Overview
Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The May-Pole of Merry Mount" contrasts the joyful, pagan-like colony of Merry Mount with the austere Puritans, centering on the symbolic destruction of the Maypole and the fate of two newlyweds whose love marks a transition from illusion to reality.
The Merry Mount Colony and Its Customs
- Merry Mount is depicted as a place of perpetual festivity, symbolized by the elaborately decorated Maypole.
- Colonists engage in costumed revelry, blending Old English traditions with wild new-world celebrations.
- The community attracts individuals seeking escape from European norms, including entertainers and "mirth makers."
- Their joy is portrayed as both genuine and a superficial escape from life's hardships.
The May Day Celebrations and Wedding
- The narrative focuses on a May Day festival, highlighting the marriage of the Lord and Lady of the May.
- The priest of Merry Mount prepares to wed the couple amidst festivities and symbolic rituals.
- The young couple, Edgar and Edith, experience a somber realization of love and impending change, sensing the fragility of their happiness.
Contrast with the Puritans
- Nearby Puritans live a strict, somber life, suppressing joy and enforcing discipline.
- Puritans regard the Merry Mount colonists as sinful and subversive, leading to mounting hostility.
- Feud between the two groups represents a broader cultural and ideological conflict over the future of New England.
The Puritan Raid and Aftermath
- Puritan leader Endicott leads an assault on Merry Mount, destroys the Maypole, and subdues the celebrants.
- The colonists are punished; some are whipped and set in stocks, while the fate of the "priest" is left for formal judgment.
- Edgar and Edith, newly married, face public humiliation and forced assimilation, but are spared harsher punishments.
- Endicott symbolically bestows the Maypole's rose wreath on the couple, predicting a new, sober life ahead.
Themes and Symbolism
- The Maypole represents joy, freedom, and resistance to Puritanical repression.
- The fall of Merry Mount signifies the triumph of somber moral order over hedonistic celebration.
- The journey of Edgar and Edith from revelry to adversity illustrates the inevitable end of youthful illusion and the entrance into real, sober life.
Historical and Allegorical Context
- The story alludes to the actual early colony at Mount Wollaston and its suppression by Puritan colonists.
- Hawthorne suggests that the clash between joyful paganism and stern Puritanism shaped the character of early New England.