The Scarlet Letter Act By Nathaniel Hawthorne - 1919 Words

Individuals create a society, but a collective mindset still exists. The average person tends to be the best representation of any society, and the townspeople found in The Scarlet Letter act as true representations of this idea, as apparent in the uniformity in the minds of the constituents of Puritan Boston. Each of these individuals’ thoughts and actions blend together to express a chorus of societal ideology. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the motivations, values, characteristics, and conflicts of the average person that they face to create a thematic element regarding how a theocratic society can suffer under the oppressive impact of Old Testament law. By freely subjugating themselves to a one sided view of morality and life via religion due to their fear of everlasting perdition they bring about their own demise. The average townsperson tends to be motivated by religion and family. Meanwhile, sharing the similar values of religion, family, and education, all of which are princ ipal tenets of 17th century Puritanism. This religious branch came from England and believed that the Church of England could be reformed. Puritan lifestyle includes hard work and strong religious beliefs. Citizens of Boston in the 1600s were motivated by their fear of an angry Christian God. These people believed that individuals were predetermined to go to either heaven or hell and lived in fear of the latter. This drove the citizens to unanimously live and work in what they deemed a saintlyShow MoreRelatedTheme Of Guilt In The Scarlet Letter820 Words   |  4 PagesNathaniel Hawthorne was a famous american author. Hawthorne’s most famous novel The Scarlet Letter was written in 1850. Throughout this novel, Hawthorne explores many different types of themes. In his novel, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism of The Scarlet Letter, Pearl, and the Leech to contribute to the overall theme of guilt. To begin with, Hawthorne uses the scarlet letter â€Å"A† to contribute to the theme of Guilt. The townspeople no longer see a beautiful woman Hester PrynneRead MoreEssay On John Hathorne878 Words   |  4 Pages   Ã‚  Ã‚   Nathaniel Hawthorne was greatly influenced by his great- great grandfather, John Hathorne, to develop the novel The Scarlet Letter.   John hathorne was involved in the persecution of several people in the Salem, Massachusetts (encyclopedia). JOHN HATHORNE AND THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS   Ã‚  Ã‚   In the year 1692, the Salem Witch Trials began and John Hathorne was chosen by Governor Sir William Phips to be a judge during the trials.   Hathorne believed that Satan had the power to pressure people into harmingRead MoreNathaniel Hawthorne s The Scarlet Letter1631 Words   |  7 PagesNathaniel Hawthorne’s personal isolation originated in his early childhood and later developed the theme for his most renowned literary novel, The Scarlet Letter. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne emphasized the impact that societal isolation can have on individuals. Several of the victims inflicted with isolation throughout the novel were ultimately met with their inevitable downfalls. One particular character, Hester Prynne, was selected to undergo a struggle comparable to Hawthorne’sRead MoreThe Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne960 Words   |  4 Pages3H 13 August 2014 The novel, The Scarlet Letter, was written by the author Nathaniel Hawthorne and was published in 1850 (1). It is a story about the Puritan settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, set around 1650 (2). The story is written in the third person with the narrator being the author. The common thread that runs through this novel is Hawthorne’s apparent understanding of the beliefs and culture of the Puritans in America at that time. But Hawthorne is writing about events in a societyRead MoreThe Scarlet Letter, By Nathaniel Hawthorne1488 Words   |  6 Pages In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter, the main character, Hester Prynne, is a true contemporary of the modern era, being cast into 17th century Puritan Boston, Massachusetts. The Scarlet Letter is a revolutionary novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne examining the ugliness, complexity, and strength of the human spirit and character that shares new ideas about independence and the struggles women faced in 17th century America. Throughout the novel, Hester’s refusal to remove the scarlet letterRead MoreThe Effective Use of Symblism in The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne1151 Words   |  5 PagesScarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne The novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne is an intriguing account of a Puritan community that experiences a breakdown in beliefs. The story deals with a woman, Hester, who commits adultery with a Calvinistic minister resulting in the birth of a child (Martin 110). As compensation for her crime of passion and her refusal to name her lover, Hester is sentenced to wear an embroidered scarlet letter on her bosom. It is this letter, or secretRead MoreThe Role of Color in The Scarlet Letter Essay973 Words   |  4 Pageshistory, politics, and religion. In The Scarlet Letter, the author, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism through colors such as red, black and white in the form of sunlight, to represent emotions and ideologies of Hester and the people around her. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the color red significantly throughout The Scarlet Letter to show its importance of symbolism in the emotions of sin and passion that it represents. The first example in The Scarlet Letter is the red rose that is growing by the prisonRead MoreAntifeminist and Feminism within The Scarlet Letter1388 Words   |  6 PagesAntifeminist and Feminism within The Scarlet Letter In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"The Scarlet Letter† Hester Prynne is accused and convicted of adultery. During the puritan era women in this society had specific obligations and rights they had to maintain. By Hester having an affair and acting unladylike the community disapproved of her actions causing everyone to isolate her in her town. Due to Hester Prynne’s Isolation and the harsh judgment she received from everyone in her town, she goes throughRead MoreHerman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne Show the Unbridgeable Gap Between Human Desires and Human Possibilities and the Mixture of Good and Evil in Even the Loftiest of Human Motives987 Words   |  4 PagesSantangelo Hawthorne and Melville In both works, â€Å"Bartleby the Scrivener† and The Scarlet Letter, Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne show the unbridgeable gap between human desires and human possibilities and the mixture of good and evil in even the loftiest of human motives. In â€Å"Bartleby the Scrivener† by Herman Melville, this idea is shown by how the Lawyer keeps Bartleby as one of his employers, even though Bartleby does not deserve to still be working. In the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel HawthorneRead More The Benefits of Sin Revealed in Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter1661 Words   |  7 PagesThe Benefits of Sin Revealed in The Scarlet Letter      Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Nathaniel Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter, each of us is born with original sin we have inherited from the misdeeds of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. As Eve bit hungrily into the apple from the Tree of Knowledge, starving for wisdom, little did she know that the entire human race would thereafter be tainted by her sin. Hawthorne and many others believe that ever since, human beings have been inclined to evil, more