Monsieur du Miroir (From "Mosses from an Old Manse")

"Monsieur du Miroir (From 'Mosses from an Old Manse')" by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a short story written in 1837. Originally published alone, it later appeared in Hawthorne's 1846 collection "Mosses from an Old Manse." Like many tales in this collection, the story is an allegory exploring the darker aspects of human nature. The collection earned praise from Herman Melville and contemporary critics, though Hawthorne himself later admitted he no longer fully comprehended his own meanings in these "blasted allegories."

Monsieur du Miroir (From "Mosses from an Old Manse"), by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #9225.