Speaker: Phil Oates
Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville, two giants of American literature, both had connections to Liverpool. Hawthorne served as U.S. Consul in Liverpool from 1853 to 1857, a prestigious post that allowed him to explore England and write extensively, including material for Our Old Home. During this time, Melville visited him in Liverpool while on a sea voyage. Their meeting there deepened their literary friendship, which had begun earlier in the U.S. The port city, bustling with transatlantic trade and culture, symbolized both literal and literary crossings for the two men, enriching their worldviews and subtly influencing their later works.
This talk will be by Phil Oates, a self confessed hobby historian, blogger and Hawthorne obsessive. Interested parties can take a sneak preview of Phil’s Hawthorne (http://nathanielhawthornes.blogspot.com/) and Melville ( http://redburnsliverpool.blogspot.com/) materials on his Blogspot.
