Damned if You Do‚ Damned if You Don’t: Contrast in the Scarlet Letter The Puritan society was known for it’s strict morals and religious piety. But despite these supposedly virtuous qualities‚ in the Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter‚ we are shown how twisted this model of society is. The people torment Hester‚ but refuse to see that their beloved minister carries the same sin in his heart; in fact‚ they revere him all the more for it. In his chapters‚ “Hester at Her Needle‚” and “The
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There are many dichotomies that are found throughout the novel‚ The Scarlet Letter‚ by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Many of the characters in the story present strong dichotomies like Pearl‚ Roger‚ and Hester who show two totally different perspectives of themselves. A dichotomy is the division of something or someone into two parts; it can be good and be bad at the same time. For example spiders‚ no one likes spiders around their house‚ but they can be a use for trapping and killing unwanted flies around
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The Scarlet Letter Human Nature falls into two categories: logic and feelings. Humans can split half and half or fall on the extreme end of the spectrum as Nathaniel Hawthorne portrays. The Romantics value impulse and natural intuition. They do not hold any value to reasoning through thinking or through study of literature. The Scarlet Letter‚ shows that Roger Chillingworth‚ Pearl and Hester Prynne characterize the perfect personalities to show a Romantic and Realist point of view. Presented as
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“The Scarlet Letter” is important and proves that the scaffold in the center of their community is a place for criminals and sinners to be recognized as such. As we know‚ Hester Prynne was committed for adultery which is why she was led to the scaffold. In their community the scaffold is the symbolism of clarity of whoever stands atop it. In this case‚ Hester is considered to be transparent‚ so that everyone in the town can see that she has sinned. Her punishment not alone to wear the scarlet letter
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Essay: The Scarlet Letter-Colors Throughout the novel‚ “The Scarlet Letter‚” Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrates the themes with various dramatic colors. Of the array are the colors green and gold‚ where green symbolizes different aspects of nature such as tranquility‚ security‚ and gloominess‚ whereas gold represents all that pertains to luxuriance‚ serenity and goodness. In certain chapters‚ it seems as if one color is codependent with the other. The implication of the color
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Even in today’s society they are still forms of ostracism and shunning due to undesirable actions of certain people. Much like in the Scarlet Letter as Hester is branded an outcast due to having a baby out of wedlock and out her current marriage to someone who could technically be dead. Similar to Hester‚ teen moms today face a similar form of ostracism due to have babies at such a young age and almost always out of wedlock. Of course‚ there will be snickering and gossip from the students around
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Ambiguity‚ which is doubleness or inconclusiveness of meaning‚ is an important characteristic of Hawthorne’s style in The Scarlet Letter. Constantly used throughout the story‚ ambiguity continually keeps the readers attention. Examples of ambiguity are clearly seen throughout the book. When Hester Prynne is leaving the prison‚ Hawthorn briefly describes a rosebush In front of the prison. Hawthorne says‚ "…or whether‚ as there is fair authority for believing it had sprung up under the footsteps of
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“Setting” is a word used to describe the place‚ time‚ assumptions and values of a society in a story. In the Scarlet Letter‚ the setting was in the Puritan town of Salem in Massachusetts Bay Colony circa 1640. Being that the era and location of the backdrop is in a 17th century Protestant Puritan village‚ the assumptions and values would be that the townspeople are God-fearing individuals who strictly adhere to the Bible and its preachings. In this particular story‚ the primary conflict was the setting
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Throughout the novel‚ The Scarlet Letter‚ Nathaniel Hawthorne emphasizes the intricate themes of isolation and alienation. Using a variety of literary techniques and descriptions of emotions and nature‚ Hawthorne is able to fully depict the inner feelings of hurt suffered by the central characters as a result of severe loneliness and seclusion. This‚ therefore‚ further adds to the overall gloomy and cynical atmosphere of the work. Isolation and alienation‚ two forms of torturous estrangement‚ are
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How far would you take love for the one’s you cherish? The inquiry lies in the core of The Scarlet Letter‚ and they are the reason Hester can be seen as a woman activist. After committing adultery‚ Hester was made to wear an “A” for her punishment instead of getting put to death‚ as it was usual for form of sin in the Puritan views . She wore the custom embroidery with pride‚ as if the “A” stood for able‚ instead of adultery like everyone else put it out to be. Hester also defended herself and Pearl
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