The Marble Faun: Or, The Romance of Monte BeniFrom the author of The Scarlet Letter: The thrilling tale of three American artists whose search for artistic inspiration leads to romance and murder. The sculpture galleries and classical architecture of nineteenth-century Rome set the stage for Nathaniel Hawthorne’s gothic romance The Marble Faun. While touring the Eternal City in search of inspiration and authentic beauty, American artists Miriam, Hilda, and Kenyon soon discover that their Italian companion, Donatello—charming and in love with Miriam—bears a striking resemblance to the marble Faun of Praxiteles. But for Miriam, their carefree pursuit is also an escape from a dark past. And when a mysterious man appears, trailing the friends’ path and tormenting Miriam, the group’s travels take a sinister turn. The first novel to explore the effects of European sensibilities on American values, The Marble Faun anticipated the genre of travel novels later exemplified by The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James and The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain. Vividly evoking the great works of art and architecture in Rome, it also found favor as an unlikely guidebook for many Victorian tourists. James Russell Lowell said: “The nineteenth century has produced no more purely original writer than Mr. Hawthorne.” Here, the author of The House of the Seven Gables offers an unforgettable and suspenseful tale. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices. |
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answered Miriam antique Apennines Arch of Titus arches artist asked Miriam Beatrice Cenci beautiful beheld beneath breath Capitoline Hill Capuchins catacomb church close Coliseum companion creature dance dark dead monk dear delicate delightful dream earth evanescent evil exclaimed Miriam eyes face fancy Faun feel flinging forever fountain gazed gentle girl glance gloomy hand happy haunted heart human idea imagination innocent Italian Italy Kenyon laughing leave light look maiden man’s marble marble Faun mirth mood moonlight moonshine NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE natural never once painter palace passion perhaps piazza picture pillars Pincian Hill poor Porta del Popolo Praxiteles pray Roman Rome ruin sacristan scene sculptor seemed shadow shrine side signorina sketches smile sorrow soul spectre spirit statue steps stone strange sunshine sympathy thing thought touch tower Trajan Trevi truth turned vanished wall whispered wild woman wonder wrought young youth