Beyond Two Endings: The “Septimius” Manuscripts and Hawthorne’s Perspective of Civil War America

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article reconsiders the two endings of the “Septimius” manuscripts and reevaluates the potential of Hawthorne’s romance in his final years. Although the complexity of Hawthorne’s later works and his perspective on the Civil War have gained significant scholarly attention, earlier scholarship generally assumes that the two “Septimius” manuscripts, “Septimius Felton” and “Septimius Norton,” would have had the same ending if only Hawthorne had completed them. Challenging this assumption, this article argues that the two manuscripts are more different than understood heretofore and that it was imperative for Hawthorne to retain two versions of the story. By reexamining Hawthorne’s complex writing process and the recurring themes in his later works, this article illuminates Hawthorne’s exploration of the significance of America in the transnational history of civil wars and highlights his critique not only of the American Civil War but also of America’s history of civil wars.