Puritanism in The Scarlet Letter, Bartleby, and Daisy Miller

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In today's society, it is infrequent that you turn on the television and are not bombarded with images of sex, violence, or other content that the Puritans would have viewed as being the work of Old Deluder (the name given to Satan in the time period). Yes, it is true; the society in which we dwell in today is no more remarkable than that of barbaric times. The only difference might be that we no longer kill out of primal instinct; we do it out of fear, or malice, or patriotism, or even pleasure. Thus, we are faced with the question of whether or not today's society would experience benefits if a conversion to Puritanism was made or drown in its waters. Because Puritanism conformed to such austere guidelines and beliefs that almost completely obliterated the individual's role in the social unit and because the foundation of the religion is to essentially "kill" freedom and liberty in order to create a social purity that is virtually impossible for humans to achieve, I believe that Puritanism would only add to the degradation of society today. The books The Scarlet Letter, Bartleby, and Daisy Miller exemplify this theory.

Puritanism's ultimate goal was to essentially establish a religiously pure and socialistic community in which everyone would work for the good of one another. However, Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter contradicts the belief that a society of this sort can ever exist. Rather, he theorizes that the suppression of this sinful behavior only leads to personal agony and social isolation. Hester, for example, who committed the sin of adultery, which society today frowns upon but does not punish for, became alienated enduring "three hours on the platform pillory, and then and thereafter, for...

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...the realities of the "exemplary religion" known as Puritanism. It conflicts with both the natural rights of man in his existence (as the French philosophe Locke reasoned) and virtually denies men of his freedoms stated in the Constitution of the United States. Puritanism undermines the role of an individual in society and suppresses intellectuality. Puritanism destroys more than just ideas; it destroys people.

Works Cited

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "The Maypole of Merry Mount". (1836). Honors American Literature. Period 8. 1999.

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. (1850) New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1994.

James, Henry. Daisy Miller. (1878) New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1995.

Melville, Herman. Bartleby. (1856) New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1990.

Updike, John. "A&P". Honors American Literature. Period 8. 1999.

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