Envy of the Procreative Power of Women in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a novel about procreation. Though Hester Prynne is the mother of Pearl and the creator of the scarlet letter in the novel, Hawthorne is the symbolic mother of the novel, the letter, and the characters. Careful analysis of the text reveals a pattern of womb envy and an attempt to master it on the part of Hawthorne.
The concept of womb envy-- envy of the procreative power of women (Kittay 126)-- has been virtually ignored by both psychoanalysts and literary critics since Bruno Bettelheim first introduced the idea. Though intended as a supplement to the concepts of penis envy and the Oedipal complex developed by Freud, womb envy has not generated the attention that penis envy has. This may in part be due to Freud's interpretation of the desires of the males in his case study to bear children as be "anal, autoerotic, or homosexual" in nature. (Kittay 127). Since Freud ignored the possibility of men's envy of women's childbirthing abilities, most of his followers have as well.
The disparity in the acceptance of Freud's and Bettelheim's concepts can best be seen in psychoanalytic criticisms in the literary world. Examples of "penis envy" and "Oedipal complex" readings abound. Hamlet's desire for his mother causes him such guilt that he resurrects his father and goes insane. Gertrude's promiscuous and incestuous marriage to her late husband's brother Claudius is a symbolic attempt to gain a penis. Virginia Woolf's invented sister of Shakespeare is a symbolic penis. At the same time, few literary critics have attempted to explain character or author motivation in terms of womb envy, despite the fa...
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...st new mothers, Dimmesdale dies after delivering his sermon and confessing his sins. Chillingworth is unable to survive this loss since his dependency on Dimmesdale is unnatural. Of all the central characters, Hester, along with Pearl, is the one who strong enough to survive.
Works Cited
Benstock, Shari. "Of Gardens, Gold, and Little Girls." The Scarlet Letter. Murfin, Ross C., ed. Boston: St. Martin's, 1991. (292-303).
Kiehl, Joanne Feit. "Re-Reading The Letter: Hawthorne, the Fetish, and the (Family Romance.: The Scarlet Letter. Murfin, Ross C., ed. Boston: St. Martin's, 1991. (235-251).
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. Murfin, Ross C., ed. boston: St. Martin's, 1991.
Kittay, Eva Feder. "Mastering Envy: From Freud's Narcissistic Wounds to Bettelheim's Symbolic Wounds to a Vision of Healing." Psychoanalytic Review 82. (1995f): 125-157.
A. The Scarlet Letter. Enriched Classic ed. of the book. New York City: Simon & Schuster, 2004.
Regardless of their financial successes, both novels and their respective film adaptations are held in high esteem by many. They both utilize unique visual techniques to immerse their audience in the worlds of Philip K. Dick, but differ on their strictness of plot and characterization. In the end, however, the departures from the original source material of Blade Runner are executed so well that they come across on par with the literal A Scanner Darkly. Both movies play tribute to genius of Philip K. Dick’s writing by being complete, well-rounded works.
The World Book Encyclopedia. 2000 ed. : p. 78. Griswold, Rufus Wilmot. The "Scarlet Letter" The Library of Literary Criticism of English and American Authors. Ed.
The Scarlet letter is a novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The plot focuses on sin in the Puritan society. Hester Prynne, the protagonist, has an affair with Reverend Dimmesdale, which means they are adulterers and sinners. As a result, Pearl is born and Hester is forced to where the scarlet letter. Pearl is a unique character. She is Hester’s human form of her scarlet letter, which constantly reminds her of her sin, yet at the same time, Pearl is a blessing to have since she represents the passion that Hester once had.
Smiles, Samuel. ""The Scarlet Letter."" The Critical Temper. Ed. Martin Tucker. New York City: Frederick Ungar Publishing Company, 1962. 266.
The facts bear out the conclusion that the way healthcare in this country is distributed is flawed. It causes us to lose money, productivity, and unjustly leaves too many people struggling for what Thomas Jefferson realized was fundamental. Among industrialized countries, America holds the unique position of not having any form of universal health care. This should lead Americans to ask why the health of its citizens is “less equal” than the health of a European.
In 2005 Fawcett stated “the metaparadigm of professional nursing incorporates four concepts: human beings, environment, health, and nursing” (as sited in Kearney, 2012, p. 4). This paper discusses my philosophy of nursing by stating my own personal definitions, values, and assumptions regarding each of the above mentioned concepts. My paper concludes with an exemplar from my own nursing practice and how I integrated my nursing philosophy into that particular clinical situation.
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Barry, Peter. "Psychoanalytic criticism." Beginning Theory: an Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory. 3rd ed. Manchester: Manchester UP, 2009. 92-115. Print.
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