The May-Pole of Merry Mount

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The story is an allegory for the social tension caused by the Puritans in early America. Endicott and his Puritan followers suppress freedom and individuality, a common theme for Hawthorne. At the beginning of the story "jollity" and "gloom" are said to be contending for an empire, the Merry Mount colonists personifying jollity or mirth and the Puritans being the emblems of gloom. Hawthorne satirizes both parties and the narrative point of view seems to oscillate between them

Genres: Short Stories, Classics, Fiction, Literature, American, Historical Fiction, School

32 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1837

About the author

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. He is seen as a key figure in the development of American literature for his tales of the nation's colonial history.

Shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College, Hathorne changed his name to Hawthorne. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. In 1837, he published Twice-Told Tales and became engaged to painter and illustrator Sophia Peabody the next year. He worked at a Custom House and joined a Transcendentalist Utopian community, before marrying Peabody in 1842. The couple moved to The Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, later moving to Salem, the Berkshires, then to The Wayside in Concord. The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850, followed by a succession of other novels. A political appointment took Hawthorne and family to Europe before returning to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, leaving behind his wife and their three children.

Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England and many feature moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His work is considered part of the Romantic movement and includes novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend, the United States President Franklin Pierce.

Reviews

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Appearing first in The Token and Atlantic Souvenir (1837), this tale based on colonial history tells of the 1630 Puritan destruction of the nearby settlement of Merry Mount, together with the felling of its great maypole, the closest thing to a center of worship the rebel community possessed. Hawthorne transforms this history into allegory, showing us how “jollity and gloom” once struggled for the soul of America.

Hawthorne leaves out some interesting history in the pursuit of his allegory, particularly in regard to Thomas Morton, the founder of Merry Mount (now Quincy, Massachusetts). He was a young Elizabethan lawyer, a bit of a roisterer, a self-proclaimed member of “the tribe of Ben” which produced the Cavalier Poets. Arriving in Massachusetts in 1624 to start a fur-trading outpost, he acquired a piece of land from the Algonquin people and established trade relations: they brought him furs, he gave them guns and liquor.

The Puritans, arriving four years later, were not happy with this arrangement, but even more galling was Morton's adoption of a liberal, oddly syncretic form of Christianity which revived the pagan practices of the English countryside. When Morton erected a maypole, celebrating an old-fashioned English Mayday together with the Native American spring festival, the Puritans were horrified, particularly since Morton and his men sought out the Indian women as “consorts,” drinking and “dancing and frisking” with them, and freely calling upon the old gods under their classical names of “Bacchus” and “Flora.” All this was too much for the Puritans: the maypole had to come down.

Hawthorne leaves out the guns, the liquor, and the Indian women, and he soft pedals the classical paganism and the spring festival elements as well. Instead, he concentrates on an old style English country marriage held beneath the maypole, on the day John Endicott and his Puritans have singled out the maypole for destruction. Thus this tale becomes an account of an expulsion from the Garden in which the Puritans are the snakes bringing knowledge of good and evil but also the Lord's angels, the bearers of flaming swords.

The most charming part of this story is that it ends with a compassionate, gentle John Endicott welcoming the couple into the Puritan community. But perhaps this is not really surprising, for it reinforces Hawthorne's complex vision of the Puritan heart as a congeries of principles and secrets, a heart which holds within it all the things it believes it has conquered: witchcraft and adultery certainly, but Quakerism and paganism too.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting study between Puritanism and Paganism in New England. On the one hand we have a merry crowd in Merry Mount celebrating around Maypole on the other hand we have Puritans condemning their joy as work of the devil. Definitely worth a read. A very thought-provoking story about religious zealots and the superiority of religious concepts towards other ideas. Recommended!

[Vaishali · Rating 3 out of 5]

An awesome premise : a lush spring wedding is stormed by violent, sadistic Puritans - whips in hand and all. The downer? Hawthorne himself, who inexplicably cleaves the story midway to preach from a literary pulpit.

Quite rare of this great author ... A paradise lost in more ways than one :(

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[J.M. Brister · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Maypole at Merry Mount is a short story from Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is very typical of Hawthorne, who used early Puritan New England in many of his settings. The story highlights the clash between freedom and individuality and the the strict Puritan beliefs. As a big fan of Hawthorne, I have to give this one five stars.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Endicott is the worst missionary of the year. . .

But yes this story is a great parable of losing what makes you happy to succumb to what another tells you is 'right' or what 'should' make you happy.

Stay golden?

[mesal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hey, this wasn't bad.

[margot · Rating 4 out of 5]

(4.5) Lately I've been obsessed with stories and history set in early colonial New England... I think because I have a sort of fascination with such a horrifying yet pivotal time in American history that premises the way Americans have thought about religion, freedom, self expression, sex, etc for generations. (Also, I'm from Plymouth county, MA, & I think it's relevant to know my local history, the real life Merrymount being in Quincy!)

This was a peculiar and simple little story that illustrates the tension between the puritan view of the world and the earliest rebels of American colonial society that had a different perception on the role of folk/pagan religious practices. Though Hawthorne conveniently left out historical accuracies (such as the significant role of Morton & the inclusion of Native people in these hedonistic escapades, lol) I think he uses this allegory in a way that interestingly foreshadows the sort of establishment vs "hippies" tension that is yet to come in multiple historical contexts throughout American society as well of the irony of the mission of religious freedom which was then weaponized in the foundation of America. The merrymount gatherers can represent numerous kinds of this alterity, but I still find the integration of the young couple back into society & the vagueness of that ending peculiar. I also loved the flowery and beautiful images of spring and the maypole itself. Can't wait to read "New English Canaan."

