ipl-logo

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

1300 Words6 Pages

Custom House: The story takes place in Massachusetts during the late seventeenth century.
Chapter 1: The setting of the story takes place in a colony of the New World called Boston. It appears that a lot of description is put into the jail as well. The legend that accounts for the existence of the rose bush is that it sprung up from the footsteps of Ann Hutchinson as she entered the prison. Hawthorne begins the story with a reflection about the need for a cemetery and a prison because he likely wanted to illustrate the amount of deaths caused by the harsh environment of the New World while also emphasizing the fact that the Puritans had very strict rules in order to create a “Utopia of human virtue and happiness” (33). Hawthorne may also be setting the mood for the story as the idea of imprisonment and death are both very somber …show more content…

By laying his fingers on his lips, the stranger motioned Hester to stay quiet and to not reveal any connections between the two. The possible punishment for the crime of adultery is death. Hester’s sentence was to face public humiliation on the scaffold of the pillory for three hours and wear the letter “A” for the remainder of her life. She may have been given a less harsh punishment due to her young age and also because of the belief that Hester’s husband had perished “at the bottom of the sea” (43). The three reasons that are given as to why Hester commits adultery are that she was “left to her own misguidance” or her own temptation, that she had already lost her husband so was more inclined to find someone else, and that she did not love her previous husband as much, which is proven when she says to her husband that “I felt no love, or feigned any” (51). The reason given is that he was a clergyman, or priest. Hence, he was speaking to Hester in order to make her confess the truth. Dimmesdale was responsible for her because it was of “spiritual matters” in a way, which was his

Show More
Related

  • Compare And Contrast Dimmesdale And Chillingworth

    517 Words  | 3 Pages

    The young and beautiful Hester Prynne was once married to a man who had been missing for around three years and committed adultery with another man. Considering the time period this was no small action especially since her unnamed partner is Reverend Dimmesdale and in disguise her long lost husband is actually Roger Chillingworth. Both characters are covering up parts of their life that play a big role in who and why they are for their own individual reasons. Dimmesdale is cowardly covering up his crime in order to protect his holy name as well as himself from the shame and embarrassment that the truth will bring.

    Read More

  • Diction, And Denotation In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

    696 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the early 1600’s, Puritan groups migrated from Europe to the Massachusetts Bay Colony to establish a settlement based around very strict religious beliefs. The Scarlet Letter is set in this time period and settlement where it was considered a horrendous sin to commit adultery. Hester Prynne engaged in sexual relations with the minister, Dimmesdale, which resulted in a child named Pearl. This novel highlights Hester’s struggle to raise her child and protect herself from the societal attacks thrown at her, while overcoming the label bestowed upon her by society. In, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses specific diction, repetition, and denotative diction in order to convey the purpose of overcoming labels and protecting one’s image.

    Read More

  • How To Read Literature Like A Professor, By Thomas Foster

    319 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the book How to Read Literature Like a Professor, author Thomas Foster explains concepts that have been used in writing and how those can be interpreted differently. This includes vampires and ghosts and their relationship to seemingly normal people. The concept of vampires and ghosts can be found throughout the book The Scarlet Letter in the character Roger Chillingworth. It is hard to tell what his true intent is throughout the book, thus making him seem suspicious and somewhat evil. At the beginning of the book, a mysterious man arrives to Boston during Hester’s punishment on the scaffold, to find that she has committed adultery.

    Read More

  • The Guilt Of Reverend Dimmesdale

    861 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hester willingly took the blame for all of it even though it hurt her, “Be not silent from any mistaken pity and tenderness for him; for, believe me, Hester, though he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal of shame, yet better were it so, than to hide a guilty heart through life” (ch 3). Dimmesdale is begging Hester to put the blame on him, but she does not want to cause him shame so she carries the blame for both of them. This hinders Pearl and Hester because they have much more of a burden to carry since Dimmesdale has no punishment according to

    Read More

  • Diction In The Scarlet Letter

    635 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hawthorne notes that the rose bush, with it’s “fragrance and fragile beauty,” in the presence of unsightly vegetation, a gloomy old prison, with people wandering about in depressing garments. Not only does this make the reader picture the beauty of the rose in contrast to ugliness of the environment, but Hawthorne also alludes to the idea of a rose bush in this conforming, bland society as a whole. Furthermore; near the very end of the passage, Hawthorne makes a last significant allusion to the rose bush- “It may serve, let us hope, to symbolize some sweet… of human frailty and sorrow.” This last reference to the rose bush significantly reinforces the idea of the rose bush as the drink to nurture the independent ideas of society while starving the conformity that is exhibited throughout the story.

