The Blithedale Romance · Theme
Nature vs. Society
How The Blithedale Romance develops Nature vs. Society.
The retreat to Blithedale represents an attempt to escape the artificial constraints of society and return to a simpler, more natural life, yet the characters find that societal prejudices, personal ambitions, and emotional entanglements follow them into the pastoral setting.
Where it surfaces
- XI: The Wood-Path
Coverdale's retreat into the woods represents a desire to escape social routine and reconnect with his inner self, contrasting the natural world with the artificiality of communal life.
- The Hotel
Coverdale observes nature (trees, birds, a cat) in the midst of the city, reflecting on how the natural world persists within urban conventionalisms.
- Fauntleroy
Priscilla's ethereal, ghost-like nature is contrasted with the coarse, gossipy society around her, emphasizing the tension between the natural and the social.
- The Masqueraders
Coverdale's walk through the rural landscape contrasts with the artificiality of the masquerade, and he reflects on his connection to the soil of Blithedale.