Assignment : 10 : The American Literature
To Evaluate My Assignment
Assignment
Name : Parmar Krupa Jivabhai
Roll no. : 20
Enrollment no. : 2069108420180040
M.A.Sem : 3
Year : 2017-2019
Email id : parnarkrupaj25@gmail.com
Paper no . : 10
Submitted to : Department of English Bhavnagar
Topic : politics of 'A' in The Scarlett latter
Introduction of Hawthorn :
Nathanial Hawthorne was one of the prominent writers of the
English Literature. He was born on 4th July, 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, U.
S. He was an American novelists and short story writer. Hawthorne became one of
the leading writers of his time moving away from formalism and exploring the
ideas of individual responsibility, the importance of creative expression and
man’s relationship to the world.
Hawthorne was very much connected with Salem, Massachusetts. After he
lost his job at the Salem custom House, due to change in political
administration, Hawthorne denounced his wish to leave Salem, which he called
the “abominable city”, saying that he now had no reason to remain.
Hawthorne has written very famous novel “The
Scarlet Letter”. In this novel reflects the idea of the harsh Puritan society
and presents the situation of the women of the Puritan times and reveals
reality of society. Hawthorne writes,
“Be true! Be true! Be
true! Show freely to
The world, if not
your worst, yet some
Trait whereby the
worst may be inferred!”
The
Scarlet Letter is one of the Romantic fictions written by Nathanial Hawthorne.
This novel published in 1850. This novel “The Scarlet Letter” considered to be
his one of the magnum opus and set in 17th century Puritan Boston Massachusetts
during the year 1642 to 1649.
In
this novel Hawthorne has presented the central idea of the mentality of the
puritan people. In this novel there are many characters but main characters are
Hester Prynne, Pearl, Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth. Hester is the
key character of the novel and she has played vital role in this novel.
This is the novel about sin, punishment, and adultery committed by the
characters of Hester and Dimmesdale, a secret father of Pearl. Hester is
punished by the puritan society for her adultery. Hester is stand alone with
her daughter Pearl in front of the puritan society. Hawthorne has presented the
dark side of the puritan mentality of the people.
Hester
Prynne :
In
this novel the character of Hester Prynne is the central character of the
novel. She is the protagonist of the novel. In this novel this character has
been called “among the first and most important female protagonists in American
Literature”. Hester is married to Roger Chillingworth and has an affair with
Arthur Dimmesdale and from that affair she has a daughter, namely Pearl.
In
this novel “The Scarlet Letter” Hester plays many roles like, abandon lover,
devoted mother, estranged wife, religious dissenter, feminist and out cast.
Hawthorne has created very powerful character of Hester who stands against the
puritan society. He portrays Hester fondly, “as a woman of strength,
independence, and kindness, who stands up to the judgment and constraints” of
her society.
Throughout the entire novel the character of Hester fight against the
puritan society and passes through a very tragic condition of her sin and
punishment. Throughout this character Hawthorne challenges the puritan society
and their rules.
The politics
of “A” in the Scarlet Letter :
The
title of the novel it has very symbolic meaning that the Scarlet means “a
bright red color”. In this novel the symbol of “A” gives the core idea of
entire novel. In this novel “A” is presented which shows the puritan society
through the journey of the novel “The Scarlet Letter”.
In The
Scarlet Letter Hawthorne includes many profound and important symbols. This
device of symbolism is portrayed well in the novel, especially trough the
Scarlet Letter “A”. the “A”is the best example because of the changes in the
meaning throughout the novel Hawthorne has presented ambiguity of letter “A”.
In
the beginning of the novel, the scarlet letter “A” is viewed as a symbol of
sin. The middle of the novel is transition period, where the scarlet letter “A”
is viewed differently. In this novel Hawthorne has mostly put stress on the
puritan society. In the beginning of the novel, the letter is taken as a
“label” of punishment and sin. In the commencement Hawthorne introduces a
character of Hester. Hester loves Dimmesdale and she has committed adultery
with Dimmesdale and she has little daughter also namely Pearl.
Hester is punished and she bears the label of the letter upon her chest.
Hester is presented as in centre and society is on periphery. She stands as a
label of outcast in front of society. She is wearing this symbol to burden her
with punishment throughout her life. She stands on a plank where her punishment
is given,
“Thus she will be a
living sermon
Against sin, until
the ignominious
Letter be engraved
upon her tombstone”
Society places its blames upon this woman. It is because of this one
letter that Hester’s life is changed. The letter’s meaning in puritan society
banishes her from her normal life. The puritans view this letter as a symbol of
the devil. The letter also put Hester trough torture:
“of an impulse and passionate nature she had fortified
herself to encounter the stings and venomous stabs of public contumely wreaking
itself in every variety of insult but there was a quality so much more terrible
in the solemn mood of popular mind, that she longed rather to behold all those
rigid countenances contorted with scornful merriment and herself the object”
This implies that Hester’s sin of bearing a child without the presence
of a husband will always be remembered. Hester in this novel give the
Feministic idea that how a woman are treated and faced the inferiority by the
society. Hester voluntarily resumes the letter as a,
“Woman stained with
sin, bowed down with shame”
Although, Hawthorne
adds that,
“Not the sternest
magistrate of that
Iron period would
have imposed it”
These
two quotations tell about the situation of women in the society and also
present the narrow mentality of the puritan society. It shows that how Hester
suffers from the isolation and go through the pain of her own stain character.
