Hawthorne, The Myth Of The Docile Workers And Class Bias At Work

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a brilliant writer of many stories, especially dealing with the nature of human beings, with themes including religion, perfection, and the natural world. His works have been lauded for their treatment of the human condition. Several stories, such as “The Birthmark”, “Rappaccini’s Daughter”, “Young Goodman Brown”, and “The Black Veil”, have been chosen to explain Hawthorne’s understanding of human nature. “The Birthmark” especially explains the pursuit of human perfection and the notion that nature cannot be overcome by humankind. “Rappaccini’s Daughter” details the human temptation to sin. “Young Goodman Brown” expresses the belief that once one sins, they will always be a sinner, cannot atone for their sins, and must pay for it. Finally, “The Black Veil” considers the idea of inherent sin, where the Black Veil represents all of sin in the town. Through his stories, Hawthorne conceptualizes his perspective on human nature by considering that because human beings pursue perfection, and are not content with their inherent imperfection, they experience the loss of their humanity.

In Rivethead, Ben Hamper recalls life as an assembly worker for General Motors. As he exposes the faults of the American industrial system, he also gives the reader a glimpse into the constraining reality of blue collar life. After resisting his familial ties to GM, Hamper gives into the enticing prospects of a stable job. As Hamper explains the ins and outs of the assembly line, Rensis Likert 's organizational theory is ever-present. I argue that when Likert 's prescriptive theory is actually applied, these "systems" fit less into boxes and more into a spectrum. Although an argument for human resources organizations, Likert 's ideas can be used to examine how GM fits not only into the exploitive, authoritative System I but also the benevolent, authoritative System II. First, I will give an overview of Likert 's System IV, and then apply those systems to Ben Hamper 's Rivethead to support my argument.

What were the Hawthorne Studies and how can the result is applied to the work place. pg 259-260; slide 10-5

Nathaniel Hawthorne was one of American literature's finest writers; his writing style was very distinct and unusual in some aspects. It is his background that provided this ambiguous and complex approach to writing. Hawthorne's New England heritage has, at times, been said to be the contributing factor in his works. The Puritan view of life itself was considered to be allegorical, their theology rested primarily on the idea of predestination and the separation of the saved and the damned As evident from Hawthorne's writings his intense interest in Puritanical beliefs often carried over to his novels such as, Young Goodman Brown, The Scarlet Letter, and The Minister's Black Veil just to name a few of the more well known pieces of his work.

In Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, the theme of sin viewed through the prism of many colors is the essence of the novel. The protagonist, Hester, her child, Pearl, and the Reverend Dimmesdale all live in a Puritanical society in Boston, and are subject to the Puritans' strict religious beliefs and rigid attitudes. Exposed to sin and the temptation of its concealment in varying degrees, these characters evolve through the novel in different ways. Hawthorne brilliantly displays these differences by juxtaposing extreme and vivid colors—concealment is shown in dark, drab, and gloomy shades, while openness has a bright and colorful sheen. In this way, Hawthorne establishes a dichotomy between lack of color and color in order to show

It strikes the observer of to-day that Hawthorne showed great courage in entering a field in which the honours and emoluments were so scanty

Where Hawthorne is known, he seems to be deemed a pleasant writer, with a pleasant style,--a sequestered, harmless man, from whom any deep and weighty thing would hardly be anticipated:--a man who means no meanings. But there is no man, in whom humor and love, like mountain peaks, soar to such a rapt height, as to receive the

2) Choose one of the social judgements that Hawthorne is exploring in the novel either through narrative or through characterization. What statements about human nature does Hawthorne explore? What is his message?

Hawthorne’s purpose and message in this passage is primarily to convey the aftermath of war in Salem. His message is that this isn’t how a port should be, very maltreated and neglected by her own people. Which is seen through the downhill of the infrastructure and an apathetic attitude by the people who used the ports. The damage on infrastructure is seen in “Has not of late days..been multitudinous of business” “scorned by her own who permit her to crumble… to ruin”

One difference between the motivational theories of Frederick Winslow Taylor's Scientific Management and Elton Mayo's human relations perspective as illustrated by the Hawthorne Studies is

It strikes the observer of to-day that Hawthorne showed great courage in entering a field in which the honours and emoluments were so scanty

With most writers, readers can identify what topics they tend to write about, how long their pieces often are, and what personal style these authors develop. While this is true of author Nathaniel Hawthorne, there are different elements that influence his writings. His life included many times of trials, many joys, and many ancestors that caused some turmoil within his mind. Two of his major works are influenced almost directly by his background (Werlock). Nathaniel Hawthorne threw his life into every single piece of his writing. His experiences, background, and the setting in which his life took place are prominent

The nineteenth century was a time ripe with progress and hope due to booming industrialization. As organizations and workforces grew, people looked for ways to increase their productivity and profit margins. New ideas were needed to satisfy both business owners and their employees and as such, along came theorists such as Marx or other contributors like Frederick Taylor and Elton Mayo. Taylor produced a management style coined Scientific Management whereas Mayo took a slightly different route and conducted the Hawthorne studies. Over the years theorists such as Marx, with his wildly popular theory about alienation in the workplace, have shaped our view of how management should be conducted in

George Elton Mayo is credited with founding the human relations movement. Mayo conducted an experiment in the 1920’s and 1930’s know as the Hawthorne study. Two of the main aspects of the study centered around illumination in the work place and varying levels of break time and work hours (Wickström, 2000). The illumination study consisted of four different experiments over the course of three years. In each experiement, there was a control group and a study group. In the varying studies, the researchers experimented with varying levels of light and varying sequences of increasing and decreasing the level of light (“Hawthorne effect”). Throughout the experiments, researchers would often find patterns of increased productivity, leading them to believe that they had

The studies failed to prove any positive correlations between workplace conditions and productivity. The results of the studies demonstrated that innate forces of human behavior may have a greater influence on organizations than do mechanistic incentive systems. The legacy of the Hawthorne studies and other organizational research efforts of that period began to emphasize the importance of individual and group interaction, humanistic management skills, and social relationships in the workplace.