Irony And Symbolism In The Scarlet Letter, By Nathaniel Hawthorne

Nathaniel Hawthorne was born to Nathaniel and Elizabeth Clark Hathorne(later the “W” was added) on July 4th, 1804 in Salem Massachusetts. He was born into a Puritan legacy because of his ancestor, William Hathorne, who emigrated from England to the United States. When Nathaniel Hawthorne was only about four years old, his father had passed away. So he grew up raised by his mother, along with his two sisters and lived with his rich uncle 's. When he was very young, he suffered from an injury in his leg. During the downtime from his injury, he discovered a love for reading and writing; which would explain the many well-known and well-written books by him. Such as, My Kinsman Major Molineux, Roger Malvin’s Burial, Young Goodman Brown, Twice-Told …show more content…
Unfortunately though, when Whig President Zachary Taylor got elected, Nathaniel had lost his job. A month after he lost his job, his mother, Elizabeth passed away (Shmoop Editorial Team). During the time off from his job and struggling with the loss of his mother, he began to write The Scarlet Letter, which was published in 1850. In the introduction of The Scarlet Letter, he speaks about “The Custom House” he had worked at, the manuscripts he had found for writing The Scarlet Letter and how he had lost his job to the new president elected (biography.com editors). Since he had lost his job he had extra time on his hands to write the book The Scarlet Letter with the manuscripts he had found (LitCharts LLC). “The book was one of the first mass-produced publications in the United States and its wide distribution made Hawthorne famous” (biography.com editors). The book The Scarlet Letter is essentially surrounded around Hester Prynne and her daughter, Pearl. Hester Prynne has an embroidered “A” on her chest in scarlet. While Hester’s husband, Chillingworth was away, Hester committed adultery with a man named, Arthur Dimmesdale and had his child, Pearl. Dimmesdale’s name is not revealed at first, but is later figured out. As time continues on, Hester and Dimmesdale remain hiding their secret love for each other. Although, …show more content…
As you can tell, many of Hawthorne 's books he has written has to do with Puritan society and/or beliefs. Such as, The Scarlet Letter published in 1850, which takes place in Plymouth, Massachusetts in the 1600 's, a big time of Puritan belief. Also, The House of the Seven Gables, published in 1851, took place in New England in the 1800 's. Shmoop.com said about the book The House of the Seven Gables, “He 's not just interested in original Puritan oppression, but also in its legacy in the present day” (Shmoop Editorial Team). Another example, Young Goodman Brown published in 1835, also takes place in New England, and the main character is a Puritan. One last example, The Twice-Told Tales published in 1837, also takes place in New England, which seems to be a reoccurring theme. Undoubtedly, the state of Massachusetts is very important to him, along with Puritanism as seen throughout many of his