Hawthorne in this text presents the poor law of the puritan age and
takes very powerful example as feministic reading of the novel. He also
represents the cruel reality of the puritan laws through the character of
Hester.
In the
commencement of the novel the character Hester has wear “A” as a Adulteress and
she stands alone even no one with her to support only her daughter pearl. Who
also suffers the pain and punishment. “A” letter is very symbolic which
symbolizes the puritan society. During the first few years of Hester’s
punishment, the letter was a daily reminder of shame. Hawthorne writes,
“……Hester Prynne had
always this dreadful agony
In Feeling a human
eye upon the token;
The spot never grew
callous; it seemed,
On the contrary, to
grow more sensitive with daily torture”
Hawthorne says that Hester who was always torture to wear “A” and it
daily remind to shame. As the story unfolds, though this letter comes to mean
other things to Hester and the people rather than bringing torture to Hester,
it eventually becomes a symbol to some people meaning “Able” Hawthorne writes,
“They said that it
meant ‘Able’; so strong was
Hester Prynne, with a
woman’s strength”
“The Scarlet Letter
had not done its office”
The
Scarlet letter was meant as a punishment for Hester. It shows the strongness of
the women to fight against the society and feminine power. Hawthorne writes,
“Thus, we seem to see
that, as regarded
Hester Prynne, the
whole seven years of outlaw and
ignoming had been
little other than a
Preparation for this
very hour”
Hester was “Able” to deal with a society that hated her, and then a town
that accepted her for her good works. The society was able to look past their
hatred for her and saw that in fact they needed her and finding Hester was able
to stay, where she wanted to be.
Over the time the fact that Hester
didn’t crumble and in fact stood taller despite her exclusion from the puritan
society. Opened their eyes to see that good can survive even in the heart of a
sinner. Thus her adulteress turn into her ability to survive and faced the
society.
Throughout the novel “The Scarlet Letter” there are various meanings to
the scarlet letter. It means different things to different people,
“a sign of wealth to the butler, curiosity for pearl, guilt
for Dimmesdale, rebelliousness, revenge or motivation for Chillingworth and
betrayal of one’s spouse, to name a few.”
The true duty was to punish and teach a lesson.
In
this novel “The Scarlet Letter” is only one of the symbols representing Hester’s
Shame and Punishment. Another one we see early I the novel, at about the same
time we see Hester wearing scarlet letter for the first time in public, is the
Scaffold on which she stands after walking out of the prison. Hawthorne writes,
“It was, in short,
the platform of the pillory;
And above it raised
the framework of that instrument of discipline,
So fashioned as to
confine the human head in its tight grasp,
And thus hold it up
to the public gaze
The very ideal of
ignominy was embodied and
Made manifest in this
contrivance of wood and iron.”
The
Scaffold, like the scarlet letter, to the puritans, it a place of public shame
for those persons who decide to break the puritan law. It represents the sin of
the person standing upon it and it shows the puritan way of dealing with sin.
In the
Scaffold scene where Dimmesdale stands with Hester and Pearl, a meteor traces
out an “A” in the night sky. To Dimmesdale, the meteor implies that he should
wear “A” mark of shame just as Hester does.
The
meaning of meteor is “small body from outer space becoming incandescent when
entering earth’s atmosphere in short bright star falling down to the earth” but
Hawthorne has interpreted here differently by the rest of the community, which
thinks that it stands for “Angel” and marks Governor Winthop’s entry into
heaven. But “Angel” is an awkward
reading of the symbol of “A”.
The
puritan society commonly looked to symbols to confirm divine sentiments. In
this novel narrative, however, symbols are taken to mean what the beholder
wants to mean. The incident with the meteor obviously highlights and
exemplifies two different uses of the symbols:
Throughout this novel Hawthorne has gave various symbols of “A” and also
tells about the sign and the significance of the scarlet letter “A”. in this
entire journey of the novel, the letter “A” characterized Hester’s immoral
position and her strength to fight against the law system of puritan society.
Introduction
of Pearl:
Pearl is illegimate daughter of Hester and Dimmesdale. Pearl serves as
symbol of her mother’s shame and triumph. Hawthorne describes Pearl as “the
scarlet letter endowed with life”. Pearl is the public consequence of Hester’s
very private sin. The character of Pearl becomes Hester’s source of strength.
