Literary Techniques Used In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

From the very beginning, the second paragraph of the novel describes “their [Puritans] earliest practical necessities to allot a portion of the virgin soil as a cemetery, and another portion as the site of a prison” (Hawthorne 45). The first building constructed, the prison, represents Puritan priorities. Hawthorne emphasizes the Puritan’s mainly pessimistic and dull characteristics that make up their society as a prison represents fear, punishment and pain. Further in the paragraph, Hawthorne describes the new puritan community with words connoting depression: “grave...gloomy” with “darker aspects “and “ugly edifices” (Hawthorne 45). Hawthorne utilizes dismal diction, invoking a melancholy tone.

After saying these things he admits to having an affair with Abagail Williams. He was wishing this would show that Abagail was just jealous and wanted to get rid of his wife to have him for herself. Now John Proctor was going to be put to death for being an adulterer and his wife fore practicing witch craft. John proctor had to confess to being an adulterer on paper and it was to be hung on the church doors in the middle of Salem. He didn’t like the way they were going to give him a bad name if he confessed.

Consequently, they vocalized their opinions to Creon; making him short-tempered and depressed. He soon gave into peer pressure along with anger and introduced an alternative punishment for the two sisters. Creon said, “Oh, it is hard to give in! But it is worse to risk everything for stubborn pride.” Though he tried to make a change, in the end he was still unhappy because his wife and son died.

During the beginning of the play he fails to realize how much he hurt Elizabeth when he committed adultery. John was criticized and treated with a very much deserved cold reception from his wife. But John lacks empathy as he asks her to look sometimes for the goodness in [him], and judge [him] not” (Miller 55). He’s asking her to look past his affair as if this would be an easy task for his committed wife. But however John is able to redeem himself, and change himself for the better.

Elizabeth seems like she does not sincerely forgive him. However, I do not blame her for not sincerely forgiving him because if it was my husband who cheated on me I could never forgive him. Only Jesus can forgive people for their sins they have committed. Jesus died for all of our sins.

Bess’s father was appalled by her death. He opposed the relationship of the two, knowing that things wouldn’t turn out so well. Then again, she disobeyed and could not stand not being in love. “Bess was such a beautiful and kind daughter, if only I’d kept her away from the highwayman, this wouldn’t of happened”, wept Bess’s father.

He gave up his dignity when he said the he had committed adultery on his wife. In the culture of the time this was a big crime, and was seen as one of the most heinous of crimes. John has now given what last shred of honor he had to get his wife back. John losing his respect in the town is a big deal because of all the things John represented to the people.

Reverend Hale begins the play completely certain and sure of the righteousness in his calling. But as time passes, it is seen how much this character has been corrupted. As he speaks to Elizabeth, nearing the end of the play, he exhorts her to tell her husband to lie to be saved. But he is not asking John Proctor to lie so that he may be saved and live on, but he is asking him to lie so he doesn’t feel guilty if he does die.

Hester Prynne emerged from the property left all to herself after her husband departed to sea. The misery brought upon Hester Prynne became the calling of her to the Black Man. She wondered how this man could have betrayed her in stealing her youth in such a way that would drain her happiness. This life has brought enough misery to the point where the same dark question often rose into her mind. Was existence worth accepting?

The example Carter uses in his article, “The Insufficiency of Honesty, “ is of a man who confesses unfaithfulness, thirty-five years prior, to his wife on his deathbed. The man says, “dishonesty was killing his spirit,” (5). Carter argues that though the man was honest to his wife, he did it out of selfish reasons, being unable to bear the thought of carrying an unrepented sin to his death, ultimately leaving his wife to question her marriage and cope with the news by herself (5). On the surface, the reader can assume that, through this allegory, honesty is not

Vonnegut wanted to “try to write my war story, whether it was interesting or not, and try to make something out of it.” Vonnegut wanted to make a significant point across about the horrors of the war stating several times he is currently writing an anti war novel(******). The main character Billy is broken from the war, which is clearly stated in (*******). Showing what Vonnegut went through through Billy described the Dresden bombing as the worst bombing and experience that any prisoner of war had

At last, a tragic hero realized his bad and try to fix that into right way. In the book “the crucible” John Proctor said to lawyer and judgement that “Tell them I confessed myself: say Proctor broke his knees and wept like a woman:say what you will, but my name cannot-”(p62). It reflects that he is trying to be honest, and also trying to be a good father to his child and husband to Elizabeth. This is because, if he confess and avoid death, his child cannot inherited anything and Elizabeth lived with suffer because her husband is a witch. But, Proctor doesn’t confess that he is witch, and be honest to his child and wife.

When we keep secrets we also keep guilt and guilt will destroy us from the inside. In the book of scarlet letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and how one woman who committed adultery with a character named dimmesdale who is the town revered. Dimmesdale kept secrets to maintaining his reputation but actions the guilt eats him from the inside. Dimmesdale the town revered for the puritan religion. He commits adultery with Hester and has a child, but instead of facing his sin he keeps inside for no one to know.

Hester commits adultery as a married woman, and Dimmesdale commits fornification as an unmarried man. Due to these sins, they both get punishments. Hester goes to jail for a few years and is sentenced to wear scarlet letter A on her chest. She is shunned and isolated. Dimmesdale, on the other hand, does not reveal his sin to public.

Sometimes a man says things he don’t mean. I don’t reckon he meant to talk to you thataway.” But The Misfit also shows no remorse when he shoots the grandmother in the chest after she touches him. The conflict symbolizes redemption, The Misfit symbolizes the evil that some must go through to reach the understanding of their own mistakes.