Hop-Frog wishes to stay away from it. Either way, the wine seems to unlock some hellish impulse within the dwarf that even he does not understand nor wish to confront.
Although these two works are not all that similar, they do have something in common. Both the main characters are forced to confront some ugly truth about themselves and the world. Robin grows up fast to become an independent young man who don’t need no uncle (sorry). He also faces the mob mentality and succumbs to its power. The world and its denizens are not the obligatorily polite crowd he thought they would be. Hop-Frog is all too aware of how terrible the world is, but does not want to face it. More importantly, he seems to be vaguely aware of his own dark side, but only finds out how dark it is when the king forces wine upon him and strikes his dear friend. Both characters face the darkness within themselves after being confronted by the darkness of the world around them, and both have escaped their old lives, whether they wanted to or not.

Sources
“My Kinsman, Major Molineux.” Nathaniel Hawthorne. 1832.
“My Kinsman, Major Molineux”
“My Kinsman, Major Molineux”
“My Kinsman, Major Molineux”
American Romanticism, Virginia Commonwealth University. http://wp.vcu.edu/engl37212a/2012/02/07/my-kinsman-major-molineaux-hawthorne/
“My Kinsman, Major Molineux”
My Kinsman, Major Molineux”
“Hop-Frog.” Edgar Allan Poe. 1845.
“Hop-Frog”
“Hop-Frog”
“Edgar Allan Poe, Drugs, and Alcohol.” http://www.eapoe.org/geninfo/poealchl.htm

Tag

I was inspired to write about these two stories because I found them both disturbing in their own unique ways. Hawthorne’s “My Kinsman” is an interesting take on the often over-simplified history of America’s revolution, in which nothing is as black and white as it seemed in early grade school. “Hop-Frog” is a satisfying revenge tale that I am afraid I may have enjoyed too much. It seems odd the sadistic pleasure a reader can take when imagining the awful king and his counsel being burnt to death. Not to be overly poetic, but it seems to reveal a darkness within ourselves as well as the main character.