The Transcendentalist Ideas of Hypocrisy
American Transcendentalism began as a protest against the general state of culture and society during the 1700s, and in particular, the state of intellectualism. Among the core beliefs of American Transcendentalists was an ideal spiritual state that 'transcends ' the physical and empirical and is only realized through the individual 's intuition, rather than through the doctrines of established religions. Transcendentalism is also largely about exposing the hypocrisy in our society. Transcendentalism is questioning societal norms, and it exposes these hypocrisies through its desire to spread broader ideas about, religion, education, literature, and philosophy. Transcendentalism is also largely about love and romanticism. Both hypocrisy and the concept of true love are heavily present in Hawthorne 's novel.
In The Scarlet Letter hypocrisy is evident everywhere. The characters of Hester, Dimmesdale, Chillingworth, and the very society that the characters lived in, were steeped in hypocrisy. Hawthorne was not subtle in his portrayal of the terrible sin of hypocrisy; he made sure it was easy to see the sin at work, just as it is easy to see many of the sins at work in society. There are many parallels that can be drawn between the characters of The Scarlet Letter and those of today 's society. Just because this book is set in colonial times, does not mean its lessons are not applicable to the world we live in.
The first character, Hester Prynne, is guilty of adultery as well as hypocrisy. She "loves" Dimmesdale yet she says nothing and for seven years Dimmesdale is slowly tortured. This love she felt that was so strong, it caused her break sacred vows. Why else would she condemn her supposed love to the hands of her vengeful husband? Dimmesdale is continually tortured by his inner demons of guilt that gnaw at his soul, and Chillingworth makes sure these demons never go away. Hester allows this to happen. Physically and mentally the minister begins to weaken and
In The Scarlet Letter hypocrisy is evident everywhere. The characters of Hester, Dimmesdale, Chillingworth, and the very society that the characters lived in, were steeped in hypocrisy. Hawthorne was not subtle in his portrayal of the terrible sin of hypocrisy; he made sure it was easy to see the sin at work, just as it is easy to see many of the sins at work in society. There are many parallels that can be drawn between the characters of The Scarlet Letter and those of today 's society. Just because this book is set in colonial times, does not mean its lessons are not applicable to the world we live in.
The first character, Hester Prynne, is guilty of adultery as well as hypocrisy. She "loves" Dimmesdale yet she says nothing and for seven years Dimmesdale is slowly tortured. This love she felt that was so strong, it caused her break sacred vows. Why else would she condemn her supposed love to the hands of her vengeful husband? Dimmesdale is continually tortured by his inner demons of guilt that gnaw at his soul, and Chillingworth makes sure these demons never go away. Hester allows this to happen. Physically and mentally the minister begins to weaken and
Cited: Battan, Jesse F. "You Cannot Fix The Scarlet Letter on my Breast!: Women Ready, Writing, and Reshaping The Sexual Culture of Victorian America." Journal of Social History, Spring 2004, Vol. 37 Issue 3, p601-624 Budick, Emily Miller. "Hawthorne, Pearl, and the Primal Sin of Culture." Journal of American Studies: August 2005, Vol. 39 Issue 2, p167-185 Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Barnes & Noble Books. 2002