Nathaniel Hawthorne’s character, Hester Prynne’s, actions creates a lot of controversy regarding Prynne’s sin, resulting in Hawthorne writing his critical essay, “On the Scarlet Letter.” D.H Lawrence critiques Hawthorne because he believes that Hawthorne favors Hester Prynne to an unnecessary extent , in The Scarlet Letter. Lawrence uses several devices that allow him to express his viewpoints about Hester Prynne and her sin. D.H. Lawrence uses biblical allusions, bullet-point syntax, and a mocking tone to convey his thoughts on why Hawthorne gives Hester Prynne too much credit. The biblical allusions in Lawrence’s essay reveal his disapproval towards Hawthorne’s writing choices regarding Hester Prynne and her sin. There are various amounts …show more content…
Lawrence utilizes bullet-point syntax in his essay to fully express his dissent towards Hawthorne’s positive attitude regarding Hester Prynne. The description of Hester’s scarlet letter uses syntax as “Adulteress. Alpha. Abel. Adam. A. America.” because the ‘A’ has several meanings according to Hawthorne (Lawrence). His one word sentences are simple, but significant in the sense that he gets his opinion across with bullet points. The sentences are like bullet points because the one word descriptions for the scarlet letter are clear and bold, which allows Lawrence to capture the audience’s attention. This is clearly stating Lawrence’s refusal to accept Hawthorne’s acceptance towards Hester Prynne and her sin. Bullet points give the effect of an important statement that is meant to be heard and not to be taken lightly. These bullet point sentences show his negative reaction because he does not approve of Hawthorne’s choices in the novel, so he makes his sentences short and clear. D.H. Lawrence makes the sentences as simple as possible when stating, “The fiery heart. A. Mary of the Bleeding Heart. Mater Adoleratal A. Adulteress. Glittering with gold thread…” (Lawrence). These short phrases allow Lawrence to signify his discontent towards Hawthorne by repeating important words that relate to Hester Prynne. This is bullet point syntax because of the choppy, but clear message that Lawrence conveys. The “A” between each of the word descriptions is a reminder of the letter …show more content…
D.H. Lawrence makes many sarcastic remarks about the adulteress, including the statement, “put her upon the scaffold and worship her there” (Lawrence). He mocks the way Nathaniel Hawthorne praises Hester because he finds the situation to be much bigger than Hawthorne does. Although standing on the scaffold is a punishment, Lawrence tries to make a joke of it and mock Hawthorne’s attitude. Hester commits a crime that is completely illegal and essentially is praised for her actions; however, Lawrence believes that she is still a criminal, which is why mocks the scene where Hester is put on the scaffold. His sarcastic statement is mocking Hawthorne’s worship towards the sinner. His derision continues when the scarlet letter almost loses its importance of meaning and he comments “go home and dance a witch’s jig of triumph, and stitch yourself a Scarlet Letter…” (Lawrence). Lawrence ridicules Hawthorne with his satirical language about making their own scarlet letter because the letter “A” is not something to be proud of, yet he uses it to mock the author. D.H. Lawrence utilizes a harsh mocking tone when joking about the letter on Hester’s bosom because it seems that Hawthorne frequently changes the meaning of the “A” to make it seem less harsh. The sarcastic comments
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,
Throughout history individuals or groups of people have responded to power in a multitude of ways. Hoping for religious freedom, the Puritans left England for America starting in the 1620s. The Puritan community chose to withdraw in response to conflict with the higher power in England. Coincidentally, Hawthorne wrote about a Puritan Community in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during this period of migration, and in this community like all others there is always conflicts revolving around power. Hawthorne uses power imbalances in the Scarlet Letter to characterize and transform Hester, Reverend Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth.
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s well known novel, The Scarlet Letter, extensive diction and intense imagery are used to portray the overall tone of the characters. In particular, Hester Prynne, the wearer of the Scarlet Letter, receives plentiful positive characterization throughout the novel. Hester’s character most notably develops through the town’s peoples ever-changing views on the scarlet letter, the copious mentions of her bravery, and her ability to take care of herself, Pearl, and others, even when she reaches the point where most would give up and wallow in their suffering.
The characters Hawthorne develops are deep, unique, and difficult to genuinely understand. Young, tall, and beautiful Hester Prynne is the central protagonist of this story. Shamefully, strong-willed and independent Hester is the bearer of the scarlet letter. Burning with emotion, she longs for an escape from her mark, yet simultaneously, she refuses to seem defeated by society’s punishment. Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale claims the secondary role in The Scarlet Letter; he is secretly Hester’s partner in adultery. Conflicted and grieved over his undisclosed act, he drives himself to physical and mental sickness. He fervently desires Hester, but should he risk his godly reputation by revealing the truth? Dimmesdale burns like Hester. Pearl, the child produced in Hester and Dimmesdale’s sin, is the third main character. She is fiery, passionate, perceiving, and strikingly symbolic; at one point in the novel she is referred to as “the scarlet letter endowed with life!” Inevitably, Pearl is consumed with questions about herself, her mother, and Dimmesdale. The reader follows Pearl as she discovers the truth. Altogether, Hawthorne’s use of intricately complex, conflicted ch...
Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne attempted to expose the varying ways in which different people deal with lingering guilt from sins they have perpetrated. The contrasting characters of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale ideally exemplified the differences in thought and behavior people have for guilt. Although they were both guilty of committing the same crime, these two individuals differed in that one punished themselves with physical and mental torture and the other chose to continue on with their life, devoting it to those less fortunate than they.
