As Eugene Ionesco, a famous Roman playwright in the 1900s once said, "No society has been able to abolish human sadness, no political system can deliver us from the pain of living, from our fear of death, our thirst for the absolute. It is the human condition that directs the social condition, not vice versa." Society changes based on the people in it, it adapts to the needs of the people in it, not the opposite. Society will not revolt against anyone unless they are given reason to do so. In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the actions that each of the characters commits appears to be controlled by society, but the reality is exactly the opposite. Hester 's view of the sin she had committed, Pearl 's unwillingness to socialize with
…show more content…
These characters are the greatest influence of society, their choices and actions define how their lives play out. For Hawthorne, it is the individuals who are in control of how their lives influence society.
To begin with, Hester is portrayed as one of the most influential characters throughout the entire story. In the beginning, society looks at Hester as a good seamstress, taking pride in the sins she committed. Her decision to make the scarlet letter, something that signifies beauty, creates the first impression that the actions she commits will influence society in specific ways. When the townswoman were heard saying, "She hath good skill at her needle, that 's certain…and make a pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for a punishment" (Hawthorne 51), …show more content…
During the first portion of her life, she does not leave her mother 's side. She refuses to have any interaction with other children or other members of society. As Hawthorne describes, "At home, within and around her mother 's cottage, Pearl wanted not a wide and various circle of acquaintance" (Hawthorne 85), proving that Pearl simply does not want to interact with other children by choice. Pearl 's decision to not interact with other children causes them to look at her as a strange being. When children attempted to interact with Pearl. she would turn into a mythical creature that attacks anything that approaches it. As Hester witnesses, "If the children gathered around her, as they sometimes did, Pearl would grow positively terrible in her puny wrath, snatching up stones to fling at them" (Hawthorne 84), her actions here push society away from her again. Pearl provides good reasoning to why society should look at her as a demon, she presents herself in a way that no other child is expected to act. These decisions eventually lead up to society looking at Pearl as something from another world. After calling her a witch-baby, Pearl informs the seaman, "If thou callest me that ill name, I shall tell him of thee, and he will chase thy ship with a tempest." (Hawthorne 213), displaying that she can indeed control what others think of her. "So Pearl...the demon
These characters are the greatest influence of society, their choices and actions define how their lives play out. For Hawthorne, it is the individuals who are in control of how their lives influence society.
To begin with, Hester is portrayed as one of the most influential characters throughout the entire story. In the beginning, society looks at Hester as a good seamstress, taking pride in the sins she committed. Her decision to make the scarlet letter, something that signifies beauty, creates the first impression that the actions she commits will influence society in specific ways. When the townswoman were heard saying, "She hath good skill at her needle, that 's certain…and make a pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for a punishment" (Hawthorne 51), …show more content…
During the first portion of her life, she does not leave her mother 's side. She refuses to have any interaction with other children or other members of society. As Hawthorne describes, "At home, within and around her mother 's cottage, Pearl wanted not a wide and various circle of acquaintance" (Hawthorne 85), proving that Pearl simply does not want to interact with other children by choice. Pearl 's decision to not interact with other children causes them to look at her as a strange being. When children attempted to interact with Pearl. she would turn into a mythical creature that attacks anything that approaches it. As Hester witnesses, "If the children gathered around her, as they sometimes did, Pearl would grow positively terrible in her puny wrath, snatching up stones to fling at them" (Hawthorne 84), her actions here push society away from her again. Pearl provides good reasoning to why society should look at her as a demon, she presents herself in a way that no other child is expected to act. These decisions eventually lead up to society looking at Pearl as something from another world. After calling her a witch-baby, Pearl informs the seaman, "If thou callest me that ill name, I shall tell him of thee, and he will chase thy ship with a tempest." (Hawthorne 213), displaying that she can indeed control what others think of her. "So Pearl...the demon