Nathaniel Branden

Jefferson’s Sons is a historical fiction novel based on the true events of Thomas Jefferson’s life. Jefferson’s Sons describes the lives of Beverly, Harriet, Maddy, and Eston. These are the illegitimate children of Thomas Jefferson, or as he is called in the book: Master Jefferson. These four children were the sons and daughter of Sally Hemings, a slave on the plantation of Monticello. Sally Hemings is the sister of Martha Wayles, which makes Sally Thomas Jefferson’s sister-in-law. Sally and…

When discussing his perceptions of romanticism in the preface to The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne speaks of a “neutral territory.” Hawthorne envisions the neutral territory as a dream-like state that exists between what is real and what is imagined. In the neutral territory, familiar, mundane objects transform and take on a foreign, mystical quality. It is through this mystical, romantic lens that Hawthorne finds the inspiration to write and to create. Hawthorne remarked that ". . . at…

What are some ideas expressed in The Scarlet Letter? The narrator in The Scarlet Letter said that each person should “Show freely to the world, if not (their) worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred.” This statement is highly debatable, and it has good reason to be challenged. Hester Prynne spent the majority of her life as a known adultress. The whole town knew of her sin, which was her worst trait. Reasoning and examples from the book clarify that knowing the worst about…

“But she named her infant “Pearl,” as being a great price- purchased with all she has- her mother’s only pleasure.” The Scarlet Letter is one of many books wrote to teach the values of many possessions. But Hester’s scarlet letter is something much different. Hawthorne conveys the two central ideas of Sin and Temptation, and the Judgment of the Puritan Society to impact how the puritans believe everyone is born a sinner and how society judges them. The development of characters, setting, and…

(AGG) Symbolism is when a book has many hidden layers beyond the written text. (BS-1)In the book Under the Persimmon Tree the invisible meaning is that the stars stand for Najmah's hope.(BS-2)The stars symbolize Najmah’s feelings and are her faith.(BS-3)The stars guide Najmah but also mentally guide her.(TS) In the book Under the Persimmon Tree, Suzanne Fisher Staples uses hidden meanings in stars to help readers better understand a character in her book, Najmah. (MIP-1)The…

“The Miller's Tale” in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, tells a story of three men: John, Nicholas, and Absolon, who are in love with one woman, Alisoun. Lies make up a substantial portion of “The Miller's Tale” they are shown in ways of adultery, trickery, and downright lies. These lies pose the question of whether or not the lies told in “The Miller's Tale” can be classified as moral or immoral? The bible states, “no sin is greater than any other”, while that is a spiritual belief, it…

Puritan's beliefs. They believed that nature is the right element to determine the true meaning of life. Pearl, in literal meaning can be view as a part of the nature and, often represents purity. Created as a character in the book Scarlet letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, as a Romantic, he sees the darker side of the Puritans. Pearl’s interactions with different elements in the book resembles deep meanings. In the Scarlet letter, Hawthorne uses Pearl as a symbol to demonstrate the corruptness…

The great-great-grandson of an influential magistrate in the Salem witch trials, Nathaniel Hawthorne was a prominent writer in the nineteenth century who experimented with his own unique writing style to write dozens of short stories for the American audience. “Young Goodman Brown” is one of his most famous stories, in part because of its context; the Salem witch trials are a big part of American history as it was a turning point in the perspective of the Puritan faith. The story is enhanced…

Take Me to Church In Nathaniel’s Hawthorn’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown”, directs us that Hawthorn intended this to be an allegory. When pulling out and emphasizing on the main ideas, American religion and hypocrisy is pulled out. Behind this idea, curiosity plays a major role in Goodman’s actions which is followed by the effects and Goodman’s mental state. I believe this is an absolute perfect example of psychological explotation of paranoia that is exposed by the usage of symbolism,…

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter has received a variety of reviews over it's existence. Most of these reviews, criticizing the main character Hester Prynne.One critic, Mark Van Doren’s use of literary devices to great effect to describe Prynne. These include praising diction, an enduring tone, and heroic allusion help him illustrate Hester Prynne as as strong, rugged woman. Van Doren’s use of praising diction helps the reader envision the likes of Hester Prynne, a character who develops…