What Is Transcendentalism In The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter developed messages about the effects of sin and guilt on the human mind. His message intensified through its combination with transcendental ideals and symbols, which evolved into Hawthorne’s own perspective on transcendental principles when he addressed them in relation to his characters. Hawthorne included Transcendentalism in The Scarlet Letter in order to teach readers individual responsibility and to desire to seek the truth. An early instance of the use of transcendental ideals appears in the novel as the rosebush, a symbol of individualism. Hawthorne describes it as “kept alive in history… it had sprung up under the footsteps of the sainted Ann Hutchinson” (Hawthorne 42). The allusion to Ann

For a large part of the plot, Chillingworth pursues the father of Pearl, in order to cause the man pain and suffering for his sin. As the antagonist of the novel and the representation of the Devil, Chillingworth’s motives and methods seem more Gothic than Transcendental, but one must keep in mind that the American Gothic tradition and Transcendentalism both represent different paths to discover truth. Continually tortured by Chillingworth as well as his own lies (until the resolution of The Scarlet Letter), Dimmesdale cannot decide whether to continue to lie about his relationship with Hester Prynne and Pearl, or to tell the truth. This internal turmoil manifests itself in Dimmesdale’s sickly countenance. In contrast, Pearl remains completely satisfied and full of vitality because she represents the truth. The characters of Dimmesdale and Pearl are juxtaposed through the differences in their reflections. Dimmesdale sees his reflection during his sessions of self-inflicted torture, “viewing his own face in a looking glass, by the most powerful light which he could shine upon it” (Hawthorne 124), but no amount of light could drive the darkness out of his visage, unless he told the truth and finally released himself from the burden of his guilt. However, Pearl produces her own light while Dimmesdale and her mother watch from the figurative (and sometimes literal) shadows. Pearls seems “glorified with a ray of sunshine…attracted…by a certain sympathy. In the brook beneath stood another child…with likewise its ray of golden light” (Hawthorne 178). Especially significant is the location of this event, the forest, which Hawthorne utilizes as a place of truth because its wildness contrasts with the Puritan settlement’s seemingly strict adherence to the Puritan doctrine. Additionally, the Transcendentalists celebrate nature as a way to reconnect with God, to discover the higher truth.