Hyperion (Longfellow)
Encyclopedia
Hyperion: A Romance is one of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
's earliest works, published in 1839. It is a prose romance which was published alongside his first volume of poems, Voices of the Night.
. The character's wandering is partially inspired by the death of a friend. The author had also recently lost someone close to him. Longfellow's first wife, Mary Storer Potter, died in Rotterdam
in the Netherlands after a miscarriage in 1836; Longfellow was deeply saddened by her death and noted in his diary: "All day I am weary and sad ... and at night I cry myself to sleep like a child."
Hyperion was inspired in part by his trips to Europe as well as his then-unsuccessful courtship of Frances Appleton, daughter of businessman Nathan Appleton
. In the book, Flemming falls in love with an Englishwoman, Mary Ashburton, who rejects him.
(1835), was met with an indifferent reception. Its lackluster performance as well as Longfellow's commitments to his Harvard College
professorship prevented him from producing significant literary works for a time until his poem "A Psalm of Life
" and Hyperion. The novel was published in 1839 by Samuel Coleman, who would also publish Voices of the Night, though he went bankrupt shortly after. Longfellow was paid $375 for it and was optimistic. As he wrote to his father: "As to success, I am very sanguine... it will take a great deal of persuasion to convince me that the book is not good."
As Longfellow's fame increased over time, so did interest in his early work. By 1857, he calculated Hyperion had sold 14,550 copies.
The initial publication of Hyperion met with lukewarm or hostile critical response. Its publication was overshadowed by Longfellow's first poetry collection, Voices of the Night, which was published five months later. Critic Edgar Allan Poe
briefly reviewed Hyperion in Burton's Gentleman's Magazine
in October 1839 and concluded the book was "without design, without shape, without beginning, middle, or end... what earthly object has his book accomplished? — what definite impression has it left?" In 1899, composer Edward Elgar
sent a copy of the book to his Austrian colleague Hans Richter
, noting it as "the little book ... from which I, as a child, received my first idea of the great German nations". 20th-century literary scholar Edward Wagenknecht
referred to Hyperion as a "disorganized Jean-Paul Richter
kind of romance".
The thinly veiled autobiographical elements of Hyperion did not go unnoticed; Frances Appleton was aware that she was the basis for the Mary character. Embarrassed by this, as biographer Charles Calhoun writes, she "displayed a new degree of frostiness toward her hapless suitor." After receiving a copy as a gift from the author, she wrote in a letter: "There are really some exquisite things in this book, though it is desultory, objectless, a thing of shreds and patches like the author’s mind... The hero is evidently himself, and... the heroine is wooed (like some persons I know have been) by the reading of German ballads in her unwilling ears. " Longfellow himself admitted the deliberate resemblance in a letter: "The feelings of the book are true; the events of the story mostly fictitious. The heroine, of course, bears a resemblance to the lady, without being an exact portrait."
It was not until May 10, 1843, seven years after his wooing began, that Frances Appleton wrote a letter agreeing to marry. After receiving the letter, Longfellow was too restless to take a carriage and instead walked 90 minutes to her house. They were married shortly thereafter. Nathan Appleton bought the Craigie House
as a wedding present to the pair and Longfellow lived there for the rest of his life.
The book often alludes to and quotes from German writers such as Heinrich Heine
and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
. Goethe's Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre (1796) was a likely model for the book. The book's descriptions of Germany would later inspire its use as a sort of travel guide for American tourists in that country.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
's earliest works, published in 1839. It is a prose romance which was published alongside his first volume of poems, Voices of the Night.
Overview
Hyperion follows a young American protagonist named Paul Flemming as he travels through GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The character's wandering is partially inspired by the death of a friend. The author had also recently lost someone close to him. Longfellow's first wife, Mary Storer Potter, died in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
in the Netherlands after a miscarriage in 1836; Longfellow was deeply saddened by her death and noted in his diary: "All day I am weary and sad ... and at night I cry myself to sleep like a child."
Hyperion was inspired in part by his trips to Europe as well as his then-unsuccessful courtship of Frances Appleton, daughter of businessman Nathan Appleton
Nathan Appleton
Nathan Appleton was an American merchant and politician.- Biography :Appleton was born in New Ipswich, New Hampshire, the son of Isaac Appleton and his wife Mary Adams. Appleton's father was a church deacon, and Nathan was brought up in "strictest form of Calvinistic Congregationalism." He was...
. In the book, Flemming falls in love with an Englishwoman, Mary Ashburton, who rejects him.
