Gender Roles In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Term gender role is described as a set of social norms of what types of behaviors are generally considered acceptable, appropriate or desirable for a person based on their sex ussualy centered around opposing conceptions of femininity and masculinity.

Gender roles traditionally were often divided into distinct feminine and masculine gender roles, until especially the twentieth century when these roles diversified into many different acceptable male or female roles in modernized countries throughout the world.

Gender roles are closely linked with gender stereotypes. Stereotypes are overgeneralized beliefs about people based on their membership in one of many social categories. For example traditionally, men have been seen as financial providers, whereas women have been viewed as caretakers.

If we see the roles of gender in The Scarlet Letter what is clearly reflected by cultures and religious rules. Two main protagonists Hestery Pryne and Arthur Dimesdale represents two different gender role and sex role: male and female. Gender represents a social construct of Dimmesdale, while the feminine role represents Pearl who is raised by Hester away from the typical Puritan ideals of femininity. That leads her to become increasingly wild and strong-willed, the opposite of a good Puritan women. Dimmsedale holds the traditionally feminine gender roll, apart from being a