Reading through even the first few chapters of Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, one quickly is able to identify strong parallels between Hawthorne's style and tendencies and those of Edgar Allan Poe (it's no wonder the two of them vie for the same short story readers). One of the most prominent similarities that I have remarked is the attention both authors pay to the human face and the various facial expressions and changes that it undergoes.
Poe is seemingly obsessed with the face and eyes, as we see on numerous occasions throughout several of his short stories. In "Ligeia", he watches Rowena's face closely as she moves back and forth between life and death: "There was now a partial glow upon the forehead, upon the cheek and throat- a perceptible warmth pervaded the whole frame...Suddenly, the colour fled, the pulsation ceased, the lips resumed the expression of the dead..." (Poe 652-653). Later on in the story, he still analyzes the woman's mouth, chin, dimples, and other facial features.
Hawthorne has a similar focus on the face and its features. As we watch Hester emerge from the dark prison with Pearl gripped at her bosom, "she took the baby on her arm, and, with a burning blush, and yet a haughty smile, and a glance that would not be abashed, looked around at her townspeople and neighbors" (Hawthorne 480). Once again, we notice this close analysis and focus on the human face. This motif runs throughout The Scarlet Letter, especially when it comes to characterizing and portraying Pearl. Hawthorne describes the "peculiar smiles" and "the freakish, elvish cast" of her eyes, for example (Hawthorne 503).
Overall, as we continue to experience more of these 19th Century works, it is always interesting to see how the texts have evolved but also how the writers have influenced each other's works and styles.
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