"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment:" Story Analysis

 

                                                   Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)

A short biography of the author

 Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts, on July 4, 1804. A leg injury forced Hawthorne to remain immobile for a considerable period, during which he developed an exceptional taste for reading and thinking. His childhood was calm, a little isolated but far from unhappy. Hawthorne attended Bowdoin College from 1821 to 1825. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. He published several short stories in various periodicals which he collected in 1837 as Twice-Told Tales. Then Hawthorne spent the years 1825 to 1837 in his mother's Salem household. In 1836 Hawthorne served as the editor of the American Magazine of Useful and Entertaining Knowledge. Hawthorne married Sophia Peabody on July 9, 1842. In April 1846, Hawthorne was officially appointed as the "Surveyor for the District of Salem and Beverly and Inspector of the Revenue for the Port of Salem. Hawthorne is one the America's greatest writers.

The summary of the story

 The story Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment is about an old man called Heidegger that once invited a four of his old friends at his house for an experiment. He offered them water from the "Fountain of Youth", but before they drink he told them to think about the mistakes they made in their youth. Later they drank the water and became young again, but they made the mistakes again. The Dr. Heidegger saw that they have learned nothing from their mistakes. They taught him a lesson.

Plot analysis

Conflict

The Dr. Heidegger wanted to do an experiment with his friends who were unfortunate in their lives. He wanted to test these people.

Rising Action

●Dr. Heidegger

Once, he invited four friends to meet with him at his house. They were Mr. Medbourne, Mr. Gascon, Mr. Colonel Killigrew and Mrs. Widow Wycherly.

●The Laboratory

The Dr. Heidegger needed help from his friends for an experiment, so he showed them the way. The laboratory was certainly an unusual place. Around the walls stood tall wooden bookcases. Also in one of the walls was a large painting of a young woman. She was going to marry with Heidegger.

●The Rose

The Dr. Heidegger opened a book and removed a rose from its pages. The rose turned brown and seemed ready to crumble to dust. Fifty-five years ago this rose as given to him by Silvia, the woman that he wanted to marry. In the middle of the table was a large glass vase filled with a liquid that look like a water. Heidegger poured some of the water onto the rose. Then the rose began to bloom.

●The Fountain of Youth

The Dr. Heidegger explained to his friends that the water of the glass vase was from the fountain of youth and makes everything young again.

●The Experiment

The Dr. Heidegger gave his friends glasses of water from the fountain of youth, but before they drink he told them to think about the mistakes they made when they were young. A moment later they felt happier and better, so they wanted more water. Their eyes grew bright and clear, so they again drank the water. They were now young.

Climax

Mr. Medbourne, Mr. Gascon and Mr. Colonel Killigrew all gathered around Mrs. Widow Wycherly. They wanted to dance with her. They were fighting. As they struggled, the table was knocked over. The vase fell to the ground and smashed into a thousand pieces. The precious water from the Fountain of Youth flowed slowly across the floor.

Resolution

They stopped to fighting and looked at the Dr. Heidegger. He was looking at the rose from fifty-five years ago. While they were looking at it, the rose began to shrink. Just as the rose wilted, they began to feel the same old person than before. The Doctor’s friends were not listening to him. They didn't learn about their mistakes and they planned to travel to Florida to found the Fountain of Youth.

Analysis the story’s characters

Physical and psychological traits

●Dr. Heidegger  

He was an old men. He had white hair. He was a strange man. He was a scientist. He was a disappointed man. He was a good reader, smart, respectful, friendly, kind and loyal.

●Mr. Medbourne

He was an old men. He had white long hair and white beard. He had been a rich man. He was greedy. He was a poor panhandler man. He was sad and unsuccessful. He was an affectionate man. He was unhappy and unfortunate man.

●Mr. Gascon

He was an old men. He had white short hair and white beard. He had been a famous politician. He was dishonest. He was a thief. He was poor. He lived in shame. He was a loving man. He was sad an unfortunate man.

●Mr. Colonel Killigrew

He was an old men. He had white short hair and white beard. He was once a great soldier. He was brave. He was a gourmand and alcoholic man. He was vicious. He was unhealthy. He was sick. He was an amorous man. He was unlucky and unfortunate.

●Mrs. Widow Wycherly

She was an elderly woman. She had white short hair. She was once quite beautiful. She was conceited. She was egocentric, narcissistic, vain, flashy, superficial and materialistic. She was frustrated because she is not young anymore.

●Silvia Ward

She died on the day that she was to marry Dr. Heidegger. She was a young woman. She was beautiful.

Moral of the story

The moral of this story is that we have to take advantage of the opportunity. When you get it, never let it go, because if you let it go, maybe could never appear again. We have to learn from our mistakes, and don't waste the opportunities. Also we should to be better persons every day. We have to improve our daily lives, leaving behind the envy and greed. We have to be kind to others.

Personal opinion

I like the way that the author taught his readers that we are responsible for our actions. I think that the story is very interesting because it makes you think about what kind of life you want. You can learn from your mistakes, or make the same mistakes over and over. I think that the irony is when the Dr. Heidegger said that they don't have learned anything from their mistakes because they made it again.