Scarlet Macaw

Hook. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a historical fiction novel that follows Hester Prynne, an adulterer, through her life with her daughter, the father of her daughter, and her husband that she cheated on. Taking place in the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony, Hester is released from prison and lives and provides for her daughter solely alone, which is a complete contradiction to the standard conventions in her community at the time. As part of her punishment Hester is forced to…

"Janie saw her life like a great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branches"(Hurston 8). Who is Janie? A lady of mixed white and black heritage, Janie is the result of a poor, black lady raped by a nameless white teacher and the upbringing of her granny who lacked sturdy emotional ties. Her sensualness and romantic quest after love make her a target for men of all ages. She experiences 3 totally different marriages, all of…

In the modern psychological debate of nature vs nurture many psychologists believe that people are shaped by their genetic predispositions and environment. Novelist, Nathaniel Hawthorne, in his gothic romance, The Scarlet Letter, fictionalizes the seventeenth century shameful epoch of the Puritan adulteress Hester Prynne. Hawthorne himself descended from the Massachusetts Puritan John Hathorne and his motivation to write developed as a result of his conflicting feelings of shame and pride for…

The Symbols of a lifetime Symbols are used around us rather it be the business logos or colors. Throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter there are many symbols. The three that the reader will be informed about will be Pearl the product of the sin between Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, the scarlet letter “A”, the sign for adultery, and Roger Chillingworth, a doctor bent on revenge. Pearl is the illegitimate daughter of Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne who was conceived…

Nathaniel Hawthorne in his novel, The Scarlet Letter, portrays the life of a sinner in a Puritan society. He displays how self and public guilt can deteriorate a human. Hawthorne uses the characters Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, and The Reverend Dimmesdale to show that allenation and shame result in deterioration of one’s self. Hester Prynne is the first character Hawthorne presents as a sinner. Hester Prynne is publically shamed and alienated by the town because of her sin. Hester Prynne…

Human nature brings out the strengths and weaknesses of society. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, the concepts of sin and resilience are brought into question. Resilience is the ability to recover rather quickly from difficult situations. This trait is seen in the protagonist, Hester Prynne, through her stubborn personality in which she knows what she stands for. In contrast, the characters in this novel all present their weakness at some point. One of the most prominent…

17th century Puritan Boston, The Scarlet Letter is a tale about a good woman who made a terrible mistake. She committed adultery. In Puritan society, adultery was the ultimate sin, and it was punishable by death. Since Hester Prynne gave birth to a child due to this sin, the townspeople decide not to punish her by death, but rather allow her to live out her days with her child while condemned to wear a scarlet A on her bosom. Many themes stand out in The Scarlet Letter, and readers will notice…

Helen Keller once proclaimed “Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content.” Nathaniel Hawthorne develops this theme through the use of symbolism in his novel, The Scarlet Letter. The brook, which Pearl happens to innately draw to, plays a role in her comfort among nature. The rose-bush growing next to the prison door grants comfort to all who pass. The scaffold, which makes periodic appearances throughout the novel, allows…

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…

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 plot in The Scarlet Letter are conveyed through the Puritan…