Equality In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

The culture of society has generally reflected the wishes and demands of those in power, which has, for ages, leaned towards corruption and self-preservation. Yet, every once in awhile, society is able to rise above those who have control and determine its own fate. This is an uncommon occurrence as these ideas, especially the ones that have enough force to generate a following, are suppressed by those in power and are disregarded by those still under an illusion of contentment. One idea that has been continually brought to the forefront of these conversations is the idea of total equality, a concept that is especially dangerous to society’s puppet masters and seen as a boy crying wolf by the general populace. However, an oppressed people have a wonderful ability to unite and face adversity with the courage of a people who have nothing to lose. Perhaps the most long lasting and notable form

Women are now demanding rights such as reproductive rights, equal wages, and a change of mankind’s oppressive language, all of which have never been thought even close to possible before. This is all due to the network of communications that women have been able to build, much of it on their own. It all began with literature such as The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, which opened up a feminist dialogue, leading to the modern day equivalent of Tumblr and feminist hubs all over the internet. The Scarlet Letter was a revolutionary piece of literature that remarked on the nobility of women and the unjust scapegoating of women as a whole. It contains still controversial topics of women and their sexuality and man’s role in determining the same women’s lives. In fact, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is quite comparable to modern (third wave) feminism in respects to them both addressing very controversial aspects of society; such as the self-deprecating act of slut shaming, the patriarchy’s repeated attempts of oppressing women, and the resilience