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The Blithedale Romance
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Used
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Winchester, Virginia, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Boston: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1852. First American Edition. First printing, with the copyright page notices lower on the page, and the capital O in the spine imprint. Octavo (19cm). Blindstamped brown cloth, titled in gilt on spine; pale yellow endpapers; viii,288pp; 4pp publisher's catalogue at front, dated July 1852. Sound but cocked and rubbed, cloth cracking over rear joint, wear to extremities, occasional foxing: Good.
A novel based on Hawthorne's experiences at Brook Farm, a transcendentalist "community of utopian idealists near Boston" in which Hawthorne invested and where he lived briefly (ANB). Preceded by the British edition. CLARK A20.2.a. BAL 7611, binding A.
A novel based on Hawthorne's experiences at Brook Farm, a transcendentalist "community of utopian idealists near Boston" in which Hawthorne invested and where he lived briefly (ANB). Preceded by the British edition. CLARK A20.2.a. BAL 7611, binding A.
Synopsis
A superb depiction of a utopian community that cannot survive the individual passions of its members. In language that is suggestive and often erotic, Nathaniel Hawthorne tells a tale of failed possibilities and multiple personal betrayals as he explores the contrasts between what his characters espouse and what they actually experience in an 'ideal' community. A theme of unrealized sexual possibilities serves as a counterpoint to the other failures at Blithedale: class and sex distinctions are not eradicated, and communal work on the farm proves personally unrewarding and economically disastrous. Based in part on Hawthorne's own experiences at Brook Farm, an experimental socialist community, The Blithedale Romance is especially timely in light of renewed interest in self-sufficient and other cooperative societies.
Read More: Identifying first editions of The Blithedale Romance
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Details
- Bookseller
- Lorne Bair Rare Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 58874
- Title
- The Blithedale Romance
- Author
- HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Book Condition
- Used
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First American Edition
- Publisher
- Ticknor, Reed, and Fields
- Place of Publication
- Boston
- Date Published
- 1852
- Bookseller catalogs
- Literature Before 1900;
Terms of Sale
Lorne Bair Rare Books
All items are offered subject to prior sale. Orders must be prepaid, though billing may be arranged for institutions and customers with established credit. Payment may be made by Check, Money Order, Paypal or by valid credit card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover). Any item may be returned within 10 days of receipt for full refund. Signed and manuscript items carry an unlimited guarantee of authenticity.
About the Seller
Lorne Bair Rare Books
Biblio member since 2006
Winchester, Virginia
About Lorne Bair Rare Books
Lorne Bair Rare Books specializes in books, mansuscripts, and printed ephemera relating to American Social History, with an emphasis on radical and utopian movements of the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. We are available in our showroom by appointment, at shows, and on-line through various booksellers' sites or at our website www.lornebair.com.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Cocked
- Refers to a state where the spine of a book is lightly "twisted" in such a way that the front and rear boards of a book do not...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Copyright page
- The page in a book that describes the lineage of that book, typically including the book's author, publisher, date of...
- BAL
- Bibliography of American Literature (commonly abbreviated as BAL in descriptions) is the quintessential reference work for any...
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
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