In the story of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ there are plenty of themes surrounding the deep story. One theme in particular stood out‚ and that was price of untold sin. It plays a major role throughout the story and Pearl‚ one of the main characters‚ is a product of sin. In this story‚ set in 17th century Boston‚ Hester Prynne suffers the ignominy of having to wear the Scarlet Letter on her bosom for the rest of her natural life. After committing adultery‚ Hester must endure the pain
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Throughout The Scarlet Letter‚ Hawthorne uses a great deal of symbolism especially with the meaning of the scaffold. The scaffold starts out to be place of sin and humiliation but ironically becomes a place of true salvation. It is used by many characters to show their emotions as well as how people of the Puritan society treated Hester‚ Pearl‚ and Arthur Dimmesdale. In the first scaffold scene‚ Hester is holding her daughter Pearl in her arms. Hester has committed adultery and must stand on the
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With his critical essay: "Hawthorne’s Awakening in the Customhouse" Loving gives the reader a psychoanalytical reading of The Scarlet Letter. Loving pays close attention to Hawthorne’s unconscious motives and feelings in his interpretation of Hawthorne’s writing. He is particularly concerned about the radical change of direction that Hawthorne takes in altering the initial course of his story by adding an unexpected ending. The ending‚ as presented to the reader in the last three chapters‚ undermines
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citation). The Scarlet Letter was written in the 1850’s and was based in this type of society. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter‚ the two main characters commit a similar sin but experience a different outcome. Hester and Arthur commit a very similar and related sin. Hester Prynne commits a sin of adultery. She is a married woman whose husband is lost at sea and sleeps with another man. Prynne actually becomes pregnant and has a child named Pearl‚whose name holds great significance. Arthur
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misinterpretation of who she really is. In the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ Pearl is seen as an unworldly creature‚ incapable of any good. Her personality is unusual and difficult to comprehend‚ which prompts the puritanical society to question her ethical development. Pearl is constantly viewed as a mischievous elf-child by all the Puritans in Boston‚ yet Hawthorne intensely compares her to a glorious work of art. She is the representation of the Scarlet letter in human form. A child who is as significant
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In the novel of The Scarlet Letter‚ there were different types of themes which corresponded with the story. However‚ the theme that I choose is Revenge and Love. Revenge is one of the main lessons Hawthorne was trying to portray to the audience‚ because Chillingworth was up to no good in discovering Hester’s lover. The theme of love connected Dimmesdale and Hester together‚ which caused Chillingworth to have his revenge. The act of revenge began when Chillingworth returned from his journey and discovered
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story‚ chiaroscuro is displayed throughout The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Also prevalent in many masterpieces created by Rembrandt during the 17 century‚ Rembrandt uses chiaroscuro to create a focal point in his paintings and evoke personal thought. Hawthorne uses chiaroscuro to focus on the element of overall sin and to illustrate conflicts between characters. A comparison of chiaroscuro in Rembrandts paintings and Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter‚ provides a deeper understand of how light
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Scarlet Letter Chapter Summaries Chapter 1: The Prison Door The first chapter pretty much sets the scene for the rest of the book. It describes a door‚ the door to the prison in seventeenth century Boston. The door is studded with iron spikes and is surrounded with overgrown weeds and one rosebush. The narrator suggests that it’s a reminder of nature’s kindness to the prisoners. It says it will provide a “sweet moral blossom” in the face of distress. Chapter 2: The Market-Place The women
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The scarlet letter stands for adultery and only adultery and nothing more. In “The Meaning of the Scarlet A‚” Claudia Durst Johnson describes how the “A” In The Scarlet Letter‚ by Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ evolves in the meaning as the story goes on. Johnson is incorrect in her assertion as the “A” maintains the meaning of Adultery throughout the book. The first reason Claudia gives is‚ “Much of the meaning of the scarlet letter resides in Pearl because she is the result of Hester’s adultery.” (Johnson
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theme of identity to the audience. The scarlet letter is a defining moment in Hester’s life where she is faced with the dilemma of letting society decide her character or for her to determine her own. A significant moment in the book was when Hester decided not to leave Boston after being publicly humiliated and forced to wear the badge of shame. Hester was given the chance to leave Boston and lead a normal life somewhere else without wearing the scarlet letter‚ but she chose not to. Hester even
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