Scarlet Letter Feminist

The Scarlet Letter takes place in the colony of Salem during the early 1600s. During that time, women and men were treated very differently, women being viewed as submissive housewives and men as dominant money makers. Hester Prynne overcomes a lot of trouble and pain during her trial and sentence, but the town does not help her or have a feminist change of heart. Even though Hester is seen as a strong main character and the story sparked the feminist flame, The Scarlet Letter was ultimately not a feminist novel. Hester Prynne went from man to man, needing a male figure to depend on and to make her feel more secure. She was a stereotypical damsel in distress. When Roger Chillingworth left town, leaving Hester alone, Hester moved on to another man with no …show more content…
Instead of helping them, they ignored them, jeering at them on the street and spreading nasty rumors. One of the goodwives said, “They should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne’s forehead. But she, -the naughty baggage, -little will she care what they put upon the bodice of her gown” (Hawthorne 49). They taught their children to follow them around and scold them. Pearl, feeling protective of her mother, would take a stand against these children. “Pearl would grow positively terrible in her puny wrath, snatching up stones to fling at them, with shrill, incoherent exclamations that made her mother tremble…” (Hawthorne 84). Feminist women would have supported Hester and Pearl, no matter what they were going through. Overall, The Scarlet Letter is not a feminist novel because Hester is a stereotypical woman and female protagonist . Hester is a stagnant character, ending right back where she started at the end of her story. She does not make a difference in the town and society and the supporting characters do not actually “support” her. Though Hester may be strong, the rest of the characters and the plot cannot be described as