"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment:" Story Analysis

Author’s  Biography:

Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on 4 July 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts in the family home at 27 Hardy Street, now a museum. His childhood was calm, a little isolated but far from unhappy, especially since as a handsome and attractive only son he was idolized by his mother and his two sisters. Hawthorne attended Bowdoin College from 1821 to 1825. At Bowdoin, Hawthorne read widely and received solid instruction in English composition and the classics, particularly in Latin. Hawthorne was not interested in entering any of the traditional professions; he was an avid reader and already writing his own short stories and had many published in magazines. In Boston on 9 July 1842, Hawthorne married painter and fellow transcendentalist Sophia Peabody with whom he would have three children; daughters Una (1844-1877) and Rose (1851-1926), and future author Julian Hawthorne (1846-1934). Nathaniel Hawthorne died on 19 May 1864. Hawthorne lies buried on Author’s Ridge in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, Massachusetts.

Short Summary:

It is the story about four friends with who Dr Heidegger wanted to prove an experiment. Their lives had been very miserable and unfortunate with the pass of the years. Dr. Heidegger invited them to his house. Once they were together he pass them into his laboratory. That place has very unusual, dusty and dark. The laboratory had a painting of a young woman dressed with silk, Sylvia, who one time was Dr Heidegger’s fiancé. The Doctor grabbed one of those books and took out a brown and almost crumbling rose. Before the first try for the experiment, Heidegger explains to his friends that the rose was given for the woman with he would marry once and she have died because of a medicine he gave her for an illness. He have been keeping the rose for fifty five years. In a table was a glass vase with a liquid like water, suddenly Dr Heidegger poured some of that water to the rose, and the rose starts to bloom again. Their friends were very surprised and he explained that the “water” was from the Fountain of Youth. Whoever drink of that water will be young again. The experiment was at first for his friends and they asked about it. Before Dr Heidegger will give them some liquid he said, "You have to think first about your mistakes in the past to not commit them again". So they drank. All of them were young again, but they actually forgot about what they did and start all over again to do the same mistakes. Mr. Gascon, Mr Medbourne and Colonel Killigrew start fighting for whom they fought once, the young at that moment, Widow Wycherly. They were so thirsty for that magic water, they didn’t hear a thing about what Dr Heidegger told them, and started to make plans to find where the “Fountain of Youth” was.    

Plot:

Conflict:

 Dr. Heidegger invited his friends to make an experiment with them.

Rising Actions:

- He invites 3 old friends and 1 old woman friend to his house.
- He passed them to his laboratory.

- He asks for help with an experiment.
- He uses the rose given for his dead fiancé to they see what is the experiment about.

Climax:

Dr. Heidegger’s friends drank the “water” and became young again.

Resolution:

Their friends didn’t think about their past mistakes and with the “new youth” they just want to do whatever they wanted but now young again.

Characters:

Dr Heidegger	Mr Gascon	Mr Medbourne	Colonel Killigrew	Widow Wycherly
A very wise man, but strange too. He lost his beautiful fiancé for an illness she had.	He was a old man that have lost everything, once he was a politician.  A white beard man.	A greedy man who lost his fortune. Also a white beard man.	He was a soldier but had troubles with his health because he ate and drank too much.	Once was a beautiful young woman but conceited. Now she owns a white hair.

Moral:

Sometimes persons commit mistakes in their lifes that determined situations in their living. Have a second chance it not always easy. At that point you have to prove to got over the past situation and learned from it, and do it all over again but the best you can and always remembering the fail.

Irony:

It is kind of funny how those persons had the opportunity to live once again their youth and they didn’t learn a thing from the past mistakes. And see them like crazies trying to find the way to have always that “Fountain” to make with the water, whatever they want.