The Scarlet Letter Essay

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The Scarlet Letter
“The Scarlet Letter” is set in Puritan times when morals and beliefs greatly affected daily existence and people’s belief structure. The functional physical setting of “The Scarlet Letter” is to both foreshadow what will come and relate to the actual events occurring. For example, in the beginning of the story, the cemetery can represent the negativity in the following scene where Hester is made fun of at the scaffold. The forest represents evil because it is where witch meeting are held. Daylight symbolizes truth and reality for Hester because it is when her and Pearl have to face all the judgment as a result of the sin Hester committed. At certain points in the story, the night symbolizes peace for Hester because it was the only time her wild daughter Pearl was calm and asleep.
In my opinion, yes “The Scarlet Letter” is an early feminist novel. If Hester had been a man, I don’t feel she would have received the same punishment or torture. I feel like if she was a guy the towns people would not have been as hard on her and she wouldn’t have had to worn the scarlet letter. Typically, people are more judgment and harder on women than they are on men. Especially in times back then, women had barely any rights or freedoms. Women are usually looked down on more in society. Rather than just outing Dimmesdale’s secret, Chillingworth decided to screw with his head instead. Chillingworth could have just revealed Dimmesdale’s secret but that would have been not as fun as torturing him. It made him happy to see Arthur suffer. Hester thought that Roger Chillingworth was dead, that is why the sin of adultery was committed. So throughout majority of the story, Arthur Dimmesdale didn’t even know that Chillingworth was Hester’s husband. Chillingworth basically lives for revenge and suffering

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of the Letter in The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter includes many profound and important symbols. This device of symbolism is portrayed well in the novel, especially through the scarlet letter "A". The "A" is the best example because of the changes in the meaning throughout the novel. In the beginning of the novel, the scarlet letter "A" is viewed as a symbol of sin. The middle of the novel is a transition period, where the scarlet letter…

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The Scarlet Letter is a romantic fiction, that was written by the American novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850. The setting of the novel is Boston during the Puritan era, where a woman (Hester Prynne) who is not married gets pregnant which makes her an adulteress. Her punishment for adultery is to wear a the scarlet letter “A.” on her chest as a visible representation of her sin. The town then basically shuns her, especially because she does not disclose the identity of pearl’s (her child’s) father…

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Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter is a figure of shame and sin. Hester is looked down upon and shunned by the townspeople because she's has committed adultery. She is forced to wear the letter "A" to tarnish her reputation. Hawthorne's attitude toward Hester is different from the rest of the townspeople because of the way her presents her and finishes the story. As the novel continues the meaning of the scarlet letter changes from adulterer to able, adding to Hawthorne's true view of Hester Prynne…

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A simple letter of the alphabet transforms into a symbol of sin, shame, and identity in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlett Letter. In the Scarlet letter, as a punishment for the crime of adultery, Hester becomes forced to wear the scarlet letter A for the duration of her life. In Puritan Boston, which the story sets, the town considers adultery an ignominious act. In the romance The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses diction, and point of view to create a critical and analytical tone in order…

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