Neutral Territory

Nathaniel Hawthorne has first discovered neutral territory when writing The Whole History of Grandfather’s Chair.This thesis,employing the academic analysis of neutral territory,conducts a close reading of the text,with the view to study Hawthorne’s construction on neutral territory in his first book for children.The thesis first,by analyzing narrative framework constituted by fictional frame and non-fictional history,discusses Hawthorne’s construction of neutral territory,in which imagination and reality imbue with each other.Comparing the history with Hawthorne’s experience,this thesis also probes the realistic significance of neutral territory for Hawthorne.Furthermore,the thesis dissects narrative time of present and past in the collection to present a neutral territory where the boundary of time has lost its rigidity and the author tries to keep balance between present and past.The meeting between grandfather and personified chair is also analyzed to probe the “truth” generated in neutral territory.Additionally,through anatomizing the narrative conflict between civilization and wildness,British government and growing America,this thesis presents a neutral territory generated in the conflict during the process of American construction.By analyzing Hawthorne’s attitude to vulnerable groups and marginalized communities,this thesis also discusses the “benevolent violence” of whites.Through the construction of neutral territory,Hawthorne has carved the unmalleable history into attractive stories for children,which is in accordance with his original purpose of revolutionizing juvenile literature;however,he has remained part of didactic elements to cater for the juvenile literature markets,which indicates his compromise while confronting reality.