Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is a novel filled with many symbolic references that reflect not only the issues/concerns of the Puritan era but also of similar issues of his own time period, which Hawthorne reveals his personal opinions on. One example of said issues evident in his work is the Puritan society’s view/treatment of women, which he appears to express contempt for through the use of his character Hester Prynne. However, even though Hawthorne appears to not be in favor of how the Puritan government perceives/deals with women, he also doesn’t seem to be willing to allow the equally involved patriarchal system to be challenged or abolished since it works in a man’s favor and at times he even concurs with society in terms …show more content…
For adultery is a serious offense in an era where religion and law are interchangeable and is a crime judged more harshly on women because society dictates that women be held to a higher moral standard than men. This double standard for men and women is evident in how the women regard Hester for her crime, as one of the wives standing about the prison door expresses “Good wives … What think ye … If the hussy [Hester] stood up for judgment before us five … [W]ould she come off with such a sentence as the worshipful magistrates have awarded? Marry, I trow not!” (478,479). This clearly portrays the disdain the people (and especially the women) have for Hester due to her actions and the anger they feel at the law (the magistrates) for not following the traditional Puritan tribunal, which as another wife from the crowd states should customarily kill Hester for her sin as she asserts “This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die. Is there no law for it? Truly there is, both in the Scripture and the statue-book” …show more content…
In fact, he appears to coincide with the wishes of the patriarchal system by keeping Hester’s “resistance” mainly limited to her own thoughts, as he explains when he states that her “… [L]ife had turned … [F]rom passion and feeling, to thought … She assumed a freedom of speculation … [W]hich our forefathers, had they known of it, would have held to be a deadlier crime than that stigmatized by the scarlet letter” (541). This statement Hawthorne gives about her reformist thinking being considered a greater crime than her original addresses his personal belief that feminist thinking is a threat to the patriarchal system (established by the forefathers) of his own
In the beginning of the story, Hester is faced with serving the temporary part of her sentence, standing on the scaffold in front of the whole town. "It was a circumstance to be noted, on the summer morning when our story begins its course, that the women of whom there were several in the crowd, appeared to take a peculiar interest in whatever penal infliction might be expected to ensue" (48). The citizens of the town had gathered to criticize Hester as she stood on the scaffold, and many of the town’s women were discussing the simplicity of Hester’s sentence, since the usual punishment for committing adultery is the death penalty. Although she had to put up with the remarks about her for three hours while she was standing on the scaffold, the ridicule followed for many years to come. Hester and her daughter were thought upon as sinners long after Hester had served her sentence.
Readers generally characterize the Puritan Townspeople in The Scarlet Letter by their attitudes in the beginning of the novel. When Hester first walks into the scene, most of the townspeople are very harsh and strict in their religions. They believe that adultery is one of the worst sins possible. One unyielding woman says, “This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die. Is there not law for it? Truly, there is, both in the Scripture and in the statutebook. Then let the magistrates, who have made it of no effect, thank themselves if their own wives and daughters go astray.'; Although a young woman and a righteous man try to intervene with the angry old women, their voices are never heard. Also, Hawthorne associates ugliness with wickedness; therefore, all of the stingy women are described as being very ugly. They regard her not as a fellow sinner but as a woman so evil that she must be ostracized from her “perfect'; community. They view the scarlet letter that she wears upon her breast as a symbol of her atrocious crime of adultery and nothing more. The women in the beginning of the novel are so quick to pass judgment on others, yet they fail to recognize the sin in themselves. Once they realize this obstacle, the townspeople will become more understanding of Hester’s situation.
Hester’s life was forever changed after the choice she makes to break one of the fundamental laws of Puritan society. At this time, there was no separation of church and state in the early Puritan society, breaking the law of God was also breaking the law of the state as well. The law is stated in Exodus 20:14,"Thou shalt not commit adultery”, is the fundamental law that Hester violates. The punishment as stated in Leviticus 20:10, “And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death”, was not instituted on due to the fact that Hester had through her adulterous affair had become pregnant. Her punishment was therefore changed to a scarlet letter “A” that she must wear for the rest of her life and also stand upon a scaffold in front of the town for three hours a day. This is the beginning of Hester’s downfall. Instead of being put to death, she must live her life in shame and raise a child that was conceived through a sinful relationship. On the first day of her punishment, she began a life of secrecy by not divulging the name of the father to anyone, not even to the father himself. “Be not silent from any mistaken pity and tenderness for him; for, believe me, Hester, though he were to step do...
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s ‘The Scarlet Letter’ was considered by many as the controversial novel of its time, given its themes of pride, sin and vengeance. It was also set in a time when very few were thinking about the equality of of men and women, but Hawthorne managed to bring gender-based inequality to light through the novel’s male-dominated Puritan setting and by reversing the gender roles of characters, such as Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale.
Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, focuses on the Puritan society. The Puritan society molded itself and created a government based upon the Bible and implemented it with force. The crime of adultery committed by Hester generated rage, and was qualified for serious punishment according to Puritan beliefs. Ultimately the town of Boston became intensely involved with Hester's life and her crime of adultery, and saw to it that she be publicly punished and tortured. Based upon the religious, governmental, and social design of the Puritan society, Hester's entire existence revolved around her sin and the Puritan perception. Therefore it is evident within The Scarlet Letter that the Puritan community to some degree has constructed Hester's character.
The story discusses a sin, which is adultery, and how viewing it differs from society and the sinner. Society views Hester's sin as shameful and disgraceful. Th...
