ipl-logo

Diction, And Denotation In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

696 Words3 Pages

During the early 1600’s, Puritan groups migrated from Europe to the Massachusetts Bay Colony to establish a settlement based around very strict religious beliefs. The Scarlet Letter is set in this time period and settlement where it was considered a horrendous sin to commit adultery. Hester Prynne engaged in sexual relations with the minister, Dimmesdale, which resulted in a child named Pearl. This novel highlights Hester’s struggle to raise her child and protect herself from the societal attacks thrown at her, while overcoming the label bestowed upon her by society. In, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses specific diction, repetition, and denotative diction in order to convey the purpose of overcoming labels and protecting one’s image. …show more content…

The specific word “departed” (Hawthorne 185) is used to describe the feeling of freedom Hester gained when she removed her scarlet letter while she was in the woods with Dimmesdale discussing the chance to run away to Europe. The use of the word “departed” insinuates leaving something behind to start a better journey. This creates a stronger effect to convey the feeling that Hester has prevailed through the difficult endeavor and is ready to start anew. If a more general word, such as “left,” was used, then the effect would not be as strong because the word does not create the feeling of overcoming and prevailing through something to start over. The specific word “departed” used in this novel relates to Hester’s relief and freedom when she took off the scarlet letter, and develops the feeling that her shame and anguish from the sin has now left. This word and strategy support the purpose by showing that Hester has overcome her label and the attempt to protect her image by removing the scarlet letter and creating a better life for herself and …show more content…

He uses this word by its literal meaning of total devotion to oneself to convey Hester’s triumph over society and how she has focused more on herself throughout the years. This conveys the sense that Hester no longer feels like she does not belong in her society for the sin she committed, for she has developed a self awareness that allowed her to thrive and overcome the label given to her. This word and strategy support the purpose by elaborating on how dedicated to herself and making her life better Hester had become. It exemplifies the strength Hester obtained to overpower her label and free herself from the chains of society of the time

Show More
Related
154 Words | 1 Pages

“The Raven”, narrated by Christopher Walken and The Simpson’s Version had many similarities and differences. For example, they both stuck to the original text. Throughout the story they both attempted to establish the mood by using creepy music and sound effects. Finally, both stories had that overall creepy feeling to them. However, the creepy children's book was more serious and stayed more true to the author's purpose of the writing.

Read More
227 Words | 1 Pages

In The Scarlet Letter by Nathanial Hawthorne, Hawthorne uses diction to characterize John Wilson. Hawthorne begins by talking about the malevolent John Wilson by calling him a culprit. An older meaning of culprit is the cause of a problem or defect. Going with this, Hawthorne begins this passage by stating John Wilson is the cause of the problem. Later in this passage Pearl, Hester’s child, begins wailing and screaming.

Read More
700 Words | 3 Pages

Hester’s adulterous affair affected her life and image, it put her in isolation and led to shame and guilt. Although the scarlet letter bears remorse, throughout the novel Hester’s changes from a negative and unholy ego to a positive and favorable ego due to her actions. As Hester Prynne is faced with critisism and judgement, she continues to stay strong which eventually leads to people interpreting her scarlet letter “A” from “adultery” to “Able”. The change in Hester Prynne’s character exhibits that although some people may never stop their pessimistic critisism, we can overcome our sins with a strong relationship with God and a growth mindset, as Hester does. Hester Prynne’s actions demonstrate that sin is natural and should only be judged by

Read More
896 Words | 4 Pages

The letter gave Hester a new power to sympathize with and be charitable to others. Townspeople even began to interpret the letter very differently from its original meaning. They began to believe that the symbol no longer meant adultery, however, its new significance was to mean “Able” (111). Her selfless acts of kindness attracted the attention of the community as she did needlework for the poor in her spare time. The community did not know the true reason of why Hester did this, but the act caused her true character and natural instinct to be generous to be reflected.

Read More
354 Words | 2 Pages

She is brave and does not deny that she sinned. She realizes that she needs to let go of the misery that the scarlet letter has brought upon her. Rather than letting it define her, Hester uses the letter. She helps out in the community. It does not define who she is.

