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"The Ambitious Guest" is a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne. First published in New-England Magazine in June of 1835, it is better known for its publication in the second volume of Twice-Told Tales in 1835.
Plot
A man visits a family on a mountain side that is a famous stop for people who travel on the route. The family asks him to stay, then the mountain begins to tremble but the father reassure that the mountain won't go down, and he has a hideaway in the event that it does. The stranger discusses death with them, the concept that everyone wants to be remembered. This is ironic because in the end of the story, he dies along with them, and no one knows they died- they are not remembered. Soon thereafter, the mountain begins to crumble sending flying pieces everywhere. They ran to the safe house but didn't make it. The snow never hit the house. Some people noticed that they were gone but nobody knew the stranger.
The basis of the story is the Willey tragedy of Crawford Notch, New Hampshire.
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