From “The Ambitious Guest” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
1. One September night, a family had gathered round their hearth and piled it high with the driftwood of mountain streams, the dry cones of the pine, and the splintered ruins of great trees that had come crashing down the precipice. Up the chimney roared the fire and brightened the room with its broad blaze. The faces of the father and mother had a sober gladness; the children laughed; the eldest daughter was the image of Happiness at seventeen; and the aged grandmother, who sat knitting in the warmest place, was the image of Happiness grown old. They had found the “herb, heart’s ease,” in the bleakest spot of all New England. This family was situated in the Notch of the White Hills, where the wind was sharp throughout the year, and pitilessly cold in the winter,—giving their cottage all its fresh inclemency before it descended on the valley of the Saco. They dwelt in a cold spot and a dangerous one; for a mountain towered above their heads, so steep that the stones would often rumble down its sides and startle them at midnight.
2. The daughter had just uttered some simple jest that filled them all with mirth, when the wind came through the Notch and seemed to pause before their cottage—rattling the door, with a sound of wailing and lamentation, before it passed into the valley. For a moment it saddened them, though there was nothing unusual in the tones. But the family were glad again when they perceived that the latch was lifted by some traveler, whose footsteps had been unheard amid the dreary blast which heralded his approach, and wailed as he was entering and went moaning away from the door.
3. Though they dwelt in such solitude, these people held daily converse with the world. The romantic pass of the Notch is a great artery, through which the lifeblood of internal commerce is continually throbbing between Maine, on one side, and the Green Mountains and the shores of the St. Lawrence, on the other. The stagecoach always drew up before the door of the cottage. The wayfarer, with no companion but his staff, paused here to exchange a word, that the sense of loneliness might not utterly overcome him ere he could pass through the cleft of the mountain, or reach the first house in the valley. And here the teamster, on his way to Portland market, would put up for the night; and, if a bachelor, might sit an hour beyond the usual bedtime, and steal a kiss from the mountain maid at parting. It was one of those primitive taverns where the traveler pays only for food and lodging but meets with a homely kindness beyond all price. When the footsteps were heard, therefore, between the outer door and the inner one, the whole family rose up, grandmother, children, and all, as if about to welcome someone who belonged to them, and whose fate was linked with theirs.
4. The door was opened by a young man. His face at first wore the melancholy expression, almost despondency, of one who travels a wild and bleak road, at nightfall and alone, but soon brightened up when he saw the kindly warmth of his reception. He felt his heart spring forward to meet them all, from the old woman, who wiped a chair with her apron, to the little child that held out its arms to him. One glance and smile placed the stranger on a footing of innocent familiarity with the eldest daughter.
5. “Ah, this fire is the right thing!” cried he; “especially when there is such a
pleasant circle round it. I am quite benumbed; for the Notch is just like the
pipe of a great pair of bellows; it has blown a terrible blast in my face all the
way from Bartlett.”
6. “Then you are going toward Vermont?” said the master of the house, as he helped to take a light knapsack off the young man’s shoulders.
7. ” Yes; to Burlington, and far enough beyond,” replied he. “I meant to have been at Ethan Crawford’s tonight, but a pedestrian lingers along such a road as this. It is no matter; for when I saw this good fire, and all your cheerful faces, I felt as if you had kindled it on purpose for me, and were waiting for my arrival. So I shall sit down among you, and make myself at home.”
8. The frank-hearted stranger had just drawn his chair to the fire when something like a heavy footstep was heard without, rushing down the steep
side of the mountain, as with long and rapid strides, and taking such a leap in passing the cottage as to strike the opposite precipice. The family held their breath because they knew the sound, and their guest held his by instinct.
FROM THOSE 8 PARAGRAPHS SUMMERIZE THE STORY ABOVE IN (3-4 SENTENCES ANSWERING THESE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS... “The Ambitious Guest” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is about? The main point (message/theme) Hawthorne is presenting is?
"The Ambitious Guest" by Nathaniel Hawthorne is about a family living in a remote and dangerous mountainous area known as the Notch. They experience the arrival of a young traveler, who seeks refuge from the cold and finds warmth and companionship with the family. However, their peaceful evening is interrupted by a sudden and fatal disaster that reminds them of the constant danger they face in their isolated location.
The main point or theme presented by Hawthorne in this story is the fragility of human life and the unpredictability of nature. The story emphasizes the vulnerability of individuals in the face of forces beyond their control, such as the harsh weather and treacherous mountain surroundings. It serves as a reminder of the transient nature of human existence and the need to appreciate the simple joys and connections amidst the impermanence of life.