Publication history
Longfellow's first prose work, Outre-MerOutre-Mer
Outre-Mer: A Pilgrimage Beyond the Sea is a prose collection which was the first major work by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The term "outre-mer" is French for "overseas".-Overview:...
(1835), was met with an indifferent reception. Its lackluster performance as well as Longfellow's commitments to his Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
professorship prevented him from producing significant literary works for a time until his poem "A Psalm of Life
A psalm of life
"A Psalm of Life" is a poem written by American writer Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.-Composition and publication history:Longfellow wrote the poem shortly after completing lectures on German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and was heavily inspired by him...
" and Hyperion. The novel was published in 1839 by Samuel Coleman, who would also publish Voices of the Night, though he went bankrupt shortly after. Longfellow was paid $375 for it and was optimistic. As he wrote to his father: "As to success, I am very sanguine... it will take a great deal of persuasion to convince me that the book is not good."
As Longfellow's fame increased over time, so did interest in his early work. By 1857, he calculated Hyperion had sold 14,550 copies.
Critical response
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
briefly reviewed Hyperion in Burton's Gentleman's Magazine
Burton's Gentleman's Magazine
Burton's Gentleman's Magazine or, more simply, Burton's Magazine, was a literary publication published in Philadelphia in 1837-1841. Its founder was William Evans Burton, an English-born immigrant to the United States who also managed a theatre and was a minor actor.-Overview:The magazine included...
in October 1839 and concluded the book was "without design, without shape, without beginning, middle, or end... what earthly object has his book accomplished? — what definite impression has it left?" In 1899, composer Edward Elgar
Edward Elgar
Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...
sent a copy of the book to his Austrian colleague Hans Richter
Hans Richter (conductor)
Hans Richter was an Austrian orchestral and operatic conductor.-Biography:Richter was born in Raab , Kingdom of Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Empire. His mother was opera-singer Jozsefa Csazenszky. He studied at the Vienna Conservatory...
, noting it as "the little book ... from which I, as a child, received my first idea of the great German nations". 20th-century literary scholar Edward Wagenknecht
Edward Wagenknecht
Edward Wagenknecht was an American literary critic and teacher, who specialized in 19th century American literature. He wrote and edited many books on literature and movies, and taught for many years at various universities, including the University of Chicago and Boston University...
referred to Hyperion as a "disorganized Jean-Paul Richter
Jean Paul
Jean Paul , born Johann Paul Friedrich Richter, was a German Romantic writer, best known for his humorous novels and stories.-Life and work:...
kind of romance".
The thinly veiled autobiographical elements of Hyperion did not go unnoticed; Frances Appleton was aware that she was the basis for the Mary character. Embarrassed by this, as biographer Charles Calhoun writes, she "displayed a new degree of frostiness toward her hapless suitor." After receiving a copy as a gift from the author, she wrote in a letter: "There are really some exquisite things in this book, though it is desultory, objectless, a thing of shreds and patches like the author’s mind... The hero is evidently himself, and... the heroine is wooed (like some persons I know have been) by the reading of German ballads in her unwilling ears. " Longfellow himself admitted the deliberate resemblance in a letter: "The feelings of the book are true; the events of the story mostly fictitious. The heroine, of course, bears a resemblance to the lady, without being an exact portrait."
It was not until May 10, 1843, seven years after his wooing began, that Frances Appleton wrote a letter agreeing to marry. After receiving the letter, Longfellow was too restless to take a carriage and instead walked 90 minutes to her house. They were married shortly thereafter. Nathan Appleton bought the Craigie House
Longfellow National Historic Site
The Longfellow House–Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site, also known as the Vassall-Craigie-Longfellow House and, until December 2010, Longfellow National Historic Site, is a historic site located at 105 Brattle Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For almost fifty years, it was the...
as a wedding present to the pair and Longfellow lived there for the rest of his life.
Analysis
Through the character of Paul Flemming, Longfellow airs his own aesthetic beliefs. In his dialogue, Flemming provides quips like "The artist shows his character in the choice of his subject" and "Nature is a revelation of God; Art is a revelation of man".The book often alludes to and quotes from German writers such as Heinrich Heine
Heinrich Heine
Christian Johann Heinrich Heine was one of the most significant German poets of the 19th century. He was also a journalist, essayist, and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of Lieder by composers such as Robert Schumann...
and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer, pictorial artist, biologist, theoretical physicist, and polymath. He is considered the supreme genius of modern German literature. His works span the fields of poetry, drama, prose, philosophy, and science. His Faust has been called the greatest long...
. Goethe's Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre (1796) was a likely model for the book. The book's descriptions of Germany would later inspire its use as a sort of travel guide for American tourists in that country.