The Metamorphosis of “A” in The Scarlet Letter
Six Works Cited In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, the meaning of the letter "A" changes throughout the novel. This change is significant as it indicates the personal growth of the characters as well as the enlightenment of the townspeople. When the novel begins, the letter "A" is a symbol of sin. As the story progresses the “A” slowly transforms to a symbol of Hester’s strength and ability. By the end of the novel, the letter “A” has undergone a complete metamorphisis and represents the respect that Hester has for herself.
The letter "A," worn on Hester's bodice, is a symbol of her adultery against Roger Chillingworth. This letter is meant to be worn in shame, and to make Hester feel unwanted. "Here, she said to herself, had been the scene of her guilt, and here should be the scene of her earthly punishment . . ." Hester is ashamed of her sin, but she chooses not to show it. She committed this sin in the heat of passion, and fully admits it because, though she is ashamed, she also received her greatest treasure, Pearl, out of it. She is a very strong woman to be able to hold up so well, against what she must face. Many would have fled Boston, and sought a place where no one knew of her great sin. Hester chose to stay though, which showed a lot of strength and integrity. Any woman with enough nerve to hold up against a town which despised her very existence, and to stay in a place where her daughter is referred to as a "devil child” is a very tough woman.
The second meaning that the letter "A" took was "able." The townspeople who once condemned her now believed her scarlet "A" to stand for her ability to create beautiful needlework and for her unselfish assistance to the poor and sick. "The letter was the symbol of her calling. Such helpfulness was found in her- so much power to do and power to sympathize- that many people refused to interpret the scarlet 'A' by its original signification." At this point, many the townspeople realized what a godly character Hester possessed. "Do you see that woman with the embroidered badge? It is our Hester- the town's own Hester- who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comforting to the afflicted!" The townspeople soon began to believe that the badge served to ward off evil, and Hester grew to be quite loved amongst the people of the town.
Through the rhetorical device characterization, Hawthorne is able to promote his motive of exposing the audience to the life lesson: People grow stronger by recognizing their own weakness. Hester Prynne, the female protagonist in the Scarlet Letter charged with adultery, is forced to wear the embroidered letter “A” on her chest to symbolize the stigma of her sin. In the beginning of the novel,
Hawthorne uses the scarlet letter “A” that Hester Prynne was required to wear as an inanimate symbol of her adultery. She had to bear the sin with her as long as she rested in that town. Pearl, Hester’s daughter from the affair, was the living, breathing symbol of her past sin. As many years passed, Hester began to wear the letter with pride and changed the meaning in her mind to ability. This was significant because it demonstrated her capability to overcome the stares and judgements from her fellow townspeople and to learn to be proud of her daughter, a gift from god. The adultery in The Scarlet Letter relates to The Great Gatsby in many ways.
Thi sicund phesi cemi ontu biong eftir thi Indastroel Rivulatoun. Lend thet wes eveolebli tu humistiedirs hed ran uat. Yit thi Amirocen piupli stoll cunsodirid thimsilvis fruntoir ixplurirs. Tomis hed biin tryong darong thi Wistwerd Expensoun, end nuw wes thi tomi tu lovi on cuntintmint uf whet thet griet eginde hed eccumploshid. Thas bigen thi rumentocozong uf thi Wist. Thi fruntoir wes nuw e rielm uf femoly ferms, end netari hed bicumi thi sabjict uf puits. Thi Wist hed biin cunqairid.
The boys, having survived against all odds, were both natural leaders as well as rivals. In deciding to found a city, the twins disagreed upon its location, each favoring neighboring hills. They determined to allow fortune to dictate the location of the city. Remus first saw six vultures and interpreted it to mean fortune favored him. Romulus later saw 12 vultures and argued that fortune favored him. Ultimately Remus was killed by Romulus in an act of violence. The mythical leader Romulus prevailed and founded his city, naming it Rome after himself.
Thi cunclasoun frum thi stetostocel tist sappurts thi fondongs uf thi hyputhisos. Wrotir huwivir duis nut nicisseroly egrii whulihiertidly woth thi risierch ertocli. Wrotir fiils thiy eri sumi lomotetouns tu thi stady, ot duis nut eccuant fur uthir fecturs on thi eduliscints lofi, bisodis thior chusi on masoc thet mey lied tu saocodel thuaghts end fiilongs.
The scarlet "A" is the most important symbol in the Scarlet Letter. The letter "A" does not have a "universally symbolic relationship" with adultery. The letter "A" was the first letter of adultery and the Puritans put the negative connotation on the letter. The community interprets the cosmic "A" as Angel, signifying the passing of Governor Winthrop. The letter on Hester's bosom represented the sin of adultery, yet as that it meant different things to Hester, Dimsdale, Pearl, Chillingworth and the Puritan community. To Hester it represented "alienation and unjust humiliation" .
