To begin, Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes pathos throughout his writing to imprint the importance of individual conscience into the reader 's mind. Hawthorne begins the book by having the reader pity the main character, Hester Prynne, as she is a young, husbandless, mother in a society that shames her for her unfortunate circumstances: “haughty as her demeanor was, she perchance underwent an agony from every footstep of those that thronged to see her, as if her heart had been flung in the street for them all to spurn and trample upon” (Hawthorne, 53). The consistent misfortune of Prynne evokes emotion in the reader and stresses the weight of her decisions. Prynne manages her way through such a hostile society -“Happy are you, Hester, that wear the scarlet letter openly on your bosom” (Hawthorne, 188)- in a way that is metaphorically applicable to the real world, allowing the reader to truly connect and understand the character for who they are.
When Hawthorne declares, “the effluence of her mother’s lawless passion,” he is essentially blaming her for her misfortune and saying that her mistakes have led her to where she is; however, he implies that it was inevitable with how uncontainable her personality and passion was. This slightly condemnatory tone towards Hester contradicts the sorrow and criticization towards society that he once had. Hawthorne is experiencing a complexity in his tone. It seems as though he is unsure of where he should stand on this issue. Hawthornes transcendentalist ideas praise individuality, so her
The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, focuses on the life of Hester Prynne—the unlucky soul who is caught committing adultery and forced to live a life of shame and ignominy. The scaffold is not only the start of her predicament, but it is also the end of the once seemingly perfect Reverend Dimmesdale’s own guilt. The scaffold is the setting of a scene three times throughout the novel: the beginning, middle, and end. For such a lifeless object, it is difficult to recognize its significance in the novel; however, the scaffold is used by Hawthorne to portray the changing relationship between the characters, specifically Hester, Dimmesdale, and Pearl.
As Hawthorne and Moore did, writers use diction to convey an important theme. Hawthorne started Hester off as a young woman standing on a scaffold with a baby and a scarlet A on her breast, as the plot went on Hester created her own second chance and began to redeem her sin and was now seen as “kind. . . helpful. . . to. .
In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, on June 1642, in the Puritan town of Boston, a crowd gathered to witness the punishment of a young woman, Hester Prynne. She has been found guilty of adultery and must wear a scarlet A on her dress as a sign of shame. Despite her mistakes, she was a classic independent hero to herself and her daughter. She works through the six stages of a hero journey through strength and perseverance. In The Odyssey, by Homer, Odysseus goes through a hero’s journey just like Hester.
Hawthorne also uses dark diction like “wandered without a clew in the dark” and “labyrinth of a mind” to display that Hester is unable to break free from society, and instead wanders around without a purpose. In the last sentence he says “the scarlet letter had not done its office to prove that even though he is ultimately disappointed in Hester, he is also somewhat proud of her. He uses compare and contrast to describe this feeling. He contrasts the “wild and ghastly scenery” with the last sentence to show the many different ways he feels about Hester. The last sentence implies that even though he may seem disappointed in just about everything Hester has done, he is still able to see the good she has done in her
In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne goes against the ideals of the Puritan community by using topics, such as: adultery, hypocrisy, and revenge. Hawthorne uses Hester’s life and the people in her life to showcase each of these subjects and how much they can affect someone’s life. First, Hawthorne goes against the community by using the scandal between Hester and Dimmesdale and their adultery in order to challenge their Puritan way of life. “‘I fear! I fear!
The public shame brought unto Hester by the townspeople was used by Hawthorne to acclimate the reader for the horrors to come. In the town square, Hester “sustained herself as best as a woman might, under the heavyweight of a thousand unrelenting eyes” (Hawthorne 54). To be able to stand this public scrutiny, Hester
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne takes place in a Puritan community where there lived a courageous woman, Hester Prynne and her young daughter, Pearl, who was conceived when her mother was in the state of infidelity. Hester Prynne was incarcerated, for she had committed adultery and was obligated to bear the scarlet letter A upon her clothing, near her bosom. Throughout the novel, Hester progresses but struggles to understand the symbolic meaning of the scarlet letter she wears. The letter was very elaborate with embroidery and gold thread that flourished it.
The Scarlet letter is set in 17th century Massachusetts in a puritan town. The novel focuses on the character Hester Prynne who is publicly shamed for having an affair and giving birth out of wedlock. As a result of her act she is forced to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her clothing at all times. Through a variety of events Hester Prynne goes through a journey of repentance to make her feelings of guilt into strength
The Scarlet Letter took place in the 17th century in Boston, Massachusetts. The protagonist of this novel, Hester Prynne, along with the other characters has light and dark moments throughout the story. Light and dark imagery, alluding to the larger conflict between good and evil, is present throughout the novel in the characters of Hester Prynne, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. Hester had been
Hawthorne uses literary devices such as, imagery to convey his message that Hester Prynne defied the boundaries of society’s civil law and has grown to accept natural law. In chapter nineteen, sunshine is used to explain Hester when she takes the Scarlet Letter “A”, off of her chest while in the forest with Dimmesdale and Pearl. As Hester begins to remove the Scarlet Letter off her chest, Hawthorne uses imagery by placing sunshine upon her face, and her hair, which makes a glowing effect upon he,r displaying to the reader that she is not defined by civil law but is ultimately defined by natural law. While Time passes, and it is time for Hester, Pearl and Dimmesdale return to the town, Hester must return the Scarlet Letter back upon her chest, and while in the midst of placing it back on her chest, a gray cloud forms over the sun creating a gray shadow upon Hester’s face. This act of imagery placed by Hawthorne into the novel, symbolizes that the love between Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne was and continues to be an act of love in natural law, and not to society’s disturbing
The Scarlet Letter is a classic, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a fictional story. The setting in the exposition of the book starts off in Boston, in the seventeenth century, then into a Puritan settlement. I have been to Boston before, but only for a few hours, and it seemed really loud, which I like. During the time the setting was for The Scarlet Letter, I don’t think I would like it there. Everyone had shunned Hester, the main character, for adultery, and the clergy was going to condemn her, but chose not to.
Nathaniel Hawthorne develops the theme of an individual vs. society through the motifs of vibrant colors and imagery in contrast to the setting and people within the town. Along with the characters in The Scarlet Letter, individuals like Hester Prynne are constantly facing the same battles against their own societies today. Hawthorne sets his story in a Puritan society that is very judgmental and described as “a shapeless mound, cumberous with its very strength, and overgrown, through years of peace and neglect” filled with people that were “the ugliest and most pitiless”(Hawthorne 49). In contrast to the dull town, Hester Prynne, a disgrace to the town, makes an entrance that “repelled him [the guard] by an action of natural dignity and force of nature”(50).
The Scarlet Letter is a perfect example of how one person in a society can defy the traditional social structure. Throughout the literature, Hawthorne presents numerous examples of feminist ideals through the character of Hester. After analyzing and interpreting the meaning of the novel, Hawthorne specifically targets gender roles in societies by making the protagonist of the story a woman. Hawthorne questions the expectation that men should retain all authority and purpose by creating a character that specifically rejects these traditional norms.
