Finding Margaret Fuller: A Novel

In the fall of 1843, Margaret sits in the office of Horace Greeley, editor of the New York Tribune. Waldo has sent her, along with a letter of introduction, but Greeley is already familiar with Margaret’s work. His wife attended one of her series of Conversations. The two share similar views about emancipating the enslaved and expanding the rights of women. Margaret thinks, “Greeley doesn’t want merely to think about ideals and to talk about thoughts—he wants to work at turning those thoughts into meaningful progress” (201). Margaret speaks of her travels through the Great Lakes region and her views about America’s potential. Greeley marvels at her independence and foresight. He tentatively offers her a job at the Tribune, but Margaret asks for time to think about it.

On her way back to her hotel, she runs into Thoreau and Bronson, who are in New York to raise funds for a new pet project: Brook Farm, which is intended to be a utopian social experiment. Bronson describes the community vision: “Where all may live as one, joining our hands together in wholesome labor and enlivening play. Where all may enjoy the fresh fruits of our most generous earth” (203).