[Alex Arevalo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my all time favorite of Hawthorne’s short stories

He contrasts the lifestyles of two groups of settlers in a 1600s New England colony: pagans and Puritans. Hawthorne characterizes the pagans as free-living people who value joy and celebration, while characterizing the Puritans as pretty cruel and strict.

You sort of inherently choose a side in this story: either one of religious tolerance or intolerance. My interpretation is that Hawthorne tries to make the choice pretty obvious.

Either way you interpret this, Hawthorne’s narrative abilities are unmatched and I <3 this story

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the way it is written, and the large historical detour it has, I still really enjoyed it. I like the symbolism and the amount of food for thought it brings up.

[Rhiannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

For a paper for Graf, but interesting traces of Puritanism and witchcraft

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

In reading about Thomas Morton this morning, I learned of this story, and thought I'd give it a go. In sophomore year of high school, we read two of Nathaniel Hawthorne's books - 'The Scarlet Letter' and 'The House of the Seven Gables'. The first one was alright, but the second was a struggle. (It didn't help that the teacher would assign us chapters to read as homework, and then the next day, he'd read aloud what we read as homework.) So, when I saw this, it seemed worth a shot to see if the 24 years since 10th grade (yikes) made any difference with liking the works of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Unfortunately, nothing's changed. Ah, well. At least it was free.

[Glen Engel-Cox · Rating 2 out of 5]

A historical sketch of the 1600s written in the early 1800s regarding a community conflict between two different settlements of New England, one that worshipped dance and gaiety and the other Puritan and stern. Hedonism loses out to Hard Work in this analogy. The way the story is told is fairly strange, at least to today’s reader, although the concept is quite understandable. But it’s not much of a story, but a picture of a time and a place that is so very far removed from us in its writing as what it was writing about in its day.

[Raina Isabela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm on a Hawthorne short-stories binge. This one which is about puritans who disrupt a pagan ritual- a marriage to be exact- to symbolize the oppression that the Native Americans had to go through at the hands of White Europeans. This also focuses on the duties of marriage and how the interruption of their ceremony is an allegory for the honeymoon phase to be over and the trials and hardships of marriage as a partnership to begin.
Hawthorne always talks about puritans in almost all of his stories that the ideas in this didn't feel as revolutionary, just bizarre and direct.

[Sabrina Bay · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an interesting approah to puratism. It was pretty straight foward in terms of the subject matter (what happened to these people with dark pasts coming to America with an idealistic thought of the place and people). It was faily short, but frankly, it was just perfect for that kind of tale, in my opinion.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply incredible. I always thought he was overrated because he was one of our first writers, so how could he be any good? Perish the thought. His writing is simply amazing. He's as good as Melville, his best friend, and he was writing only 10 years prior, so it all makes sense. Reminds me of James Joyce's short stories or Portrait of an Artist, actually.

[Freya Abbas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly I love the style of Hawthorne's prose, the imagery of the four seasons and the European pagan stuff was really cool. What's interesting is that Hawthorne definitely does not make his critique of the Puritans subtle. He spells out what he thinks of them for you pretty clearly. Endicott personifies everything Hawthorne believes is wrong with the Puritans.

[Kristi · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting commentary on the stern and punitive attitude of the Puritans. There is nothing evil about a village that dances around a Maypole until a sadistic reverand arrives and condemns the village as sinful. I have never been a fan of religion in which men make rules for god and man. Kristi & Abby Tabby Childless Cat Lady

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, it was easy to read and the author painted a beautiful picture of life at Merry Mount. Its citizens reminded me of different mythological creatures. As a result, when the dreadful Puritans arrived, it had the effect of reality intruding upon a dream.

[Sierra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read for my New World Narratives class. To be honest I really did not understand or like this story as I did my close reading. As we discussed it in class, I began to appreciate the significance and historical context of the piece, but I was still not a fan. 2 stars.

[Jeff Ferry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story was plodding and slow. The only saving gracebis that it was short.

[Coriander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this work, so beautiful and gorgeously written!!

[Belle Lipton]

 "O, Edith, this is our golden time! Tarnish it not by any pensive shadow of the mind; for it may be that nothing of futurity will be brighter than the mere remembrance of what is now passing." :)

[Aditya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ye kya tha bhai

[Viv · Rating 2 out of 5]

i had higher hopes

[jade · Rating 3 out of 5]

damn their wedding got ruinedddd

[Sean Harding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hawthorne Hawks #27
Another Hawthorne down and the quest continues, this one had a hint of nostalgia and looking back at what was and is no more, somewhat interesting.

[caliKrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short story fits one of the rare occasions where looking deeper into the story makes it much more enjoyable.
To fully enjoy this story, re-reading is key, but it pays off!! 🧊

[Forked Radish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Puritan pagans vs. pastoral pagans. Six of one, a half dozen of the other.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished reading THE MAYPOLE OF MERRY MOUNT by NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE. The people of Merry Mount, whom Hawthorne calls the "crew of Comus", celebrate the marriage of a youth and a maiden (Edgar and Edith). They dance around a may-pole and are described as resembling forest creatures. Their festivities are interrupted by the arrival of John Endicott and his Puritan followers. Endicott cuts down the may-pole and orders that the people of Merry Mount be whipped. Stricken by the newlyweds, he spares them but orders they put on more conservative clothing. He also orders that Edgar cut his hair in the "pumpkin shell" style in order to reflect the Puritans' strictness. This historical fiction short story was very good but also quite sad as the people of Merry Mount only knew joy and happiness until a group of Puritans arrive and take over.

[Manuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I thought this was an allegory for religious oppression, but it can also be read as individuality versus social norms. Incredible short story, with Hawthorne's descriptive and windy style.