Ethan Brand by Nathaniel Hawthorne (1850): A Review
Title : Ethan Brand Author : Nathaniel Hawthorne Publication Year : 1850 Rating : ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Genre : Short story, Gothic Fiction, Dark Romanticism, psychological allegory “Ethan Brand” follows a deeply Faustian pursuit of forbidden knowledge, although there is no formal contract with the Devil. No signatures, witnesses, or infernal paperwork are required. Brand simply sacrifices his humanity to his intellectual ambition, which turns out to be more efficient and considerably bleaker. For eighteen years, Ethan Brand wanders the world searching for the Unpardonable Sin. After studying other people, treating their suffering as material for his investigation, and generally conducting the least ethical research project imaginable, he discovers that the sin has been growing within himself all along. He defines it as: “The sin of an intellect that triumphed over the sense of brotherhood with man and reverence for God, and sacrificed everything to its own mighty claims!” The Unpardonable Sin...
