Feathertop Flashcards
by Nathaniel Hawthorne — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: Feathertop
What is the original purpose Mother Rigby intends for the scarecrow she builds?
She builds the scarecrow to stand guard in her corn-patch and frighten away crows and blackbirds that have been eating her newly sprouted Indian corn.
What changes Mother Rigby's plan from making a simple scarecrow to creating a 'man'?
While admiring her handiwork, she decides the scarecrow is too good for a corn-patch and resolves to send him into the world, noting he will meet plenty of his 'brethren' — other hollow men — at every street corner.
How does Feathertop come to life?
Mother Rigby thrusts her pipe into the scarecrow's pumpkin mouth and commands him to puff. The enchanted tobacco smoke gradually gives him the illusion of life, voice, and human appearance.
What token does Mother Rigby give Feathertop to introduce himself to Justice Gookin?
She whispers a single secret word to Feathertop, which he is to whisper into the merchant's ear. The word implies some dark shared history between Gookin and the witch.
What is Mother Rigby's ultimate scheme for Feathertop in town?
She wants Feathertop to court and win the heart of pretty Polly Gookin, the magistrate's daughter, using his fine appearance and superficial wit.
How do the townspeople react when Feathertop walks down the main street?
They are dazzled by his appearance and speculate he is a French ambassador, a Spanish nobleman, or a High German dignitary. Only a dog and a small child see through the illusion.
What happens when Polly and Feathertop look into the mirror together?
The mirror reveals Feathertop's true form — a wretched patchwork of sticks, straw, and rags with a shriveled pumpkin head. Polly shrieks and faints, and Feathertop sees himself for what he truly is.
How does Feathertop choose to end his existence?
He rushes back to Mother Rigby's cottage, declares he has seen himself for the wretched empty thing he is, and flings his pipe against the chimney. Without the pipe's magic, he collapses into a heap of straw and sticks.
What does Mother Rigby decide to do with Feathertop's remains at the story's end?
She decides to make him a scarecrow again, saying it is an innocent and useful vocation that will suit him well. She concludes that he was too sensitive for the heartless world.
Who is Mother Rigby and what are her defining traits?
She is a powerful New England witch described as cunning and potent. She is both creator and controller, addressing her invisible servant Dickon for fire and displaying maternal affection mixed with fierce authority over her creation.
Who is Dickon and what role does he serve?
Dickon is Mother Rigby's invisible demonic servant who provides glowing coals for her pipe on command. He represents her connection to dark supernatural forces and is never seen, only summoned by name.
What kind of man is Justice Gookin?
He is a wealthy magistrate, merchant, council member, and church elder who holds a prominent position in town. He appears to have some dark past connection with Mother Rigby that makes him fearful and compliant.
How is Polly Gookin characterized and what is her role in the story?
She is a soft, round, fair young woman who is neither very shrewd nor very simple. She practices artifice of her own before the mirror, making her a fitting counterpart to Feathertop's illusion until the mirror reveals the truth.
What makes Feathertop different from other hollow men in the story's world?
Unlike the many charlatans and coxcombs Mother Rigby describes, Feathertop is the only one who recognizes his own emptiness. His capacity for self-awareness and genuine despair makes him more human than most actual humans.
How does the story explore the theme of appearance versus reality?
Feathertop is literally made of worthless materials yet appears magnificent through witchcraft. The townspeople are completely deceived, showing how easily people accept surface appearances without questioning the substance beneath.
What does Hawthorne suggest about social hypocrisy through this story?
Mother Rigby repeatedly notes that Feathertop will find plenty of his 'brethren' in the world — people just as hollow and artificial as her scarecrow. Society rewards polished surfaces while remaining blind to inner emptiness.
How does the story treat the theme of self-knowledge?
Feathertop's moment of self-recognition in the mirror destroys him — he cannot bear existing once he sees his true nature. Hawthorne implies that most people survive precisely because they never achieve such honest self-awareness.
What is ironic about Feathertop's moral superiority over real humans?
A creature made of sticks and straw proves more honest and morally sensitive than the humans around him. His refusal to continue deceiving others contrasts with a society that thrives on mutual deception.
What does the enchanted pipe symbolize in the story?
The pipe represents the artificial means by which people sustain their false identities. Just as Feathertop needs constant puffs to maintain his illusion, people rely on external trappings to project their social personas.
What is the significance of the mirror as a literary device?
The mirror functions as an agent of truth that strips away all illusion. Described as one of the truest plates in the world and incapable of flattery, it serves as the catalyst for the climactic moment of self-revelation.
How does Hawthorne use the metafictional aside about romance writers?
He compares Feathertop to 'lukewarm and abortive characters' that romance writers create from used-up materials, including himself. This self-referential moment breaks the fourth wall and deepens the allegory about artificiality.
What is the role of the child and the dog as the only ones who see through Feathertop?
They represent uncorrupted perception. The child and dog lack the social conditioning that makes adults susceptible to appearances, reinforcing Hawthorne's point that sophistication breeds gullibility.
What does the word 'simulacrum' mean as used in the story?
A simulacrum is an image or representation of something, often one that is superficial or merely imitative. Hawthorne uses it to describe Feathertop as a hollow copy of a human being.
What does 'dulcified' mean in the context of Mother Rigby's mood?
Dulcified means sweetened or made agreeable. Hawthorne uses it to describe how Mother Rigby's pipe of tobacco further softened her already pleasant humor that morning.
What does Mother Rigby mean when she says Feathertop will meet 'plenty of his brethren at every street-corner'?
She means the world is full of people who are just as hollow and artificial as her scarecrow — men of straw who present fine exteriors while being empty inside. It is her cynical commentary on human society.