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is virtually banished from the Puritan society because of her crime. She was guilty for adultery with the town’s minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. However, the reader is kept in the dark that Dimmesdale is the child’s father until latter part of the novel. Although Hawthorne’s novel accurately depicts the consequences that Hester and Dimmesdale suffer from their sin, the novel does not accomplish the task of reflecting upon the 17th century Puritan gender roles in Hester and Dimmesdale. For one, the mental and physical states of Hester and Dimmesdale are switched. Hester takes on the more courageous role throughout the novel whereas Dimmesdale takes on the more sensitive role. In addition, Hester is examined in accordance to the gender roles set for today’s American women. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is written in a manner that accurately depicts 17th century Puritan society, but does not accurately show gender roles.
In the Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne commits adultery, a disgraceful sin, and she is severely punished. Yet although her sin was not a good choice, Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author, attempts to justify her actions. His writing indicates that he does not accept of her behavior but that it was not completely her fault. Being a Puritan, Hester was forced into one way of life, the only acceptable way in the eyes of her community. This pressure to adhere to numerous strict rules was metaphorically compared to a difficult journey down a narrow, winding road in the forest with little light. The Puritanical way of life curbed deviant behavior and is a justification for Hester's sin because every so often, everyone strays from the path but it the reaction to the wrongdoings that should be defining and Hester remained strong and took the consequences.
Portrayal of Puritan Society in Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter In the introductory sketch to Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel the "The Scarlet Letter", the reader is informed that one of the author's ancestors persecuted the Quakers harshly. The latter's son was a high judge in the Salem witch trials, put into literary form in Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" (Judge Hathorne appears there). We learn that Hawthorne feels ashamed for their deeds, and that he sees his ancestors and the Puritan society as a whole with critical eyes. Consequently, both open and subtle criticism of the Puritans' practices is applied throughout the novel.
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses his novel, The Scarlet Letter to critique the Puritan faith. In developing his story of the adulteress Hester Prynne, he uses both religious and natural imagery to show his disdain for the Puritan religion. The Scarlet Letter is a vivid portrayal of his utter dislike for the Puritans and everything that they stand for. Hawthorne is in complete disagreement with them and makes it clear throughout the book.
In a normal Puritan society, a woman’s most important role was that of being a mother and housewife, and women were always seen as being less than a man. The rights of women during Puritan times were very limited and they had many restrictions on what they could and could not do. For example, they could not vote in the town council, own or buy land, or command any servants that their husband or father owned (study.com). Hawthorne represented this through the societies thoughts about Hester, and through how most other women in the society act. The societies thoughts about Hester show that any women who does not follow the normal way of doing things is to be punished and looked down on, even if their actions are completely relevant and harmless. It also represents how harshly women were judged for simply just being a
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, there are many moral and social themes develped throughout the novel. Each theme is very important to the overall effect of the novel. In essence, The Scarlet Letter is a story of sin, punishment and the importance of truth. One theme which plays a big role in The Scarlet Letter is that of sin and its effects. Throughout the novel there were many sins committed by various characters. The effects of these sins are different in each character and every character was punished in a unique way. Two characters were perfect examples of this theme in the novel. Hester Prynne and The Reverend Dimmesdale best demonstrated the theme of the effects of sin.
With a strong female protagonist and two mentally weak males, it is hard to consider Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter anything but a feminist treatise. He obviously intended to put down not only Puritanism, which is an obvious aspect of the novel, but to establish a powerful, secure female in American literature. Hester proves, although she has sinned in the past, she can confront her mistakes, take care of herself and her child, and help others at the same time. She can withhold a position in society that many can respect because of her character something the males of the story obviously could not succeed at doing.
In fact, it is even stated that Hester does not restrict herself to thinking within the Puritanical doctrines:“The world’s law was no law for her mind… She assumed a freedom of speculation”(Hawthorne 116). She also questions Puritan ideals by questioning the meaning of womanhood, “Was existence worth accepting, even to the happiest [of women]?... the whole system of a society is to be torn down and built up anew.”(Hawthorne 117). By giving Hester a critical view of public shaming and Puritan society in general, Hawthorne is exposing to the flaws of Puritan society--it does not work. It is also important to note that besides becoming more rational, Hester does not become more religious -- something that Puritan ideals would have valued. This is because it is never explicitly mentioned in the book that Hester increases her devotion to God. This lack of change further emphasizes Hester’s detachment of Puritan ideals since she is not thinking about the basis for their ideas -- to be favorable in the eyes of God. Later, the scarlet letter changes from being a symbol of shame to a symbol of reverence; Hester becomes a trusted confidante due to her experience and knowledge of the
The Scarlet Letter is a fictional novel that begins with an introductory passage titled ‘The Custom-House’. This passage gives a historical background of the novel and conveys the narrator’s purpose for writing about the legend of Hester Prynne even though the narrator envisions his ancestors criticizing him and calling him a “degenerate” because his career was not “glorifying God”, which is very typical of the strict, moralistic Puritans. Also, although Hawthorne is a Romantic writer, he incorporates properties of Realism into his novel by not idealizing the characters and by representing them in a more authentic manner. He does this by using very formal dialogue common to the harsh Puritan society of the seventeenth century and reflecting their ideals through this dialogue. The Puritans held somewhat similar views as the Transcendentalists in that they believed in the unity of God and the world and saw signs and symbols in human events, such as when the citizens related the meteo...