John Winslow Irving is an American-Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter.
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The Hotel New Hampshire
John Irving (1981)
Genre
Literary Fiction
Reading Time
12 Minutes
Key Themes
See below
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Synopsis
The Hotel New Hampshire follows the extraordinary and often tragic lives of the Berry family, chronicled by the middle son, John. Driven by their eccentric father's dream of owning a hotel, the family's journey takes them from a converted mill in New Hampshire, where they keep a pet bear and experience their first loves and losses, to a seedy establishment in Vienna, populated by prostitutes and radical political factions. Through a series of bizarre and often heartbreaking events, including incest, rape, terrorism, and accidental deaths, the Berrys navigate a world that constantly tests their resilience and their unconventional bonds, always returning to the idea of a 'hotel' as both a physical space and a metaphorical shelter for their unique existence.
Difficulty
Medium
Pacing
Moderate
Mood
Quirky, melancholic, darkly humorous, poignant, often shocking
Plot Summary
The First Hotel: Dairy, New Hampshire
The novel opens with John Berry introducing his family, especially his parents, Win and Mary, and their unusual outlook on life. Win Berry, a former football player and aspiring hotelier, buys an old, rundown dairy in Dairy, New Hampshire, to convert it into a hotel. They get a trained bear named State O'Maine, a gift from Win's friend Freud, a vaudevillian bear trainer. The Berry children—Frank, Franny, John, Lilly, and Egg—grow up in this odd environment, where the bear is a beloved, if sometimes difficult, family member. Win’s first attempts at running a successful hotel have limited success, but the family's bond and peculiar experiences begin to form.
Childhood and Early Tragedies
The Berry children live through their unique upbringing. John develops a deep affection for his sister Franny, a recurring part of the book. Frank, the eldest, is gay and struggles with his identity. Lilly, the youngest daughter, is a talented writer. The family experiences their first major tragedy when State O'Maine accidentally kills a young woman during a picnic, leading to the bear's death. Soon after, their beloved dog Sorrow is run over by a car. These early losses deeply affect the children and hint at the ongoing pattern of grief and resilience that defines their lives. Win continues to dream of hotel success, often to his family's detriment.
The Second Hotel: Vienna, Austria
Win Berry, through a complex arrangement involving his father's will and an old acquaintance, acquires a rundown hotel in Vienna, Austria, called the Gasthaus Freud. The family moves, leaving their New Hampshire life. The Viennese hotel is inhabited by a group of prostitutes, including Susie the Bear, and a radical, anti-Semitic terrorist group. The Berry children, now teenagers, are exposed to a more dangerous and morally ambiguous world. John continues to deal with his feelings for Franny, and the family tries to adapt to their new, often threatening, surroundings. The cultural clash and the dangers of their new environment create constant tension.
Terrorism and Loss in Vienna
The terrorist group residing in the Gasthaus Freud eventually carries out a bombing, targeting a nearby opera house. The Berry family becomes involved in the attack. During the chaos, their mother, Mary, and youngest brother, Egg, are killed in a plane crash while returning from a trip. At the same time, the hotel is bombed, and their father, Win, is blinded. The twin tragedies shatter the family, leaving the surviving children—Frank, Franny, John, and Lilly—to cope with immense grief and trauma. John, now more protective of his siblings, tries to hold the fractured family together after these devastating events.
Return to New Hampshire and New Beginnings
After the Vienna tragedy, the surviving Berry children and their now-blind father return to America. They settle in an apartment in New York City. Win, despite his blindness, continues to dream of opening another hotel. Frank pursues his acting career, Franny becomes more independent, and Lilly focuses intensely on her writing. John, always the observer and chronicler, grapples with his unresolved feelings for Franny and the lingering trauma of their losses. The family tries to forge new lives, but the shadows of their past, particularly the deaths of Mary and Egg, and Win's blindness, deeply shape their present and future interactions.
The Third Hotel: New York City
Win Berry, with the help of his children, eventually opens a new hotel in New York City, also named The Hotel New Hampshire. It is a modest establishment, reflecting their reduced circumstances. The family dynamic continues to evolve: Frank finds some success in acting, Lilly becomes a celebrated author, and Franny navigates various relationships. John, who works as a night clerk, remains the central observer, documenting their lives. The hotel becomes a sanctuary for a new group of eccentric characters, including a former wrestler named Earl and a woman named Susie the Bear, a prostitute from Vienna who has undergone facial reconstruction and now works at the hotel. The family strives for normalcy amidst their ongoing peculiarities.
