ipl-logo

Realism, And Allegory In The Scarlet Letter

510 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Intuition in the scarlet letter

In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne uses a blend of realism, symbolism, and allegory. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses historical settings and various themes throughout the novel as well as his psychology and the supernatural. The psychological exploration of the characters and the author’s use of realistic dialogue only adds to the realism of the novel. The most obvious symbol of the novel is the actual scarlet letter ‘A’ that Hester wears on her chest every day. A rosebush stands in front of a gloomy prison to symbolize frailty and sorrow, beauty and solitude. Hawthorne also uses Hester’s daughter, Pearl, as a symbol: Pearl is important because of her ability to provoke the adult characters in the book. She asks them pointed questions and draws their attention, …show more content…

This is already the better life” (182). They are enlightened from this meeting by seeing the truth. The truth being that they must confront society together, either the society that knows Hester’s shame or the society against Hester’s act of adultery. The letter ‘A’ that illuminates in the night sky, the night Dimmesdale stands on the scaffold represents his cowardice and self- contempt. "A light gleamed far and wide over all the muffled sky. It was doubtless caused by one of those meteors…the minister, looking upward to the zenith, beheld there the appearance of an immense letter-the letter 'A '-marked out in lines of dull red light" (152) implies that this is God 's condemnation of the two sinners, most especially Dimmesdale. Hester has already been discovered and is receiving her punishment by wearing the scarlet letter, branding her as an adulteress and keeping her socially isolated. Dimmesdale, however, hides his sin from people because he has a respective role in

Show More
Related
1158 Words | 5 Pages

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale commits a mortal sin by having an affair with a married woman, Hester Prynne. As a man of the cloth in Puritan society, Dimmesdale is expected to be the embodiment of the town’s values. He becomes captive to a self-imposed guilt that manifests from affair and his fear that he won’t meet the town’s high expectations of him. In an attempt to mitigate this guilt, Dimmesdale acts “piously” and accepts Chillingworth’s torture, causing him to suffer privately, unlike Hester who repented in the eyes of the townspeople. When Dimmesdale finally reveals his sin to the townspeople, he is able to free himself from his guilt.

Read More
1227 Words | 5 Pages

Hester can wear her scarlet letter in public, and has adjusted enough to continue living a normal life. Dimmesdale, on the other hand, lives in secret with his scarlet letter affecting him more every day. He envies how Hester has managed to embrace her scarlet letter, while his guilt is only increasing. At one point, Dimmesdale feels so much envy that he says, “Happy are you, Hester, that wear the scarlet letter openly upon your bosom! Mine burns in secret!

Read More
1317 Words | 6 Pages

Hester is punished by being publicly humiliated, forced to the top of the scaffold and to expose her scarlet letter that she wore, and being booed and hissed at amongst the public. As Dimmesdale is upon the scaffold, he calls to the citizens of the town during the night, and Hester and Pearl soon join him, when a meteor later appears in the sky. The meteor appears in the sky looking like a letter A. Dimmesdale thinks that it is a demeaning representation of his sin, just like Hester’s scarlet letter. Chillingworth’s position on the scaffold involves Dimmesdale, Hester and Pearl upon the scaffold with him, with Dimmesdale revealing Chillingworth’s true evil figure after the torture he had committed upon Dimmesdale as revenge for his adulterous affair with Hester. The idea of the scaffold becoming a unifying device comes from the dynamic changes it goes through.

Read More
459 Words | 2 Pages

Dimmesdale, being a priest, is a man of God, therefore, in a way, being the “heavenly father,” and “earthly one,” (63) that Hester speaks about. As a priest with a high position who engaged in sin with one of the women of the congregation, Arthur Dimmesdale speaks ironically when he attempts to convince her to reveal the name of the man she committed this sin

Read More
616 Words | 3 Pages

Symbolism Within The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne created symbolism throughout The Scarlet Letter in order to develop the theme throughout Hester’s life. Hester is portrayed as a sheltered soul, shunned from society due to her adulterous acts. The red A and her daughter, Pearl, are symbols of Hester’s shame which she bares proudly despite society's harsh judgements. Hawthorne is able to use symbolism to develop themes, characters, and analogies in the Scarlet Letter.

