Emily Dickinson was a prominent writer in the nineteenth century, a time imbued with Transcendentalism. Transcendentalism is a philosophical and literary movement based on the idea that spiritual reality transcends empiricism and science. Hawthorne was one of the proponents of this movement and, while she has not been officially claimed as a transcendentalist writer or thinker, Dickinsonhastranscendentalidealsincorporated in her work. Moreover, both Hawthorne and Dickinson admired nature, as their works include elements of the physical world, i.e. animals and plants, and mention environmental occurrences, such as storms. They shared the idea that nature is beautiful and valuable, that we should simply observe and appreciate it, along with all its elements (creatures and plants alike).
Dickinson’s poems and Hawthorne’s “Rappaccini’s Daughter” emphasize nature in its role as a representation of human development and experiences. Their works also show that humans are to not hold themselves above nature. In her poems, Dickinson personifies nature and its creatures to allow readers to better understand her implication that humans are not superior to nature. Through the dialogue, andtheschemehe employs in “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” Hawthorne suggests that people are not superior to nature and that they should not manipulate it for there are consequences. Dickinson portrays the human condition through her depiction of nature’s creatures, specifically birds. In Dickinson’s “poem F359,” the speaker observes and goes into detail about a bird’s actions and expressions. She notes that the bird “glanced with rapid eyes,/ That hurried all abroad -/They looked like frightened Beads, I thought,/ He stirred his Velvet Head.” The speaker’s account of the bird is like the narration of Beatrice’s words, actions, and reactions in Hawthorne’s “Rappaccini’s Daughter.”
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The narrator examines Beatrice in the same way the speaker in “poem F359” examines the bird. In the first encounter between Giovanni and Beatrice, the narrator describes Beatrice’s reaction to Giovanni’s words: “There came a deep flush to her cheek, but she looked full into Giovanni's eyes and responded to his gaze of uneasy suspicion with a queen-like haughtiness” (Hawthorne 11). Both Hawthorne and Dickinson extensively detail the setting, people, and creatures they include in their texts. Moreover, in the first stanza of “poem F359,” the speaker narrates “He bit an Angle Worm in halves/ And ate the fellow, raw,” describing the bird eating a worm. One could say that through her word choice, Dickinson portrays the bird to be ruthless and/or dangerous, as he ate the worm “raw” in two bites. In “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” Beatrice is filled with poison and is thus considered dangerous to other beings. However, in the fourth stanza of “poem F359,” the narrator notes that she gave a bread crumb to the bird, but cautiously as if she were the “one in danger.” The bird “unrolled his feathers,” as if it recognized it was not in danger and became relieved when the speaker offered the crumbs.
The seemingly savage bird had actually been scared until the speaker showed him kindness. Dickinson’s characterization of the bird is like Hawthorne’s portrayal of Beatrice, who was this isolated girl, supposedly dangerous to others. Thus, Beatrice is like the bird in “poem F359” and Giovanni reflects the speaker of that poem, as he was cautious of Beatrice’s nature, but nonetheless approached her and started talking with her. Giovanni did not offer crumbs, but his time and his words to Beatrice, and in turn, Beatrice was able to “[unroll her] feathers” and experience interaction with another human. In “Poem F359” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” the bird and Beatrice, respectively, are identified as dangerous, until another being comes into contact with them; they are both nervous and lonely until someone shows them kindness. Furthermore, both the bird and Beatrice essentially represent the human condition at its core, for, despite their inherently dangerous or beastly nature, they experience emotion. In “poem F314,” Dickinson uses nature to form the metaphor that the feeling of hope is like a bird and contrasts it with a storm that could represent obstacles in life. Dickinson says, “Hope is the thing with feathers/ That perches in the soul,/...And never stops at all,” in order to portray the message that, like a strong and unrelenting bird in a storm, hope can get people through the trials and tribulations of life. Dickinson uses the bird, a creature of nature, to represent the feeling of hope. Going further, in “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” Hawthorne’s depiction of nature helps reveal the corruption of society and the construct of competition and their effect on individuals.
Dr. Rappaccinihad created a garden that had an “appearance of artificialness, indicating that there had been such commixture, and, as it were, adultery of various vegetable species, that the production was no longer of God’s making, but the monstrous offspring of man’s depraved fancy, glowing with only an evil mockery of beauty” (Hawthorne 10). He took various flowers and plants and engineered them to emit harmful fumes. Since Dr. Rappaccini is the one who manipulated the plants and flowers in his garden, the garden itself symbolizes the danger of humans and their selfish need to make advancements at any cost. Being a scientist with a “professional warfare of long continuance between him” and another scientist, Rappaccini had the desire to experiment and hold high standing in the world of science(Hawthorne 5). Hawthorne uses nature to reveal the human condition in terms of selfishness and corruption, specifically through Rappaccini’s manipulation of plants for his own benefit. Nevertheless, “Rappaccini’s Daughter” entails a tragic consequence. Through Beatrice’s life of solitude and her death, Hawthorne warns of the dangers of exploiting nature for our personal desires. Rappaccini’s daughter’s death was “the upshot of [his]experiment” and his life’s work (Hawthorne 20). Dr. Rappaccinihad attempted to recreate and manipulate nature to advance in science but instead advanced his daughter’s demise. Hawthorne’s work warns people of the consequences of thinking that they are invincible and reign over the natural world
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