Nathaniel Hawthorne, a writer from the United States, published The
Blithedale Romance in 1852. It is the third significant "romance," as he
described the genre. The setting is a utopian farming commune modeled
after Brook Farm, where Hawthorne lived in 1841 and was a founder
member. The clash between the principles of the commune and the members'
personal desires and sexual rivalries is dramatized in the book. She
promises Coverdale that she will finally get over it but that she has to
leave Blithedale right away when she is feeling well. She wants
Coverdale to tell Hollingsworth that he has "murdered" her and declares
that she will become a nun. Coverdale dozes off under the rock when she
departs. He goes to Hollingsworth's cottage when he wakes up at midnight
and asks for help; when Silas Foster awakens, he is also asked to
assist. Coverdale conveys his suspicion that Zenobia had committed
herself by drowning after leading them to a familiar location by the
river and considering her comments. Silas Foster notices that
Hollingsworth physically injured her close to her heart when he hooked
her body with a rod.