Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a prime example of an outside-in view of a society. It contrasts the nature of the puritan town of Boston against the wildness of a girl who grew up outside of the town‚ Pearl. In doing so he reveals a society that values dullness‚ intolerance‚ and suppressiveness. From the very beginning Pearl was different‚ she was a baby born from her parents sin. When her mother stood trial for her sin she was there. Even more then the titicular scarlet letter‚ Pearl
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doesn’t really do much in the way of sin so that’s why the thing that she is has transitioned so. In fact‚ she’s done some work to where her reputation may have reversed in the eyes of god‚ work such as charity. “they had begun to look upon the scarlet letter as the token‚ not of that one sin‚ for which she had borne so long and dreary a penance‚ but of her many good deeds since. “Do you see that woman with the embroidered badge?” they would say to strangers. “It is our Hester‚-the town’s own Hester‚-
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Scarlet Letter. Chillingworth is a man disgraced by his wife’s actions. Throughout the book‚ he chooses to remain in the shadows of the pages to torture Dimmesdale‚ his wife’s lover‚ with his guilt. However‚ before the events of the novel‚ Chillingworth is described as a kind‚ intelligent man. Nathaniel Hawthorne characterizes Rodger Chillingworth as a Lucifer type figure‚ using fierce diction and a good and malevolent binary. Rodger Chillingworth is not a weak man‚ in The Scarlet Letter. The reader
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Behold! Behold! A dreadful witness if it!” (209). The crowd does not know what to make of his words‚ and they refuse to believe what he is implying. That is‚ until he “tore away the ministerial band from before his breast” (209)‚ revealing a scarlet letter of his own. After this‚ there is no denying Dimmesdale’s confession and the people are left in disbelief as they watch him slump down and whisper in his last breath that he deserved to die in
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Nathaniel Hawthorne chose such a controversial topic as adultery for The Scarlet Letter‚ his nineteenth century novel of "seventeenth century sexual repression and hypocrisy"‚ demonstrates a delicate yet changing climate with regard to infidelity. Historically‚ carrying on an adulterous affair back in such an era of Puritanism and traditional values was not taken lightly; in fact‚ by today’s standards‚ such horrific treatment for what is now considered an everyday occurrence was harsher than murders
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Name: Date: School: Facilitator: 5.01 The Scarlet Letter Vocabulary Directions: Write the definitions for the following words found in the first eight chapters of The Scarlet Letter. (24 points) Vocabulary Word Chapter Section Definition 1. leech 1-8 Person who exports profit or sponges on others 2. sable 1-8 a marten with a short tail and dark brown fur‚ native to Japan and Siberia and valued
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Scarlet Letter relates to the theme of individual versus society in various ways throughout the novel because of the main character’s (Hester) hardship with her secrets that were kept. Not only Hester but Dimmesdale and Chillingworth were keeping secrets from each other and the whole town. Hester has to control her desire to tell the truth and practices the art of deception to hide these secrets from others. Throughout the history of mankind‚ the use of deception to promote oneself to a higher
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In the novel The Scarlet Letter it was necessary to keep Hester Prynne’s adulteress lover Arthur Dimmesdale a secret because of their young daughter Pearl. Hester Prynne was married at the time Pearl was conceived‚ making the townspeople furious with her adultery. As her husband comes to town under an alias named physician Roger Chillingworth‚ he examines the Panic-stricken baby and bashes Hester for being deceitful. Moving to the outskirts of town and raising what many called a “devil baby” Pearl
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In the story‚ The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ sacrifice runs through almost every character. One specific person who portrays this kind of trait towards the end of the book is DImmesdale. He sacrifices the sin he created with Hester and his placement with everyone else when he finally exposes the “A” for all to see. Dimmesdale is fond of Hester‚ but he could never share the sin he committed. No one can find out. People who are selfish never realize the impact they make on other’s lives
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In a novel of sin and redemption‚ symbolism is used to broaden the significance of certain aspects. Throughout The Scarlet Letter‚ Hawthorne uses a barrage of themes‚ motifs‚ and symbolisms. These images help to unify the novel and enrich the meaning behind the work. Early in the novel‚ Hawthorne refers to iron‚ oak‚ chains mainly to demonstrate the Puritanism that takes place in the novel. However‚ he also uses these symbolic items to display the bonds between characters and what they believe in
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