The Scarlet Letter essays

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3 Pages 1197 Words
The Scarlet letter by Nathaniel Hawthorn at its core, is a story of two supernatural forces battling each other to gain control. Every culture has a name for these forces: Ying and Yang, Good and Evil, but in the novel, they are known as sin and grace. The two forces are at work throughout the plot of the story, though...
4 Pages 1905 Words
In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne created a story about a woman who was to endure the disgrace of the scarlet letter “A” that sewed on her garments as a symbol of her adultery. This character's name is Hester Prynne. Nathaniel Hawthorne created this story after he was fired from his job working in the Custom House in Salem. Hawthorne...
1 Page 586 Words
Sin and the meaning of sin is one of the main themes that appear from the first chapter since the discovery of history and the scarlet letter. However, sin not only means an act against accepted religious norms, but also a rebellion against social traditions. The passionate act of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale that is deemed adultery, and upon...
3 Pages 1318 Words
In the story The Scarlet Letter by Nathanial Hawthorne has a plethora of thematic subjects, but the one that sticks out the most is the nature of sin, guilt, and blame. From start to finish the idea of sinning, and an inner guilt is prevalent in the entire story. Every character has something that they are holding in or have...
1 Page 534 Words
In The Scarlet Letter, not only is Pearl Hester’s daughter, but it is clear that she is also a wicked reminder of the past. In the novel, Pearl symbolizes the scarlet letter itself. The scarlet letter is meant to be a symbol of shame. That means, Pearl happens to be the punishment for Hester’s sin of adultery. Hester received this...
2 Pages 752 Words
During a time of Puritan manifestation in the New England area, the idea of sin and going against any of God’s commandments was indefinitely a crime in which could affect one’s life forever. For Hester Prynne, having committed adultery has brought her shame from the community, and being alienated from her society. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter utilizes symbolism to...
1 Page 668 Words
Everyone has committed a crime. However, some sins are unforgivable, to the point that they seem unforgivable. The 'unforgivable sin' is the obedience of the mind to the intellect. Nathaniel Hawthorne through Arthur Dimmesdale, Hester Prynne, and Roger Chillingworth There are some excellent examples in The Scarlet Letter. Through the differences in the lives of these three roles, Hawthorne taught...
3 Pages 1289 Words
In the world of literature, Roger Chillingworth stands, somewhat unceremoniously, as a symbol of true evil. In ‘The Scarlet Letter’ he is the living embodiment of the Black Man, who is, in the Puritan faith, a representation of the devil. He shares similar physical features to the Black Man and even shares similar desires. In ‘The Scarlet Letter’, the Black...
2 Pages 753 Words
In combining realistic and imaginative elements to tell a moving and dreamlike story, The Scarlet Letter is an example of the romance genre. In fact, the novel`s original title was The Scarlet Letter: A Romance. While today we think of romances as love stories, and The Scarlet Letter does contain love scenes between its two protagonists, the term romance as...
7 Pages 3154 Words
In the first scaffold scene, Hester is led out of prison and has to stand with her baby on the scaffold to be publicly humiliated for committing adultery, in the second scaffold scene, Dimmesdale goes to the scaffold where he comes clean to his sin in private and later Hester and Pearl join him on the scaffold, and in the...
4 Pages 1862 Words
Two Truths and a Lie: An analysis of the Scaffold as a symbol in The Scarlet Letter Two truths and a lie have been a common team-building exercise used for various types of collaborative groups. The purpose of the activity is for people to get to know each other in a fun way, by deciphering what is truthful and what...
5 Pages 2289 Words
The novel entitled 'The Scarlet Letter' was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and was published in 1850. The story revolved around the American Puritan culture, which the author is very familiar with because according to him, he mentioned “in my native town of Salem” (8) and “this old town of Salem—my native place” (14) so he was born in a Puritan...
3 Pages 1455 Words
“You can't tell any quite a story while not having some kind of a subject matter, one thing to mention between the lines”(Robert Wise). a subject matter is that the message or messages Associate in Nursing author is making an attempt to convey by incorporating them into their writing. Theme plays a very necessary role in each book, serving it...
2 Pages 1052 Words
In Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel 'The Scarlet Letter', Hester is the perfect example of one who experiences alienation alongside her daughter from the Puritans she lives around. She separates herself from them to work and take care of Pearl. Dealing with the guilt from her grave sin, Hester grows to learn how to cope with a judgmental society, where everyone around...
1 Page 631 Words
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, he reveals the life and hypocrisy of the Puritan communities in the past. He implies that back then in that stubborn society, many people were wrongfully sentenced for sins of all types. Dimmesdale and Hester show how easily it is for others to label you based on the mistakes you have made. He objects...
3 Pages 1317 Words
Puritanism arose in the late 16th century within the Church of England. Puritans wanted to stay with the Church of England but change the ceremonies to make them more traditional. Their church services were extremely simple, were centered around the bible, and no musical instruments could be played in the church. They believed that faith, not works or deeds, was...
1 Page 645 Words
In the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Pearl is a complex character and has arguably the most depth and most similar to life. Pearl had issues with her own society and community, defined by ridicule and embarrassment. She changed from an imp to a noble lady. A bit of a drastic change by most standards. Pearl is an...

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