The Ambitious Guest

Though not a typical Dark Romantic short story by Hawthorne, “The Ambitious Guest” still has traits of Dark Romanticism. What do you think these traits are? How does it affect your reading of the story?

The narrator repeatedly refers to the guest as having “dignity” and being “proud” (302, 304). The guest is further described as both proud and kind or gentle. To what effect does the narrator describe the guest in this detail?

Is there an antagonist in this story? If so, who, or what, do you think it is?

What do you think about the narrative voice? Do you think the narrative voice sympathizes with the plight of the family and the guest, or do you think it is making fun of the characters’ naivety?

Everyone speaks about their ambitions, apart from the mother. Why do you think this is the case? What is the effect of this? How is this connected to the eldest daughter’s desire?

Why are the guest and the father so obsessed with monuments? What does their ambition tell us about them?

Why is the wind constantly described as “wailing” or lamenting? Is the setting in “The Ambitious Guest” a character as well?

The story is written in third-person point of view. What would happen or change in the story if it were written in first-person point of view? Whose perspective would you want to read the story from?