the forbidden acts of drunkenness‚ blasphemy‚ and adultery. In The Scarlet Letter‚ the church enacts harsh sentences of incarceration and public shaming in order to discipline the presumed sinners. Even though these punishments seek to inflict harm and cause suffering to their victims‚ Hawthorne uses their cruelty to elicit the truth. Presenting a major symbol of Puritan punishment‚ Hawthorne employs the harshness of the scarlet letter to allow Hester to discover her own strength and beauty. Under
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In The Scarlet Letter‚ the Puritans are a group who believe that people are born with sin. Subsequently‚ they keep a strict eye over their community as well as themselves. Correspondingly‚ depending on how severe a sin is‚ it may be punishable by death. Hester is spared by the Puritans because they believe that she will serve as a living sermon of sin. Hester must wear a scarlet letter on her chest for the entirety of her life to make up for her punishment. These events convey how the overall theme
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used as a symbol. If the author takes the time to write about it then it’s important. If the object doesn’t seem relevant than it is probably being used as a symbol and probably has a deeper meaning. Anything can be used as a symbol‚ and in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne there are many different symbols. A certain import symbol to me in the book is Pearl‚ Hester’s daughter. Pearl was born out of Wedlock and Hester chose to name her Pearl because “as being of great price‚ purchased with
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Transformation The setting of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet letter” is crucial to the understanding of the event that takes place in the story. The setting of the story is in Salem‚ Massachusetts during the Puritan era. During the Puritan era‚ adultery was taken as a very serious sin‚ and this is what Hester and Dimmesdale committ with each other. Because of the sin‚ their lives change‚ Hester has to walk around in public with a Scarlet Letter “A” which stands for adultery‚ and she is constantly
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~ The Scarlet Letter ~ Psychological Analysis "I experienced a sensation...of burning heat; and as if the letter sere not of red cloth‚ but red-hot iron." These words in the introduction to The Scarlet Letter describe the letter as an object that contains power. The power left in the little red piece of cloth represents all the emotional toil that was associated with it - guilt‚ pain‚ betrayal‚ and vengeance. Throughout the novel the letter will stir all these emotions‚ creating an intense psychological
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The Scarlet Letter: Prohibit or Protect? In this day and age‚ just about any opinion‚ show‚ book‚ or movie can be seen as offensive and unnecessary by different groups of people. All around the nation‚ classic novels are being banned from public schools and libraries due to their contentious and possibly harmful language and content. Among these is a timeless and beloved book‚ The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Since the publishing of this title in 1850‚ many teachers‚ parents‚ and community
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In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter‚ the forest means different things to different people. To the honorable and respectable members of Puritan ‚ the forest is an evil and frightening place where witches lurk and the devil resides. To Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale‚ two people unable to speak their minds in Puritan community‚ the forest offers a place of refuge where they can be true with each other. To Pearl‚ the forest . The symbolism of the forest setting’s inherently good and bad natures
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March 9‚ 2008 Isolation within The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ an American author who lived from 1804-1864‚ could be characterized as “an imaginative genius gifted with considerable linguistic skill” (Perkins 1 of 3). Hawthorne’s most famous works included The House of the Seven Gables and The Marble Faun‚ both novels portrayed the essence of sin and guilt and their emotional effects on mankind. One of Hawthorne’s most famous works The Scarlet Letter‚ takes place in Boston during the Puritan
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in the time period the novel was written. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ Puritan hypocrisy is a theme that prominently seen throughout the novel through actions and beliefs of the Puritan community. One of the best examples of Puritan hypocrisy occurs in the very last line of the novel‚ the message engraved into Hester and Dimmesdale’s gravestone‚ “On a field‚ sable‚ the letter A‚ gules‚” (Hawthorne 203). On a black field‚ the letter “A” is boldly red. The irony is in the fact that
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cultures at different eras within American history‚ a common theme can be established when comparing The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald with The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Both novels‚ for example‚ examine the dichotomy between reality and appearance as well as the conflict between individual and social values. In The Scarlet Letter‚ Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale love each other. This love holds great personal value for them. However‚ because their relationship is adulterous
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