A in the Scarlet letter

825 Words2 Pages

The period in which the story is based is a decisive period in the history of America due to the fact that it was the period when puritanism was settled. Although Hawthorne criticised several forces of puritanism throughout the story, such as severity or intolerance, he was also interested in some of its characteristics and principles. There is a continuous ambiguity throughout the story, particularly because it represents the barrenness of American history and concurrently diverse values of puritanism. One of the main Hawthorne’s concerns was to introduce the English traditions, past and architecture in America, due to the fact that the puritans rejected them when they moved to the new land. The English heritage that appears in the novel comprised an excellent cultural baggage, because the beauty of European architecture and other artistic references were non-existent in the colonies. The consequence that this denial created was the barrenness of the puritan culture, because they rejected everything related to their past. One of the main Hawthorne’s intents was to criticise the puritan period, because in his opinion the puritan laws were responsible for the lack of an artistic development in America. When Hester is at the scaffold, she remembers her life in England and Amsterdam, but also she recalls the public buildings, the ancient cathedrals and the antique architecture from her foregoing country. Hester’s attitude is a rebellion against both puritan rules and puritan culture, and when she is bound to carry an “A” over her breast, she transforms the adultery in art. This transformation is carried out by means of the beauty of her needlework, but also through her daughter Pearl. In this story art is compared to beauty, the b... ... middle of paper ... ...mmunity that sent her away from the village to the woods not only because of her sin, but also due to the fact that she created beauty in something against puritans. She is confronting them due to the fact that the “A” represents something that is beyond their knowledge, beyond their religious beliefs. As the story continues, the letter has a different meaning that the one it had in its origin, and this new conception of the letter is a representation of both beauty and rebellion with regard to art. Hester is the lively representation of art through beauty, and Hester’s art is also attached to the figure of her daughter, because Pearl is the personification that something beautiful and perfect can be created from a sin. And some members of the community stare at them because they represent everything the puritans once rejected from their past, the beauty in art.

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