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Transcendentalism In The Scarlet Letter

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How does one go on when they are alienated by society and have the constant reminder of their shame? The novel, The Scarlet Letter, tells the trials and tribulations Hester Prynne faces when just that happens to her. It is her scorching red story of transcending beyond societies expectations. The Scarlet Letter was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. When Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote the novel America was going through a transcendentalist era. The novel exemplifies the age America going through. American literature and mentality was entering into a different direction. Transcendentalists were thinking more in tune with nature and in tune with themselves. Nathaniel Hawthorne was a transcendentalist. In his novel, The Scarlet Letter, he created a transcendentalist, …show more content…

She leads a simple lifestyle. She does not take more than she needs Thoreau also said to simplify as much as possible; where there is room to trim down whether it be on dishes or meals do that because “an honest man has hardly need to count more than his ten fingers, or in extreme cases he may add his ten toes, and lump the rest.” Hester has done that she makes all the money they need to live and nothing more. She has simplified her income. Also her attire supports her simple lifestyle. Though she dresses her daughter is extravagant clothing, for herself she dresses in in text about what she wears. Hester undergoes a transformation in the story, that emphasized how society had impacted her, and perhaps to have the constant reminder of truth, another theme of the story. Again, she lives the simple life of a transcendentalist who does not take more than what is necessary. Hester Prynne is a transcendentalist because she demonstrates the qualities non-conformity, self-reliance, and simplicity throughout the book. Being exiled by society, she then has the opportunity to fully come into her own. She is able to reflect on her individual views vs. society’s views. She can lean on herself and successfully support herself and her daughter in her young age. Lastly she doesn’t take more than need despite that she is very able to. Hawthorne illustrated a character that was complex, and the reader can watch her transcend over obstacles put in front of her throughout the

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