Scarlet Letter Patriarchy Quotes

Hester's True Side In committing an act of adultery, Hester Prynne, the primary character in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, finds herself a victim of harsh judgement and ridicule by her Puritan community. She becomes isolated as a result of this scandalous behavior and becomes emotionally involved in a love triangle between her husband and her lover, Arthur Dimmesdale, who is the town minister. As a result of her shameful history, the townspeople attempt to destroy and embarrass her by socially neglecting her and labeling her as an outcast and loner. Though the people of the community pursue several attempts to shame her, Hester Prynne's beauty, selflessness, and strength help her overcome this rejection from the townspeople and

“Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry./Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.” (Colossians 3:5-6). Throughout The Scarlet Letter the main characters are both sinners, but over time they vindicate the reputation that they had once made with helping others and coming clean for the cleanse of their souls. Hester, the reason for this book has on one of the most simple things, she has committed adultery. At times Hester, the reason for this book has on one of the most simple things, she has committed adultery.

The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in the nineteenth century, provides insight into the social stigma surrounding gender equality in his own community and era. Throughout the chapters, Hawthorne's uses Hester to provide a direct reflection to the lives of women in the nineteenth century. Hawthorne employs devices such as specified diction which pertains to each individual character, multiple shifts in the tone used in order to draw attention to shifts in judgment or beliefs of characters, and imagery in order to validate his overall personal belief that women deserve the autonomy and respect that men have possessed for centuries. Hawthorne uses the Scarlet Letter as a novel for social change by characterizing Hester as a woman

Hawthorn Uses revenge to illustrate Chillingworth's decline of death. Roger Chillingworth has one main reason to get revenge and that reason is Dimmsdale, the Minister who stole his wife. Roger Chillingworth has spent 7 years of his life he will never get back just to get revenge on Dimmesdale who at the moment could care less as long as he is innocent in all of this. Chillingworth is wanting revenge more than anything in the world, His face has become as terrible looking as his soul just trying to get revenge, revenge is aging him very quickly and had caused Roger to look like a demon. Roger Chillingworth is doing everything is his power to try to get Dimmsdale to tell his big secret but Dimmesdale is doing everything is his power to keep

He discusses Hester's daughter, Pearl, and how the fall of Hester would also affect Pearl's livelihood. Hawthorne explains, “often impelled Hester to ask, in bitterness of heart, whether it were for ill or good that the poor little creature had been born at all.” Hesters admittance of the fact that she has contemplated whether or not Pearl deserves to be alive signifies Hawthorne's use of a complex tone. Within the statement, he shows how Hester is recognizing that the life she has brought Pearl up in is not ideal. Out of the sorrow in her heart that she has for Pearl, Hester realizes that her daughter may have been better off never being born, as Hester has lost the abilities that she once had to be a loving mother.

Society has had a long history of belittling both people and their individuality, and also not allowing people to reach their full potential. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hawthorne is constantly talking about society in a negative way. Hawthorne himself is a transcendentalist who views society as a terrible institution and a way to stop people from reaching their true potential. Hawthorne's view of both puritan society and society during his time plays into his view and characterization of Hester Prynne. Hester Prynne is a fictional character who committed a sin and was publicly shamed and shunned from society because of it.

This shows how ungrateful and judgemental her society is. All things considered, through these many skills Hester accomplishes, the meaning of the scarlet letter, embroidered on her chest, changes in meaning from ‘adulterer’ to ‘able.’ This eventually leads to women looking up to her and going to her for advice. As a result, “the scarlet letter ceased to be a stigma which attracted the world’s scorn and bitterness, and became a type of something to be sorrowed over, and looked upon with awe, yet with reverence too” (Hawthorne 257). Hester’s experiences living with society, as they looked down upon her, eventually changes the way society looks at people and the choices they make.

To Hester’s shock she discovered that Pearl was more mature and imaginative. Hester practically raised Pearl by herself and Pearl turned out to be a Godly, honest, and innovative young girl. People saw how hard it was for Hester and so things changed. Hester became known as the woman who was able to do anything.

She cannot be defined by just one label, but both. She is a mother to Pearl, who is a child born from adultery. She is a caregiver, seamstress, a lover, and a counselor, but the Puritanical society Hester lives in constantly reminds her that she is just a whore. By subscribing to this label, Hester loses her identity in a way. The effect of being an outsider due to the letter causes her to become a shell of her former self.

Yet, despite the heavy burden she has to bear, she acts more civil than most of the characters do in the entirety of “The Scarlet Letter”. Instead of her guilt and shame tearing her down, she chose to rise above it as seen in this quote; “she [Hester] repelled him, by an action marked with natural dignity and force of character, stepped into the open air, as if by her own free will.” (50 Hawthorne) No doubt at this time, Hester’s heart is filled with pain and worry. After all, these were people she has known for some time and perhaps has even befriended.

WHile Hester suffered from ridicule and shame from her neighbors, she presents feminist spirit in her conscious. Hester develops a strong spirit and mind. Wang notes that the feminism is carefully placed throughout the story. He analyzes Hester's refusal and determination when she is asked who the father of her baby is. This showed her individualism and her determination to stand alone without a man by her side.

Nonetheless, it will be hard; Hester is steadfast to make her daughter Pearl, have a life, just like any other ordinary child. Hester is a remarkable, but peculiar character,

Women were typically unable to be a symbol of strength because they were largely oppressed. Yamin Wang furthers this by saying, “By the novel’s end, Hester has become a proto-feminist mother figure to the women of the community. Meng (2003) describes that the shame attached to her scarlet letter is long gone. Women recognize that her punishment stemmed in part from the town father’s sexism, and they come to Hester seeking shelter from the sexist forces under which they themselves suffer” (Wang 897). Wang is saying that other women in the society look up to Hester and realize that she was punished by the sexist males of the society.

In the “Scarlet Letter,” Nathaniel Hawthorne portrays hypocrisy of the Puritan society, where the protagonist Hester Prynne face many consequences of her actions and the how she tries to redeem herself to the society. During the seventeenth puritans believe that it is their mission to punish the ones who do not follow God’s word and it is their job to stop those from sinning. Therefore, the hypercritical puritan society punishes Hester harshly for committing adultery, but in Hester’s mind, she believes that what she did was not a sin but acts of love for her man. Eventually, she redeems herself by turning her crime into an advantage to help those in need, yet the Puritan society still view her as a “naughty bagger.” (Hawthorne 78)

Hester Prynne is the very embodiment of feminism because of her refusal to adhere to the societal norms, her independence in thought, and how the view of the society around her changes through the novel. One of the main reasons why Hester Prynne is an important and progressive feminist character in The Scarlet Letter is her refusal to follow societal norms or to be put down by her peers. A primary example of her refusal to be put down by her peers is when Hester brandishes her