Lilly's Tragic End
Lilly Berry achieves considerable literary success with her novel, 'A Sexual Education.' However, she struggles with depression and the weight of her fame. Despite her creative triumphs, she remains fragile. Tragically, Lilly commits suicide by jumping from a window of The Hotel New Hampshire. Her death is another devastating blow to the already beleaguered family, adding to their long history of loss. John is particularly affected, having always admired his sister's talent and vulnerability. Her death forces the remaining Berrys to confront their grief once more and reassess their lives and their ability to endure such sadness.
Franny's Rape and Revenge
Franny reveals to John that she was raped by three football players during their time in New Hampshire. This traumatic event has haunted her for years. With John's support, she decides to seek revenge. They meticulously plan and execute a scheme to castrate the perpetrators. The act is brutal and shocking, highlighting Franny's deep pain and her desperate need for retribution. John's involvement shows his unwavering loyalty to his sister and his willingness to go to extreme lengths to protect her and help her find closure, however violent. This event marks a turning point in their relationship and their individual paths.
John and Franny's Evolving Relationship
Throughout their lives, John and Franny's relationship is marked by an intense, almost incestuous bond. After the revenge, their emotional and physical intimacy deepens. They confess their love for each other and engage in a sexual relationship, a development that is both taboo and, within the context of their unconventional family, almost inevitable. This relationship is a source of both comfort and turmoil, reflecting their shared trauma and their unique understanding of each other. Their bond is a central, defining element of the narrative, challenging societal norms and exploring the boundaries of love and family.
New Lives and Continued Eccentricity
The surviving Berrys continue to navigate life with their characteristic blend of eccentricity and resilience. Win Berry, despite his blindness, finds a measure of peace and continues to reside at the hotel. Frank achieves success as a screenwriter. John, after his time at the hotel, becomes a writer, using his family's experiences as his primary subject matter. Franny finds love and stability with an actor, but her bond with John remains deep. The family, though diminished by loss, continues to 'dream on,' embracing their peculiar history and finding ways to adapt and survive. The novel concludes with the enduring strength of their unconventional family ties.
Principal Figures
John Berry
The Protagonist
John evolves from a passive observer to an active participant in his family's dramas, ultimately becoming the chronicler of their lives and coming to terms with his unique identity and love for Franny.
Franny Berry
The Supporting
Franny transforms from a traumatized victim into an empowered woman who seeks and achieves justice for herself, ultimately finding a unique form of love and stability.
Win Berry
The Supporting
Win's unwavering optimism is tested by profound loss and personal injury, but he ultimately finds a form of peaceful acceptance, continuing to 'dream on' even in blindness.
Mary Berry
The Supporting
Mary serves as the stable matriarch until her tragic death, which irrevocably alters the family dynamic and sends her surviving members into deeper grief and change.
Frank Berry
The Supporting
Frank navigates his sexual identity and artistic ambitions, ultimately finding success and acceptance in his chosen career as a screenwriter.
Lilly Berry
The Supporting
Lilly rises to literary fame but ultimately succumbs to her internal struggles, highlighting the heavy price of genius and sensitivity.
Egg Berry
The Supporting
Egg's brief life is marked by his innocence, and his tragic death serves as a pivotal moment of loss for the entire Berry family.
Susie the Bear
The Supporting
Susie transforms from a victim of violence and circumstance into a survivor who rebuilds her life and finds a new place within the Berry family's orbit.
Freud (the bear trainer)
The Supporting
Freud introduces the element of bears and the circus into Win's life, setting the stage for the Berry family's early unconventional experiences, then fades as the family's journey evolves.
Themes & Insights
Loss and Grief
The Berry family experiences an extraordinary amount of loss throughout the novel, from beloved pets to multiple family members. These tragedies are not just plot points but deep shapers of character and family dynamic. Each loss, whether the death of a bear, a dog, a mother, or a sibling, leaves a lasting mark, forcing the survivors to constantly adapt, mourn, and find new ways to cope. The novel explores the lasting impact of grief, how it can fracture a family, but also how it can forge unbreakable bonds and a unique resilience.
“You've got to get over it. You've got to get over it. You've got to get over it. But you don't get over it, do you? You just learn to live with it, and it never goes away.”
The Nature of Family and Love
The novel examines the unconventional and often taboo nature of family love. The Berry family's bonds are intense, idiosyncratic, and at times, incestuous, particularly between John and Franny. It challenges traditional notions of family, showing how shared trauma, eccentricity, and unwavering loyalty can create a unique, if complicated, form of love. The family unit is both a source of immense support and deep conflict, where love is expressed in unconventional ways, and loyalty often goes beyond societal norms.