Read More
561 Words | 3 Pages

Both Dimmesdale and Hester commited the same sin of adultery, resulting in Pearl. However, because Hester confessed the sin early on, she had the rest of her life to try and change the purpose of her scarlet A to mean something more than just sin. Which she succeeds in, the people refused to interpret the scarlet letter for sin and instead for “Able.” Soon after, the people had almost forgotten what the original meaning of the scarlet letter was. On the contrary Dimmesdale doesn’t confess his sin and lives a terrible life of self-harming and guilt.

Read More
642 Words | 3 Pages

In the novel, Hawthorne uses the symbolism of the Scarlet Letter, Pearl, and Dimmesdale to contribute to the overall theme of guilt. To begin, Hawthorne uses the Scarlet Letter to contribute to the theme of guilt. The Scarlet Letter “A” is a symbol that Hester Prynne, the protagonist of the story, has to wear as punishment for committing adultery. Hawthorne explains, “It had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity and enclosing her in a sphere by herself” (Hawthorne 51).

Read More
619 Words | 3 Pages

How does Hawthorne use symbolism in The Scarlet Letter? In this essay I will be talking about what kind of symbolism he used in The Scarlet Letter and why he wrote this novel The Scarlet Letter. Hawthorneuses key symbols to represent themes in the book. The most influential symbol was the Scarlet Letter that Hester wears on her chest all the time. Light and darkness play a role in the symbolic nature of the background and scenery.

Read More
716 Words | 3 Pages

While the novel is centered around Hester’s punishment and ignominy, Dimmesdale exhibits greater change throughout the novel than Hester. “Another peculiar torture was felt in the gaze of a new eye. When strangers looked curiously at the scarlet letter and none ever failed to do so--they branded it afresh in Hester 's soul; so that, oftentimes, she could scarcely refrain, yet always did refrain, from covering the symbol with her hand” (79). This quotation is an example of Hester’s strong sense of self. It says “she could scarcely refrain, yet always did refrain, from covering the symbol with her hand.”

Read More
1213 Words | 5 Pages

These themes not only show Hester’s character, but how she stands out in the community of Boston. Hawthorne uses Hester’s love and devotion to Dimmesdale to demonstrate the themes of honor and compassion. Also, the fact that Hester is able to stand up for what she believes in and accept her sins shows her independence.

Read More
731 Words | 3 Pages

Pearl is the product of the A, thus when she sees Hester without the A, she gets upset. When Pearl is in the forest, she spends most of her time near the Brook. Hawthorne uses the brook as a symbol of sadness. The brook symbolizes the release of all the guilt and sins committed. Hawthorne mentions how the brook reflects Pearl’s image.

Read More
665 Words | 3 Pages

The book The Scarlet Letter by Nathanial Hawthorne has symbolism all throughout it. People and objects are symbolic of events and thoughts. Throughout the book, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses Hester, Pearl, and Arthur Dimmesdale to signify philosophies that are evident during this time period. Hester Prynne, through the eyes of the Puritans, is an extreme sinner; she has gone against their ways, committing adultery. For this sin, she must wear a symbol of shame for the rest of her life.

Read More
866 Words | 4 Pages

In Hawthorne’s novel , The Scarlet letter, the perception of the letter “A” changes as the Puritan society gradually accepts Hester within their community. Hawthorne is able to portray the nature of sin within the Puritian society by using Hester and Pearl to convey the meaning behind the letter A, a symbol that defies the root of evil. The scarlet letter therefore transitions throughout the course of Hawthorne’s novel as it first acts as a symbol of sin, however by the end of the novel, it signifies “able” and “angel” as the Puritian society finally accepts Hester. When Hester enters the marketplace, she is initially only referred as her unnamed sin by the narrator which therefore indicates that sin displaces one's character within the

Read More
495 Words | 2 Pages

Her sin is causing her to be isolated from the rest of the community who always reminds her about the scarlet letter she wears and what it’s meaning is. This shows that sin can cause someone to want to be isolated and alone due to their sadness and pain their sin brings them. Dimmesdale and Hester present great examples of how the outcomes of sin, showing guilt and wanting isolation, are represented throughout the novel. Their actions are similar to how people would deal with their sins and mistakes

Read More
1146 Words | 5 Pages

Amanda Vicente The Scarlet Letter Reading Response AP English Language Period J 16 August 2016 Journal Entry 1: Chapters 1-2 In The Scarlet Letter, the author sets a mood from the beginning of the book. The setting is old and beat up in front of an aged wooden prison with judgmental Puritans ready to tear a women apart. The Puritans are hypocrites and the author portrays that in the story.

Read More

More about Realism, And Allegory In The Scarlet Letter

Related Topics

Open Document