    Read More

  • How Does Nathaniel Hawthorne Use Biblical Allusions In The Scarlet Letter

    1458 Words  | 6 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthorne, a famous American author from the antebellum period, notices the emphasis on individual freedoms in the works by Ralph Waldo Emerson and other Transcendentalists during his residency in the Brook Farm’s community. In response to these ideas, Hawthorne writes The Scarlet Letter, a historical novel about Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale’s lives as they go through ignominy, penance, and deprecation from their Puritan community to express their strong love for each other. Their love, even though it is true, is not considered as holy nor pure because of Hester past marriage to Roger Chillingworth, and thus Hester gained the Scarlet Letter for being an adulterer. Hawthorne utilizes biblical allusions, such as the stories of

    Read More

  • How Does Nathaniel Hawthorne Use Symbols In The Scarlet Letter

    705 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the book, The Scarlet Letter, the author Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism to bolster the characters and to help the readers get a better understanding of them. Symbolism is used by writers to better relate to objects. Some examples of symbolism would be in chapter 7. These would have to include: Pearl/the scarlet letter, the sunlight on Governor Bellingham’s mansion, and the reflection within the suit of armor. These three examples are the most paramount to help to reveal the characters and to distribute Hawthorne’s message.

    Read More

  • Hester's Punishment In The Scarlet Letter

    640 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hester's punishment was a judicial sentence; however, being forced to stand on the scaffold for three hours, and to wear the scarlet letter "A" for the rest of her life. It was socially humiliating. Hester was sent to prison for committing adultery. Hester was forced to live with the consequences by wearing the scarlet letter "A". Hester is physically and emotionally reminded of her sin, while wearing the scarlet letter "A".

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Devices In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

    470 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hawthorne uses chapter twenty-two, “The Procession”, to put all the pieces of the puzzle of the conflict together. This is where the reader remotely begins to understand how the ending of the novel will come to an end. To reveal the conclusion to the reader, Hawthorne uses rhetorical devices such as, irony, simile, and diction. To expose the irony in this chapter, Hawthorne writes of Dimmesdale’s sermon. As Dimmesdale speaks, “if the auditor listened intently, and for the purpose, he could detect the same cry of pain.”

    Read More

  • Reading Response To Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

    1146 Words  | 5 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthorne did not always speak positively toward the Puritans, but he has respect for the group. The main symbol that stands out is the scarlet letter “A” that was stuck on Hester Prynne for her actions of adultery which is a theme for this book. Another symbol is the rose bush that grew right outside of the old, rusty, decaying prison

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Rudyard Kipling's 'The Mark Of The Beast'

    1349 Words  | 6 Pages

    His

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Dimmesdale And Chillingworth A Sinner

    480 Words  | 2 Pages

    Dimmesdale sinned with Hester Prynne by committing adultery. Although this was terrible and looked down upon, his crime was self inflicting and done out of passion. After Hester was punished for the crime, Dimmesdale was overwhelmed with guilt and sadness. This showed that Dimmesdale was a good person

    Read More

  • Essay On Literary Devices In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

    499 Words  | 2 Pages

    Literary Devices in The Scarlet Letter Literary devices are often used to capture a reader’s attention in a text. Nathaniel Hawthorne used many different types of literary devices in his book The Scarlet Letter. He uses symbolism to give hidden meaning to elements in the story, conflict to make the story interesting, and allusion to make references to historical events (ex. biblical references). While reading The Scarlet Letter, the literary devices did not jump out at me, but now as I reflect upon them they help me understand the book well. Literary devices can make a passage have a whole different meaning.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Suffering In The Scarlet Letter

    1662 Words  | 7 Pages

    In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne explores recurring themes of suffering surrounding the main characters, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. Hester and Dimmesdale both commit adultery with each other, and, as a result of this, both experience gruesome and occasionally unbearable forms of suffering. Though they undergo different forms of pain, both of their experiences are highly reliant on how the Puritan society treats them. Hester 's pain stems from the shame and estrangement she receives from the community, while Dimmesdale’s is due to the reverence with which the community regards him. Although, in spite of the fact that both Hester and Dimmesdale receive harsh penalty for their sin, by the end of the book, Hawthorne shows how their suffering is, in fact, the key to their salvation.

    Read More

  • Gothic Elements In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

    1284 Words  | 6 Pages

    Bhimani 1 Outline Prescribed Question: How does the text conform to, or deviate from, the conventions of a particular genre, and for what purpose? Text: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Thesis: In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne effectively conforms to the conventions of the gothic genre for the purpose of characterizing the Puritan society as oppressive, portraying the hypocrisy found within Puritan society and highlighting the consequences for not confessing sin.

    Read More

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

Open Document