Authors have a variety of ways to show themes in their books. Images and symbols are tools that an author can use to exemplify the important lesson that he or she is trying to convey. Although Nathaniel Hawthorne uses images and symbols in The Scarlet Letter, he also utilizes characterization. Over the course of the book, the reader sees the minister, Dimmesdale, transform due to his lack of self-awareness. First, he is described as a respected member of the community. As time goes on,…
everyone is bound to make a mistake along the way. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s the Scarlet Letter uses Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale to describe his views on the main results of sinning. Hester committed the crime of adultery with Dimmesdale against her husband, Roger Chillingworth, in Boston. Puritanism was the overall religion during the 1600s; therefore, Hawthorne also tries to show the consequences of sin based on Puritan…
person who has read The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, it is obvious that symbolism plays a major part. Not only did his story have a great plot line, but if the reader was able to read in between the lines, they would find an even deeper and greater meaning behind his story. Using symbolism is a way for the author to give the audience a message. In most symbolic texts, the author creates one important symbol, but in The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne creates many symbols throughout…
"The Birth-Mark" by Nathaniel Hawthorne, emphasizes how important standards are throughout his writing by focusing on beauty standards, psychological abuse and sacrifice. Hawthorne begins his short story by addressing the fact that Georgina has a birthmark and reveals that the main character and alchemist, Aylmer, with the help of his assistant, Aminidab, can remove it by making a potion to make his wife's imperfection disappear. Reaching out to Georgina about the birthmark and adding that he…
When someone sins, they have to go through several consequences other than just the fact of living with what they have done. In the book The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, several characters sin and the consequences they have to suffer because of this are awful but deserving. You have to be able to accept your sin in order to get rid of some of the consequences such as shame and regret. Hester and Dimmesdale are two of the main characters who have sinned because they have…
can see him suffer more and more throughout the story Guilt and Blame - In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne explores themes of guilt to present a new perspective on morality and sin. Through the suffering of Hester Prynne's secret lover, Reverend Dimmesdale, Hawthorne presents the ravages of guilt on the body, mind, and spirit. Guilt eats the body alive, consuming its vitality. Sin- Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, revolves around the theme of sin and the effects it has…
Defined by its exploration of the darker themes within humanity, Nathaniel Hawthorne paints The Scarlet Letter as a tragic romance embodied by the immoral lovers Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, in the aftermath of their sin. Set in the middle of the seventeenth century during a time of religious fervor, Hawthorne’s novel unfolds in the colony of Massachusetts, characterized by its strict, traditional Puritan community at the time. In consequence for their actions, Hester and Dimmesdale…
Nathaniel Hawthorne is known for his enthralling novels that revolve around the Puritan religion, such as The Scarlet Letter, which reveal the truth behind the Puritan ideology. Hawthorne takes readers back to the past to a Puritan society, where he uses key themes such as original sin and repression to portray the Puritan society. This allows readers to understand the Puritan religion, and the true evilness and different dimensions he saw behind it through the characters he created. Hawthorne’s…
Achieving salvation is not as easy as A, B, C or 1, 2, 3, as it requires a lot of tenacity, courage, and a genuine desire for redemption. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel explores the two different outcomes of sin—salvation and demise. In The Scarlet Letter, Roger Chillingworth copes with a revenge that devours, Arthur Dimmesdale deals with an all-consuming guilt, and Hester struggles with the negative effects of isolation and solitude. One would think that these characters daily circumstances would…
Nathaniel Hawthorne was an author in the 1860’s. Obsessed with writing about Puritan society, he wrote a romance novel in 1850 set in a 1600’s Puritan town. In this novel, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne used the symbolism of the Wild Rose Bush, Pearl, and the Sunlight in the Forest to contribute to the overall theme of imperfection. First off, Hawthorne uses the Wild Rose Bush to contribute to the theme of imperfection. The rose bush holds beautiful blossoming flowers, but each flower…