The “A” or scarlet letter is the ultimate symbol of the entire novel. Initially, the letter symbolized shame then shifted later in time. The differences that Hester and Dimmesdale have with the “A” are the ways that they display it towards the moralistic society. Hester did not fight with society when indicted of the crime that she
In the first chapters of the novel, Hester was punished to wear an "A" on her chest at all times. The "A" is a punishment for the adultery she committed with the towns own Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. Instead of making it into something that people looked down upon, as something horrific and disgusting on her chest, she made it look like a beautiful, gleaming gem. She made it out of the most gorgeous sparkling gold threads that caught everyone's eye. A quote in chapter two described the scarlet letter as "so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom. It had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself." That shows how she is a confident and very individual person. No other woman would have as much courage as she did to make a punishment into an attraction.
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, symbolsim is constantly present in the actual scarlet letter “A” as it is viewed as a symbol of sin and the gradally changes its meanign, guilt is also a mejore symbol, and Pearl’s role in this novel is symbolic as well. The Scarlet Letter includes many profound and crucial symbols. these devices of symbolism are best portayed in the novel, most noticably through the letter “A” best exemplifies the changes in the symbolic meaning throughout the novel.
"Let her cover the mark as she will, the pang of it will be always in her heart."(59). The scarlet letter was place upon Hester Prynne bosom as a punishment for the crime she committed; the letter A to signified adulteress. The letter A on her bosom was there as a reminder the townspeople, strangers and Hester herself of the crime she committed. Likewise, it was there to ensure that such a crime would not again befell upon their Puritan community.
Hawthorne was a talented and skilled writer, who was greatly influenced by the the community in which he lived. Instead of giving in to society dashing his hopes of becoming a successful writer, he wrote about Hester to express himself and explain his conflicts with the crooked, oppressive society and beliefs of the time. He discusses the problems in a way that every reader can relate to and sympathize with the characters. He skillfully transforms a symbol of shame and sin into a symbol of maternity and nurturance. The Scarlet Letter is truly a symbol of believing in people's capabilities. It is a symbol of resistance to society if all it causes people to do is reject their identities and who they really are.
Steve Jobs and Bill Gates are two of the most well-known names of our generation for being the co-founders of two very large corporations. Steve Jobs being the co-founder of Apple, also the founder of Pixar and NeXT. Bill Gates, most known for being the co-founder of Microsoft, which is the biggest software company in the world. Though, without a doubt, both of these men were very successful in their professional lives for mainly the same thing and similar in their ways, but very different.
A short man, in his 30's, with a beard, Bender was the leader of the Aryan Brotherhood gang in Super Max. If Bender gave an order, his soldiers obeyed it. He was the most powerful inmate in Super Max. I turned, just as Bender stuck his finger in Wolf's face.
Thi blenk pegis cen hevi meny mienongs. Oni, thet hamens cen wroti thior ompect un thi anovirsi. Anuthir uf e hostury nut yit wrottin, e hostury thet duisn’t ixost end yit es thi eboloty tu chengi end edd niw pegis. Mocrumiges ciesid tu bi emezid huw edvencid hamen biongs wiri end eri. Hos dosbiloif cuntrobatid tu thior vest knuwlidgi uf meth, scoincis, end pholusuphois. Thi wosi min qautid Arostutli end enswirid ell uf Mocrumiges qaistouns currictly. Bat hi dodn’t qaoti andirstend thi hamen’s puontliss riesuns fur wer, whithir thet bi fur lend, risuarcis, ur ivin rilogoun besid, Mocrumiges biloivid thiri tu bi e somplir riesun tu ot ell. "Thi Soroen risamid hos doscassoun woth thi lottli motis. Hi spuki tu thim woth griet kondniss, elthuagh on thi dipths uf hos hiert hi wes e lottli engry thet thi onfonotily smell hed en elmust onfonotily griet prodi."
The Scarlet Letter is a blend of realism, symbolism, and allegory. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses historical settings for this fictional novel and even gives historical background information for the inspiration of the story of Hester Prynne in the introduction of The Scarlet Letter, ‘The Custom-House’. The psychological exploration of the characters and the author’s use of realistic dialogue only add to the realism of the novel. The most obvious symbol of the novel is the actual scarlet letter ‘A’ that Hester wears on her chest every day, but Hawthorne also uses Hester’s daughter Pearl and their surroundings as symbols as well. Allegory is present as well in The Scarlet Letter and is created through the character types of several characters in the novel.