“A good family is a family that makes you feel safe. It's a family that you can be yourself in. It's a family that loves you, even when you're not lovable.”
Dreams and Illusions
Win Berry's persistent 'dreaming on' is a central theme, highlighting the human need for hope and aspiration, even in the face of repeated failure and tragedy. His illusions about bears and hotels drive much of the plot. The novel explores the fine line between dreams that inspire and illusions that blind. While Win's dreams often lead to disaster, they also provide a framework for the family's life and a peculiar kind of resilience. It suggests that sometimes, the ability to 'dream on' is a necessary survival mechanism, even if those dreams are ultimately unattainable.
“The first of my father’s illusions was that bears could survive the life lived by human beings, and the second was that human beings could survive a life led in hotels.”
Identity and Transformation
Characters in 'The Hotel New Hampshire' undergo significant changes, both voluntary and involuntary. From Franny's journey from victim to avenger, to Susie the Bear's physical and personal reconstruction, to John's evolution into a writer, the novel explores how individuals adapt and redefine themselves after trauma and loss. The family's constant relocation and exposure to diverse cultures also contribute to their evolving identities. It suggests that identity is fluid, shaped by experience, tragedy, and the choices one makes after life-altering events.
“We are all the sum of our experiences and our choices. We are all, in a way, self-made.”
Sexual Awakening and Taboo
The novel explores themes of sexual awakening, desire, and taboo. John and Franny's incestuous relationship is a central and controversial element, challenging societal norms and exploring the complexities of love and intimacy within a highly unconventional family context. Franny's rape and subsequent revenge also delve into the darker aspects of sexuality, power, and violation. The book portrays sexuality as a powerful, often complicated force that can be both beautiful and destructive, integral to the characters' development and their understanding of themselves and each other.
“Love is not always what you expect it to be. It's not always what you're told it should be. Sometimes, it's just what it is.”
Plot Devices & Literary Techniques
First-Person Narration (John Berry)
The story is told through the eyes of John Berry, the chronicler.
The entire novel is narrated by John Berry, providing an intimate, subjective, and often retrospective account of his family's life. This device allows readers to experience the events through his unique perspective, colored by his deep affection for his family, his analytical mind, and his own emotional journey. His voice is often detached yet deeply personal, creating a sense of both immediacy and reflection. It also allows Irving to control the pacing and reveal information gradually, building suspense and emotional impact, while highlighting John's role as the family's historian.
Symbolism of Bears
Bears represent wildness, danger, and the untamed aspects of life.
Bears appear throughout the novel, from State O'Maine to Susie the Bear, symbolizing the wild, unpredictable, and sometimes dangerous forces that coexist with human life. They represent nature's untamed power, the primal instincts within humanity, and the inherent risks of trying to domesticate the wild. The bears often act as catalysts for tragedy or transformation, reflecting the Berry family's own struggle to find order and safety amidst chaos. Their presence underscores the novel's themes of illusion, danger, and the precariousness of existence.
Recurring Motif of Hotels
Hotels as metaphors for transient homes, refuge, and life's journey.
The hotels—in New Hampshire, Vienna, and New York—serve as more than just settings; they are central metaphors. They represent temporary homes, places of transition, refuge for misfits, and stages where life's dramas unfold. Each hotel reflects the family's changing circumstances and emotional states. They are places where people arrive and depart, where secrets are kept, and where various eccentric characters converge. The hotels symbolize the transient nature of life, the search for belonging, and the idea that life itself is a journey through various temporary accommodations.
Foreshadowing and Prophecy
Hints and predictions of future events, creating a sense of inevitable tragedy.
Irving frequently employs foreshadowing, often through John's narrative voice or through seemingly innocuous details, to hint at future tragedies and developments. This creates a sense of impending doom and inevitability, making the losses and shocking events, while devastating, feel almost predestined. For example, the early deaths of State O'Maine and Sorrow foreshadow the greater losses to come. This device heightens the emotional impact of the plot, as readers are often aware of the looming misfortunes, making the family's resilience all the more poignant.
Critical analysis
Notable Quotes
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Key Questions (FAQ)
"The Hotel New Hampshire" tells the story of the eccentric Berry family, who own and operate a series of hotels. It chronicles their lives, loves, deaths, and the bizarre, often tragic, events that shape their experiences, all seen through the eyes of narrator John Berry.
About the author