Pearl defines Hester’s identity and purpose and gives Hester a companion to
love.
Pearl living
“A”:
Symbol of
sin for Society
Pearl is also a symbol of the novel. Pearl who is illegimate daughter of
Hester and Dimmesdale. Pearl is considered symbol of sin for the puritan
society. Pearl who is also the victim of the society even though she has doing
nothing wrong. Pearl also punishes from the society because she lost her
identity.
Pearl makes constantly aware of her mother’s scarlet letter and of the
society that produces it. When Hester removes the letter after seven years,
Pearl didn’t accepts her without it and
forced her to wear it again after wearing “A” Hester said,
“Now thou art my
mother indeed!
And I am thy little
Pearl!”
The strict puritan society punishes Hester and banishes from community,
thus simultaneously punishing Pearl and leading her into a confused childhood.
Because of Pearl’s odd attribute and the fact that she had no father, the
puritan community begun to wonder if Pearl was a, “witch-baby” fathered by the
devil. Throughout the whole novel Pearl is referred to as,
“The scarlet letter endowed with life because she is
Hester’s constant
reminder of her sin. Because of this, Hester’s view of Pearl
is obstructed
by her own guilty conscience , and thus Hester’s own sin
leads her to believe,
along with the puritan community, that Pearl might be a “witch-baby”
when
reverend Wilson asks Pearl “canst thou tell me, my child,
who made thee”
Pearl giving the answer and responds, out of defiance, that
she was,
“Plucked by her
mother off the
Bush of wild roses
that grew by
The prison door”
While Pearl giving this answer Mr. Wilson
thinks that Pearl does not believe in God and Pearl is the different child from
the other children. Pearl has also is the vital character of novel who becomes
the power of Hester and also give strength to fight against the puritan
society.
In
the puritan age it was believed that women who were pregnant with a male child
had a rosy complexion and that women carrying a female child were pale. This
matter is very much related with this novel where Pearl who is the daughter of
Hester also suffers and punishes from the society.
Pearl living
“A”:
Symbol of
Love for Nature
The
character of Pearl is also a symbol of love for Hester and Dimmesdale. Hester
and Dimmesdale who are the lovers but Hester marries to Chillingworth and this
marriage created problems in Hester’s life. In the novel Hawthorne tells us
that Pearl is more than a link between Hester and Dimmesdale.
Pearl serves as a “messenger of anguish” Hester says, she
is,
“The scarlet letter
in another form;
The scarlet letter
endowed with life!”
“The emblem of her
guilt and torture”
On
the other hand, Pearl serves as “the connecting link” and “an electric chain”
between Hester and Dimmesdale. That means Pearl is the embodiment of her
parents true love and passion. Because the love between Hester and Dimmesdale
is the oneness of their being, Hawthorne can therefore prophesy their salvation
trough his comment on Pearl:
“And Pearl was the oneness of their being be the fore gone
evil what it might, how could they doubt that their earthly lives and future
destinies were conjoined, when they be held at once the material union, and the
spiritual idea, in whom they met, and were to dwell immortally together?”
Another important aspect of
Pearl’s preternatural character is her instinct for truth. Pearl’s unconscious
awareness of a blood relationship with Dimmesdale and her recognition of
Chillingworth as a “Black Man” are manifestations of a child’s semi-prophetic
discernment. The innocent child could see through their dissimulation. Pearl’s
insight into truth is the result of her enforced contact with nature which
enables her to preserve her spotless soul from society’s deleterious
conventions and lies.
Society v/s.
Individual
In
“The Scarlet letter” Hester struggles a lot conceal her feeling and pain.
Hester who stands in centre and society stands in periphery.
Hester who struggled for her love and Pearl. In the
novel from the beginning to end she fight against the society she has the same
vision towards to see a situation till end but there is change of the society
and the outer perspective.
After removing the scarlet letter “A” that she had not since been
without for seven years. Hester now struggles with the question of how she will
be able to keep this glorious feeling. In this struggle, puritan law has forced
Hester to become a dull conformist, but her natural passion inevitably overtakes
her and allows her to drop what she had thought to be repentance of sin.
This
novel tells about Hester’s positivity and puritan society’s negativity to see a
situation. Hester fights individually fight against the society.
Conclusion :
In
this novel we finds that Hawthorne mostly talks about sin, punishment, pain and
strict mentality of puritan society. And throughout the struggle of the Hester
presents the bitter reality of the puritan age. Hawthorne also portrays the
image of women in the society and how they treated and questioning the women’s
identity.
Throughout the novel Hawthorne presents politics of “A” which is the
politics of society which victimize the character of Hester to wearing scarlet
letter “A”. This novel is one of the best example of the feministic study of
the character of Hester. There are deep symbols of “A” in the novel.
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