Anti Transcendentalism In The Scarlet Letter

1.During the era of the early eighteenth and mid nineteenth centuries, an artistic evolution came to play in the literature world. This movement was known as the Romantic Period where brilliant, intellectual scholars known as the Romantics became engaged in art, literature, and other philosophical studies. On the contrary, the author, Nathaniel Hawthorne is known for his famous dark romanticism and classical works. The anti-transcendentalist, Nathaniel Hawthorne describes his life growing up in an obscure and corrupt society in the introduction of his novel, The Scarlet Letter. He manifests his opposition towards commercialism and sees the dark side of man and the wickedness of society. In like manner, Hawthorne expresses, “literature… no …show more content…
Hawthorne distinguishes where the story takes place, in Puritan Boston where people acted saint-like and were engaged into God’s beliefs, but as time passed they stopped caring and Hawthorne displays how society soon became corrupt and depraved. Moreover, Hawthorne interprets his autobiography and describes his interest in literature, but lack of support from his colleagues however he ignored everyone and his lack of support was what encouraged him to write dark romanticism novels and essays and that he soon became a major anti- transcendentalist. Although he did not have advocacy, he was still “a man of thought” (27). He ignored the deception and facilitates the of the old manuscripts and the scarlet letter in the Salem House which has a major impact on the rest of the novel. Overall, Hawthorne's purpose is to imply how he feels about literature and history, how he worked in the Salem House for three years and quit because he did not like the idea that the government has control over man and then expresses how he began writing about dark and gloomy works to portray his thoughts on society and …show more content…
Hawthorne expresses an indignant tone as he is for patronage but his community is not, he plays a position as “Surveyor of the Revenue” and believes man should present moral qualities and own up to their self-reliance instead of depending on the government to tell them what to do and what is best for them (27). Hawthorne compromises with “American” identity and likes the idea of “capability of self-support” and despises the way society prefers commercialism over individuality. Hawthorne appreciates the virtues of self-effort and perception. Hawthorne remarks how his writing career could not help out his family financially and how he began writing about the depravity of society and found the scarlet letter in the Salem House which encouraged him to write romance novels and depict how the Puritans were harshly treated in his times. Hawthorne was gratified by the Custom House because he found his character and writing style but always had repugnance against society and the way it plays its role in the