Project Gutenberg 2005-11-01 Public domain in the USA. 93 Hawthorne, Nathaniel 1804 1864 Fire Worship (From "Mosses from an Old Manse") Wikipedia page about this book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosses_from_an_Old_Manse Reading ease score: 58.4 (10th to 12th grade). Somewhat difficult to read. David Widger and Al Haines Updated: 2022-11-09. "Fire Worship (From 'Mosses from an Old Manse')" by Nathaniel Hawthorne is an essay written in the early to mid-19th century, during the American Romantic period. This reflective piece captures the transition from traditional open fireplaces to the modernity of the air-tight stove, symbolizing a loss of warmth, connection, and the deep human experiences tied to fire. The essay conveys Hawthorne's nostalgia for the past and critiques the societal shift towards utilitarian inventions that lack the emotional and communal significance of a lively hearth. In this essay, Hawthorne mourns the decline of the open fireplace, which served not only as a source of warmth but also as a centerpiece for familial gatherings, storytelling, and shared companionship. He contrasts the communal spirit fostered by the flames of an open fire with the cold, isolating nature of a stove that confines fire to an iron prison. By illustrating vivid scenes of life around the hearth—from the clergyman's use of fire to inspire his sermons to the comforts it brought to families—Hawthorne highlights the detrimental effects of modernity on social interactions and the diminishing importance of shared, spontaneous moments. Overall, the essay serves as a lament for lost connections and the profound role that fire played in nurturing human relationships and emotional well-being. (This is an automatically generated summary.) en Short stories New England -- Social life and customs -- Fiction PS Text Browsing: Culture/Civilization/Society Browsing: Literature Browsing: Fiction 43709 43717 2024-12-04T09:43:52.515296 2023-10-04T09:13:30.066376 text/html text/html 43380 2022-11-09T02:48:30 text/html 107995 2024-12-04T09:43:58.422269 application/epub+zip 106970 2024-12-04T09:43:56.119271 application/epub+zip 71500 2024-12-04T09:43:54.870296 application/epub+zip 253623 2024-12-04T09:44:00.023278 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 247456 2024-12-04T09:43:57.615265 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 214000 2022-09-05T03:32:52.748641 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 37876 37904 2024-12-04T09:43:52.259322 2023-10-04T09:13:29.894386 text/plain; charset=us-ascii text/plain 37519 2022-11-09T02:49:02 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 20031 2024-12-04T09:44:00.147253 application/rdf+xml 18771 2024-12-04T09:43:55.421276 image/jpeg 4115 2024-12-04T09:43:55.144292 image/jpeg 15049 2022-11-09T02:49:32 application/octet-stream application/zip 16233 2022-11-09T02:49:51 application/octet-stream application/zip 107598 2024-12-04T09:43:52.520308 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia