Book burning is often seen as one of the greatest crimes against literature and the intellect. Shockingly, some important books were burned – by the hands of their authors.
Nathaniel Hawthorne is considered one of America’s great authors. He had much to be proud of when he finished his first novel, Fanshawe. Most of the narrative is exciting and Hawthorne’s powerful prose is on full display. He published many of his early works anonymously and would only claim them once he was ready to enter the spotlight. This was not the case with Fanshawe. As time went on, Hawthorne came to believe the book was subpar, so he never attached his name to the novel. Then he took his dissatisfaction a step further by burning all the copies in his possession.
Hawthorne completionists need not despair. In 1876, a full twelve years after the author’s passing, James R. Osgood came upon a surviving copy of Fanshawe and republished the novel. The book came with an introductory note saying the public could now read it in order to “[trace] the growth of [Hawthorne’s] genius.”
Regardless of what one thinks of Fanshawe, the republication was certainly an important and necessary act of historical preservation – or was it? Is it our place to read the book and decide for ourselves? Or should we honor the wishes of one of America’s literary giants? This question extends well beyond Hawthorne and beyond America.
Virgil is considered the greatest poet of the Latin language and the Aeneid is his masterpiece. At the time of his death, the Aeneid was unfinished. Because the epic was incomplete, Virgil asked his friends to burn the poem but they refused. Had they heeded his wishes, the world would have lost one of the most foundational poems ever written. Art and mythology would have been irrevocably diminished.
Franz Kafka put his friend in a similar situation to that of Virgil’s. On his deathbed, he told his literary executor, Max Brod, to burn his unpublished works. He believed that all but a small handful of his stories were worthy of release, which is why he burned about 90% of his writing. Brod ignored his words, which is what allowed classics such as The Trial, The Castle, and Amerika to be published.
The desires of Hawthorne, Virgil, and Kafka to have some of their books destroyed may have been outweighed by the artistic and historical importance of having them available to the public. Of course, not every suppressed work is a masterpiece — or even important to tracing the growth of a genius.
Vladimir Nabokov wanted his incomplete novel, The Original of Laura, to be destroyed upon his death due his perfectionist standards. His family held onto the manuscript for decades. When the book was finally published, the reviews were overwhelmingly negative. Few literary scholars view The Original of Laura as a necessary part of literary history.
Should readers reject books they were never meant to see? Perhaps there is no ultimate answer to this question. However, it will forever remain an important point of contention for literary audiences to ponder.
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