The Scarlet Letter starts off by throwing Hester Prynne into drama after being convicted for adultery in a Puritan area. Traveling from Europe to America causes complications in her travel which also then separates her from her husband, Roger Chillingworth for about three years. Due to the separation, Hester has an affair with an unknown lover resulting in having a child. Ironically, her lover, Arthur Dimmesdale, is a Reverend belonging to their church who also is part of the superiors punishing the adulterer. No matter how many punishments are administered to Hester, her reactions are not changed. Through various punishments, Hester Prynne embraces her sin by embroidering a scarlet letter “A” onto her breast. However, she is also traumatized deep within from everything she’s been through. Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts this story of sin by using rhetorical devices such as allusion, alliteration and symbolism.
In his essay On the Scarlet Letter, D.H. Lawrence explores Nathaniel Hawthorne’s portrayal of Hester Prynne. Lawrence focuses on and condemns Hester’s sin itself rather than its consequences. Instead of supporting Hawthorne's depiction of Hester as an innocent character, Lawrence sheds light on what he believes is her true character, a deceiver. He argues that Hester Prynne has a false appearance of purity through his use of critical diction, sarcastic tone, and biblical allusions.
Hester Prynne is seen by many as worthy of respect and admiration throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter. She is ultimately seen as a hero in many areas of the novel. Literary critic Mark Van Doren argues that Hester Prynne is a heroic citizen who rises above the consequences of her sin. Van Doren argues that Hester Prynne should be seen as a noble hero through his use of repetition, praiseworthy diction, and admirable tone.
Hester Prynne is a character who gave up everything, even love, for her child. Hester Prynne sacrificed her peace, her beauty, her entire being for her child and this shows her determination and profound understanding of the world. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s piece, “The Scarlet Letter” shows the other side of the sinner’s story and not as a villain, but a victim.
In Nathanial Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the reader meets the character Hester Prynne who as the novel progresses, one notices the changes in her character are very dramatic. The changes are both physical and in her mannerism’s. There are many significant events which took place before the start of the novel and during the novel. Some of these events that lead to this dramatic change include the affect of wearing the scarlet letter, the secrets which she keeps, and her daughter Pearl’s evil characteristics. By these events, Hester Prynne’s image is transformed throughout the time of the story.
One of the most engrossing aspects of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is the unambiguous fact that all the characters in the book are subject to false accusations from the self righteous society depicted throughout the novel. Hawthorne persistently displays his negative opinion of the Puritan society through multiple characters’ experiences. In fact, it is believed that Hawthorne added the “w” to his name in order to distance himself from his Puritan ancestors (Sampson). The people in Hester Prynne 's life are consistently misconceived by the townspeople while Hawthorne makes their actual personalities clear, invalidating the society’s harsh and cruel assumptions.
Lawrence uses biblical allusions to help demonstrate that Hester is a sinner because they compare her to well-known figures in a way that brings out her corruptness. Lawrence compares Hester to Mary by saying she is “the sacred image of sinless Motherhood, whose infant was to redeem the world” (Lawrence). Mary is one of the most pure figures in religion and Lawrence is blatantly being sarcastic in his comparison of the two character to provide an idea of how ridiculous it is to consider Hester a hero. Mary was given the gift of Jesus by God while remaining a virgin and faithful to her husband. Hester on the other hand had a baby with a man she was not married to. Moreover, Hester is compared to Abel from the story of Cain and Abel. While Dimmesdale is the one who dies for their sins, Hester “lives on and is Abel” (Lawrence). One would think that Lawrence would compare Hester to Cain instead, considering he is the one who lives and Abel is the one who dies. By stating this, Lawrence is showing the irony and ridiculousness that Hawthorne ensures by condemning the pure and innocent Dimmesdale to death but the sinning and corrupt Hester to live on. He is also using “Abel” as a play on words in an ironic way, demonstrating that the A stands for able and Abel, but is given to the person farthest from resembling
It seems as if Hawthorne wrote this scene for the purposes of exhibiting the harshness of Puritan society, and to allow the reader some insight into Hester's thoughts. Hawthorne places the focus onto Hester at this moment. The reader observes her before the full effect of the scarlet letter has had a chance to take hold of her. The reader is also able to see the cruel and judgmental behavior of the crowd through their language, such as when they call her a hussy. "This women has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die. Is there not law for it?"
Lawrence again refers back to sarcasm in his tone to emphasize his criticism. For example, he talks about the idea of Hester “Glittering with gold thread. Abell Adultery. Admirable!” (Lawrence). It is clear that Lawrence is simply mocking the tone of those who sympathize with Hester Prynne. By criticizing and retaliating against the idea that Hester Prynne is an admirable character, Lawrence succesfully attacks how Hawthorne seeks to portray Prynne, as well as those who cannot see Hester Prynne as a contradictory symbol to pure society. In this case specifically, Lawrence targets the seduced reader who fails to detect Hester’s mortal sin, mainly because it helps him lead into the gravity of her sin itself. Lawrence also warns those of pure society to not “let [Hester] start tickling [them]” (Lawrence). Lawrence issues a direct statement to the reader that Hester Prynne’s characterization is used for the mere purpose of seduction. Those who have been seduced undermine the virtues of pure society, and are therefore criticized by Lawrence. Lawrence warns his fellow members of pure society to not fall under this
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...