Read More
1343 Words | 6 Pages

This, however, causes the town to change their perspective towards the scarlet letter. At one point, the town “refused to interpret the scarlet “A” by its original signification. They said that it mean[t] ‘Able’ (158).” This reveals how Hester’s enlightenment towards society not only caused her to grow but it also caused the town to progress. Hester’s enlightened knowledge and her ability to pass it on will allow Hester to become a successful judge because

Read More
804 Words | 4 Pages

Matt Martin Mr. Anderson Honors English III 9 November 2017 Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a novel about Hester Prynne, a woman who commits adultery in a Puritan society, and how it affects her life. Hester not only scars her own life, but also Dimmesdale 's, who is one of the town 's ministers. Her husband has been gone for multiple years, so she expects he is dead and can love freely again. Her crime is discovered and she is nearly executed due to its extremity in the Puritan society.

Read More
1490 Words | 6 Pages

Hester Prynne is described as a beautiful, tall, young, elegant, graceful, brunette, and ladylike. Her most dominant characteristic is the scarlet letter embroidered on her bosom, reflecting how her sin is the only thing the Puritans see when they look at her. 3. The omniscient narrator guides the reader into Hester’s head. As she walks to the scaffold, the reader learns that Hester is tortured and suffering and feels as if “her heart had been flung into the street for them all to spurn and trample upon”.

Read More
719 Words | 3 Pages

The townspeople “[began] to look upon the scarlet letter as a token, not of that one sin, for which she had borne so long and dreary a penance, but of her many good deeds since.” This quote exemplifies how sin is not a death sentence for Hester. Through hard work and charity it allowed the rigid Puritan society to see her as something different, and as someone who would not let society define who she was. Hester, thus, was not only able to change herself, but also the image in which society viewed her by working hard to benefit the public. Likewise, the scarlet letter which was supposed to represent sin was instead “fantastically embroidered with gold thread, upon her bosom.”

Read More
786 Words | 4 Pages

In this passage from Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne begins her life out of prison after being labelled as an adulterer. Accordingly, the author uses the narrator to illustrate Hester’s tormented psyche through the use of contrasts, ambiguity, and erratic syntax. Inviting the reader into Hester’s thought process does not necessarily provide the certainty that she or the reader may long for.

Read More
976 Words | 4 Pages

Just as Hillary Jordan’ main protagonist Hannah has been put into boxes her whole life, literature tends to think in boxes as well. Novels are put in different genre boxes and the characters are, through their character traits, in boxes as well. This thesis has three boxes as well, in this case called chapters. Within each chapter it will be tried to break these boxes open and discuss why not everything can be put in just one box and why society should start to think outside the box.

Read More
659 Words | 3 Pages

Hester 's selflessness is also reflected in the services that she renders to the poor, needy and the sick. Her philanthropic way of living reflects her devotion to those more underprivileged than herself. Her sole purpose in living for others, especially for Pearl, is reflected in her self-transformation into a sexless person; she covers her luxuriant hair and wears dull and sober clothes without any ornamentation or appeal. Hester is a woman full of motherly love that she showers on Pearl. It is her love and concern for Pearl that make her wonder if her child is abnormal.

Read More
704 Words | 3 Pages

Hester Prynne develops her strong character greatly throughout the book from the first formal introduction to the very end of her life in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Right from the second chapter when we in the beginning are Introduced to Hester Prynne, we are convinced of her strong inner character from the first time we meet her during the hardship of her public humiliation. Without giving the reader much knowledge of her background, Hawthorne creates her as this young beauty, with tall, elegant figure and dark hair who also shows great irony and contempt, which we get the idea of when she stands on the scaffold and is described as to be showing a “haughty smile”, and we see it in the subtle clue to how she carries her elaborate scarlet letter (50). Another clear example of Hester 's steadfastness is in her determination of being alone through her humiliation and judgement, even with the many grim opinions the villagers in the crowd

Read More
1148 Words | 5 Pages

The scarlet “A” on her bosom and the bonnet covering her ebony locks weighed on her as a physical representation of the heft of her sin. She lost her edge and began to give up. Hester was no longer enjoying life and blocking out judgements like she once was that day on the scaffold. Seven years is a long time to be publicly shamed for a sin you once committed. The gravity of the secrets she kept to herself was causing her to fade.

Read More
959 Words | 4 Pages

Receiving the scarlet letter changed every aspect of Hester’s life. Especially at the start of the story, the letter symbolized the solitude and great suffering Hester faced just because of a letter placed on her bosom. The “A” also depicted how no one viewed Hester the same way as before her peccant actions. “…she saw that, owing to the peculiar effect of this convex mirror, the scarlet letter was represented in exaggerated and gigantic proportions, so as to be greatly the most prominent feature of her appearance” (Hawthorne 109). The pejorative community Hester lived in never saw Hester as the beautiful, young woman she was, but now, as a horrible fiend.

Read More

More about Diction, And Denotation In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Related Topics

Open Document