Man Vs. Society In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Decent Essays
There are many themes in the Scarlet letter such as: Man vs. Nature, Man vs. Self, Man vs. Man, Man vs. Society, Man vs. God. Man vs. Society will be used in this because it means one character which is Hester is in a conflict with a larger society. Hester, in this case, is pitted against the people of her town or, vice versa, they are pitted against her. First off, The story opens as the town is gathered in front of the prison, waiting for Hester to be exposed for public scorn as punishment for committing adultery. Hearing the conversations of the people around , she would hear things like, “This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die.” (36). That pretty clearly brings in conflict. While all the scorning is happening, Hester

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Many authors use rhetorical strategies in their work to help give the reader a better understanding of the content. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis both have several similar examples of these rhetorical strategies. Although the two novels are completely different in genre, the techniques used by the two authors to write each, are similar. One example of these rhetorical strategies is a contrast device. More specifically, the contrast of two characters within each novel.…

    • 844 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The Scarlet Letter is about a young woman named Hester Prynne who is viewed as a disgrace to her strictly religious society after committing the sin of adultery. Hester and her daughter Pearl are looked down upon by the Puritans and completely isolated throughout the novel. Gary…

    • 201 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In The Scarlet Letter, the protagonist, Hester Prynne, commits adultery so she is publicly humiliated and shunned from the Puritan society. Before Hester is isolated from the society, she is forced to wear a scarlet A so that she is displayed to the Puritan society as an adulteress and a sinner. Despite the humiliation and the pain she suffered, she stands strong, bold and holds herself with exquisite dignity. She was ready to pay the price for her sin and never let guilt consume her. Unlike most people of her society, she confesses her sin and turns the scarlet A into a symbol of positivity and hope.…

    • 197 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Her fancy threading of the scarlet letter is an act of defiance, showing that she’s a bold person. Even though the occupants of the town expected her to come out of her prison to be “dimmed and obscured by a disastrous cloud” (Hawthorne 51), she had astonished everyone with her spirit, which she expresses through her attitude of her punishment. Hawthorne’s syntactic descriptions of people’s views of Hester creates an image of an empowering woman who appeared strong and confident despite having been stained with a defiling reputation. Hester’s beauty seems to parallel with her strength and humbleness, which does not break with the constant battering and demeaning words of her…

    • 915 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This quote describes a major aspect of the novel up until now because the reader has seen what the public can do to shame and humiliate Hester. We have also seen their (the public's) capabilities when they are trying to elevate her from her sinful status. Hester also rejects this change because she isolates her self from the world and manages to shut down mentally. The scarlet letter was supposed to remind her of her sins and the reminder was there to help her improve her life. Instead, the letter closed her off and makes her question her existence.…

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Scarlet letter Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, the Scarlet Letter, conveys the theme that as people actions change so does others perspective of them, the character Hester’s scarlet letter “A” doesn’t just stand as a symbol by itself but as a symbol of Hester’s identity; as her actions change so does the towns thought on the scarlet letter as they do not recognize her scarlet letter as a sign of sin and adultery, but as a symbol of being able. What was meant to shame and disown Hester in time turned into the exact opposite. In this novel society gave Hester the scarlet letter as a sign of sin and adultery, which was to symbolize her identity given to her by the Puritans.…

    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Hester is so strong willed she decides to,” work out another purity than that which she had; more saint-like, because the result of martyrdom” (55). She decides that if she can hold out, and take any and all punishments…

    • 1446 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    This reveals that although this action seems to be selfish, it helps Hester…

    • 2021 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Scarlet Letter Conformity

    • 1026 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, was written in a time when conformity was necessary for survival, while individuality was condemned. Hester Prynne is conflicted with the need to conform to the Puritan society and the desire to be an individual. These opposing factors illuminate Hawthorne’s meaning that one must eventually look past the conformity and find, as well as embrace their individual identity. Within the Puritan society, it is vital to conform in order to survive. The community sets a high level of conformity of the principles that make life possible among individuals with competing desires and contrary views of the world, such as those of Hester Prynne.…

    • 1026 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    While the scarlet letter may not be able to be seen as completely good or evil, the letter has changed much in Hester;s and the towns people’s lives. Hester is able to acknowledge the good that this punishment she has had to endure has brought while accepting the hardships as well. Within the confides of this society where ay type of sin, especially when made public is profusely frowned upon by the colonists, can only be seen as bad, the symbolism of the letter is also able to show the true beauty in the…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is a tale rife with morally ambiguous characters. While each with their own faults and merits, Hester is generally portrayed in a better light than Chillingworth is by the narrator. Arthur Dimmesdale’s position on the morality scale, however, is much more disputed. He is truly an ambiguous character for acting both in ways people perceive as good and evil before and after Hester is convicted.…

    • 1165 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Directly rejecting Puritan expectations, Hester becomes the dominant partner in the relationship as Dimmesdale asks her to¨"’Think for´¨ him,…

    • 1258 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Maya Seckler 10.23.15 Living on the Edge Who sets the social standards in a society: the people or the institution? Do individuals have real influence or do they blindly follow along? Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter, explores the individual versus society through the lense of Puritan life in the 1600s. Hawthorne not only criticizes society in general but also specifically targets authority by making the Church seem hypocritical. In the novel, Hester Prynne, a woman living in 17th century Puritan Boston, commits the sin of adultery.…

    • 1431 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Victims of public shame, such as Monica Lewinsky, Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Justine Sacco from “Is the Internet a Mob Without Consequence” are humiliated following the disclosure of their secrets, harassed by critics of the incident, and have spoiled reputations based on one broadcasted mistake, therefore, public shame should be left in the past. Victims of public shame face humiliation following the disclosure of their secrets because their actions are renowned by those who, through the victim’s shaming, have been made aware of a shameful event. Monica Lewinsky, for example, became infamous for her affair with the former President of the United States, Bill Clinton, after its occurrence became known.…

    • 1040 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I would primarily like to shed light on the fact that the question says Henry James “criticized” the novel for its surplus amounts of symbolism. Perhaps, criticize isn't the correct word to use in this case because James carries on to tell that he didn't mean to “expatiate upon [Hawthorne’s] defects” he simply had an opinion. Also, he goes on to praise The Scarlet Letter saying “The Scarlet Letter has the beauty and harmony of all original and complete conceptions, and its weaker spots, whatever they are, are not of its essence; they are mere light flaws and inequalities of surface” Anyway, in my opinion, despite the overwhelming amount of symbolism jammed into The Scarlet Letter, I do believe that Hawthorne does this to make the writing his…

    • 276 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays