Character Of Hester Prynne
analytical Essay
908 words
Hester Prynne is a beautiful Puritan woman that is forced to bear the scarlet letter. In Nathaniel Hawthorne 's, The Scarlet Letter, Hester 's sin of adultery causes her to become the most hated woman in her community. Hester 's secret lover, Dimmesdale, is a minister of the Puritan town, but is not condemned for the affair. Hester believes that her husband, Roger Chillingworth, is dead until he arrives at her public shaming. She is shamed and pushed away by the Puritan community of Boston. Because of her strength, humbleness, and loyalty, Hester Prynne single-handedly overcomes the struggle and hate of a Puritan society.
Throughout the entire novel, Hester Prynne remains strong amid all of the horrors she is put through. Although the women
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how hester prynne's sin of adultery causes her to become the most hated woman in her community. she believes that her husband, roger chillingworth, is dead until he arrives at her public shaming.
- Analyzes how hester prynne's strength persists throughout the novel, even though the women and all the other citizens of the town constantly throw insults and shame at her, but she never breaks.
- Analyzes how hester prynne humbles herself by proudly displaying both of the symbols of her disgrace: the scarlet letter a, and pearl, her sin-born daughter.
- Analyzes how hester shows loyalty towards numerous characters in her community. she remains loyal to dimmesdale every time she is asked to reveal the name of her secret lover.
She knows the severity of her sin, and therefore welcomes her punishment without rebellion. When she stands on the scaffold with Pearl, Hester accepts "that one token of her shame would but poorly serve to hide another, [so] she took the baby on her arm... On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth, surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread, appeared the letter A" (Hawthorne 50). She humbles herself by proudly displaying both of the symbols of her disgrace: the scarlet letter A, and Pearl, her sin-born daughter. Not only does Hester display her shame, but gives back to her community. She shows compassion toward the poor and sick of the Puritan town. Hester delivers food to the poor and helps the ill. Many people of the community begin to alter how they interpret the scarlet letter that the poor Hester is forced to wear. The townspeople discuss her claiming "Its is our Hester,-the town 's own Hester, who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comfortable to the afflicted!"(Hawthorne 147). The letter "A" that Hester bears on her chest begins to mean "able" instead of "adulterer." Even when Hester moves away, she refuses to stay away and returns to the town to serve her remaining punishment. The town is the home of her sin and the place of her penance. Hester isolates herself from the rest of the town and lives in solitude. Hester Prynne …show more content…
Hester remains loyal to Dimmesdale every time she is asked to reveal the name of her secret lover. She refuses to allow him to be punished as she has been punished. Hester is ordered to "[s]peak out the name!" of her partner in sin while she is shamed on the scaffold, but retains her loyalty to Dimmesdale exclaiming, "I will not speak!" (Hawthorne 64). Even through the pressure of countless eyes watching her, she prevails and keeps the secret of her lover. Hester also protects Dimmesdale 's name from Roger Chillingworth, her husband. Knowing that Chillingworth seeks revenge on her partner in sin, she refuses to speak his name. She wishes to verify that Dimmesdale remains safe by refusing anyone that asks for his name. Apart from Dimmesdale, Hester also shows loyalty to her husband, Roger Chillingworth. She takes a vow from Chillingworth and guarantees that she will not announce that he is her husband. Hester promises Chillingworth "Thou hast kept the secret of they paramour. Keep, likewise, mine!... Breathe not, to any human soul, that thou didst ever call me husband" (Hawthorne 71). He desires to continue unknown until he is capable of discovering her secret lover. She stays true to the vow until she begs for permission to break it and tell Dimmesdale of Chillingworth 's true
Related
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- How Does Hester Prynne Change In The Scarlet Letteranalytical essayThe author of The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne, expressed ideas of love, passion, shame, and punishment throughout his 1800s based novel. Due to the fact that this novel was based in a Puritan time period, it brought many mental and sometimes physical difficulties for the main character, Hester Prynne. The Puritans solely believed in God and all of his rules. With that said, the author decided to illustrate the drama of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale’s adultery in order to describe the change in Hester’s attitude. Because of the many events, adversities and struggles, Hester had a complete change in attitude from shame and embarrassment to love, proudness and satisfaction.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how nathaniel hawthorne, of the scarlet letter, expressed ideas of love, passion, shame, and punishment throughout his 1800s based novel.
- Analyzes how hester prynne is treated as a woman of shame, despite her promise to keep the secret of the father of her daughter pearl. she is despised by almost everyone and tries to hide.
- Analyzes how hester was publicly shamed, while arthur dimmesdale, who was also to blame for the adultery crime, was fighting within himself.
- Analyzes how the scarlet letter took the main character, hester prynne through struggles and made her into a strong woman that no one believed she could ever be.
742 wordsRead More - Characterization Of Hester Prynneanalytical essayThe Scarlet Letter In the novel, The Scarlet Letter, the author, Nathaniel Hawthorn makes a commentary on the hypocrisy in the Puritan life style through his portrayal of his characters Arthur Dimmesdale, the town’s adored Puritan priest, and Hester Prynne, the ostracized sinner. Throughout the novel, Nathaniel Hawthorn depicts traits that contradict the Puritan’s ideas of how a defiled sinner and a proper Puritan priest should behave by the social conventions of their time. The author does this by illustrating Dimmesdale, who is supposed to be a righteous and holy person, as a sinful and cowardly man. Dimmesdale is also show to be a naive individual who is oblivious to the ever present danger that surrounds him.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how nathaniel hawthorn makes a commentary on the hypocrisy in the puritan life style through his portrayal of his characters arthur dimmesdale and hester prynne.
- Analyzes how nathaniel hawthorn depicts arthur dimmesdale as righteous and wise men who should be reverenced and respected for their moral lifestyles.
- Analyzes how arthur dimmesdale was not only a priest who suffered from cowardice, but also naiveness. he was foolish and unaware of the danger that lied around him throughout the novel.
- Analyzes how nathaniel hawthorn portrays hester prynne, the detested sinner, as a strong and courageous woman with natural dignity and force of character.
1066 wordsRead More - Hester Prynne, the central character in the Scarlet Letter, realizes and accepts the consequences of the adulterous act she committed against her husband, Roger Chillingworth, as Hawthorne shows in this quotation. Hester, throughout the book, excludes and humbles herself because of her crime, rather than simply running away. At the same time, she advertises her sin through the brilliantly embroidered “A” and through her daughter, Pearl, born out of this sin. Hester realizes that she indeed sinned in committing adultery, and, being the strong individual that she is, accepts the consequences of her actions.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how hester prynne, the central character in the scarlet letter, realizes and accepts the consequences of the adulterous act she committed against her husband, roger chillingworth.
- Analyzes how hester's sin results from her own actions. she wears humble, dismal clothes, moves to the outskirts of her town, and embraces her crime.
- Analyzes how hester dwells upon the letter as a symbol of her guilt. the brilliant crimson "a" resides on her humbly clothed chest; pearl, the child of sin, runs beside her mother.
- Analyzes how society sees hester for her talents as a weaver, not as an outcast. even roger chillingworth, the man she wronged, doesn't believe that her crime merits such punishment as the letter.
- Analyzes how the quote reveals the determination and strength of hester prynne. she fully accepts and endures the consequences of her adultery, yet she increases those consequences by her own hand through her willing exclusion from society.
556 wordsRead More - The Scarlet Letteranalytical essayIn The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne analyzes Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth. In the story, Hester is the main character of the story and was called Mistress Prynne (Hawthorne 70). Dimmesdale, in the story was referred to as Reverend Dimmesdale (Hawthorne 90). Chillingworth was originally named, Roger Prynne but later in the story he changed his name to Roger Chillingworth. In the story, Hester committed adultery with Dimmesdale against Chillingworth and in the beginning she got punished and sent to prison and later she got to get out of prison but with the exception of having to wear the letter A on her breast every time she went out in to town.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how hester prynne was forced to marry roger chillingworth, but she didn't love him, so she started seeing the priest arthur dimmesdale. the tragedy of the story is the final evolution of his personality.
- Analyzes hawthorne's analysis of hester, dimmesdale, and chillingworth in the scarlet letter.
- Analyzes how the scarlet letter a resists the sort of hermeneutic rigidity that naming entails.
- Cites abbott's review of 'the scarlet letter, a romance'; derrick, scott, and howells, w. d.
2428 wordsRead More - Imagine a society where religion seems very critical and has little individualism. Religion played a very significant factor in Puritan life, so they were required to read the bible and live every moment in a respectful manner to God. Puritan societies believe in doing God’s work, so if someone did not follow the testament, harsh punishments were inflicted upon them. The Massachusetts Bay Colony portrayed itself as a man’s world, where they went to town meetings and made decision about their community in the church. Females were not allowed to participate or have their own opinions in their community, and if they were to go against the rules, they had cruel punishments decided by the dominated males. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts a patriarchal, Puritan society that oppresses Hester Prynne by signifying her as a sinner, adulterer, and an outcast of society, but Hester Prynne represents herself as a silent rebel through her feminist consciousness.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the massachusetts bay colony depicted itself as a man's world, where they went to town meetings and made decisions about their community in the church.
- Analyzes how hester prynne exemplifies herself as a rebellious spirit in her puritan community. the society understands her as dishonorable, since she defied her rules by being an adulterer.
- Analyzes how hester undergoes moral agony from wearing the scarlet letter and showing herself on the scaffold while holding pearl, her baby, at the market place.
- Analyzes how hester's scarlet letter represents all of her sin. the iron-visage of the old dames, rudely says, "as for the red letter, i'll bestow a rage of mine own rheumatic flannel, to make fitter one."
- Analyzes how hester's rebellious spirit for puritan morality allows us to empathize with her. she shows how disobedient she claims herself as towards the males in her society.
- Analyzes how hester rebels in the forest, where puritans are free. she removes her scarlet letter and shows off her radiant beauty to expel the cruelty and inflexibility of her society.
- Analyzes how hester's elaborate needlework skills isolate her from her society and turn her image from being an adulterer to an able person.
- Analyzes how hester as a female hero represents herself as selfless, since she endured intolerable misery and presented herself with unthinkable courage.
- Analyzes how hester prynne portrays herself in the scarlet letter as a female who struggled with male dominance in her society, but overcomes them by defying them with her own perspectives.
1384 wordsRead More - The Characterization Of Hester Prynne By D. H. Lawrenceanalytical essayThe characterization of Hester Prynne demonstrates a contrast to pure society, as writer and critic D.H. Lawrence suggests in his article, “On the Scarlet Letter.” There is a genuine disparity in the methods Lawrence uses to portray Prynne, and the methods used by The Scarlet Letter’s author, Nathaniel Hawthorne. Because of his utilization of impactful syntax, religious allusion, and critical tone, D.H. Lawrence’s claim that Hester Prynne is a contradictory character to pure society is effectively justified when compared to the misleading seductive elements of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s writing.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the characterization of hester prynne demonstrates a contrast to pure society, as writer and critic d.h. lawrence suggests in his article, "on the scarlet letter."
- Analyzes how lawrence uses impacting syntax to shift the societal view of hester prynne. he uses juvenalian satire to convince the reader of the lack of morality involved when attacking pure society.
- Analyzes how religious allusion helps lawrence contrast hester prynne's depicted characterization, as it displays his criticism of the lack of puritan values.
- Analyzes how lawrence encapsulates an overwhelmingly critical tone on hester prynne to clearly advocate his flaws that contradict pure society.
- Analyzes how lawrence's use of impactful syntax, religious allusion, and critical tone help distinguish prynne from the seduction of misleading moral virtues.
732 wordsRead More - The Scarlet Letter: An Analysis Of Hester Prynneanalytical essayVictim Turned Sinner The portrayal of Hester Prynne in the novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, has led to many different opinionated views. Many debate whether or not Hester Prynne should be portrayed in an angelic or sinful light. The author and critic, D.H. Lawrence, focuses on Hester’s sin itself, and focuses on having the reader view an alternate perspective of Hester, seeing her not as the victim, but as the criminal, as she should be viewed based on traditional Puritan values. Lawrence achieves the perspective that Hester should be viewed in a sinful light through his rhythmic and fluid syntax, negative and hateful diction, as well as his sarcastic and critical tone.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the portrayal of hester prynne in the novel, the scarlet letter, by nathaniel hawthorne, has led to many different opinionated views.
- Analyzes how d.h. lawrence incorporates rhythmic and fluid syntax in his critique of hester prynne in a succinct way.
- Analyzes how d.h. lawrence uses pessimistic and hateful diction to express his negative outlook on hester prynne.
- Analyzes how d.h. lawrence's critique of hester prynne combines rhythmic and fluid syntax, negative and hateful diction, and a sarcastic and critical tone.
736 wordsRead More - The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorneanalytical essayIn The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is convicted of adultery and sentenced to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her chest as a lasting reminder of her crime. She is forbidden to take off this token of disgrace, and does as the court says until chapter 13. Hester is rejected by almost everyone in the town when they find out she carrying the child of man who is not her husband. She heroically bears her punishment, continues to live there and stands firm on what she believes. The townspeople are very coarse in the way they treat her and their judgement of Hester. As the story goes on, Hawthorne presents several questions, but offers little to no answers and leaves the mind to wonder and only assume. How does Hester change the symbolism of this heinous letter through the eyes of the Puritan community? What role does Hester's own response to her situation play in changing the meaning of the letter "A"? How is the letter seen as a symbol of the connection between an experience that is sinful in nature and the understanding that would not come about if not for failure? And most importantly, why does Hester refuse to tell the name of her daughter Pearl’s father, while on the stand? Is it possible to love someone so much that you will protect them at any cost, even if that means being humiliated and degraded by others? To Hester it was.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how hester prynne is convicted of adultery and sentenced to wear a scarlet letter "a" on her chest. she is rejected by almost everyone in the town when they find out she carrying the child of man who is not her husband.
- Analyzes how hawthorne doesn't go into much detail about hester's life before she arrives in the colony of boston. she is more focused on the emotional effects that encases her.
- Analyzes how hawthorne paints a very angelic picture of hester in the novel. after seven years, she was deemed sinner, her beauty and warmth were gone.
- Explains that hester prynne came from an "impoverished but genteel english family," living in a decayed house of gray stone, with poverty-stricken aspect.
- Analyzes why hester didn't tell who pearl's father was while on the stand. she was still in love with dimmesdale and was married to chillingworth.
- Analyzes how the scarlet letter "a" became more glamorous and elegant as the puritans saw it as something beautiful, something that has set hester free.
- Analyzes how the scarlet letter becomes a symbol of the connection between experiences even when sinful in nature, the kind of understanding that would not be known if not for failure.
1190 wordsRead More - Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letteranalytical essayNathaniel Hawthorne’s “ The Scarlet Letter’’ is a classical story about sin, punishment and revenge. It all began with a young woman named Hester Prynne who has committed adultery, and gave birth to a child in a Puritan society. Through the eyes of the puritans Hester has gone against their religious ways. Hester must now wear the symbol of the letter “A” on her clothing for the rest of her life as act of shame. Hester Prynne faces a long journey ahead and her strength enables her to continue on.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how nathaniel hawthorne's "the scarlet letter" is a classical story about sin, punishment and revenge.
- Analyzes how the puritan society punishes hester for carrying a child with an antonymous father. she is told to speak up and name the father of her child, but she refuses.
- Analyzes how hester grows throughout the scarlet letter, despite the feeling of loneliness, she has remarkable strength withstand townspeople and the government.
- Analyzes how hester transforms the original meaning of the letter "a" (adultery) so that the judgmental community comes to see her stigmatized letter as a badge of honor.
- Opines that in all fiction one could hardly find a character more bold, more simply, and more quietly imagined. her transgression doesn't qualify her, as it never does unless it becomes habit.
- Analyzes how chillingworth became obsessed with the punishment of the "a" and did a devilish dance when he realized the powerful effect it had on dimmesdale.
719 wordsRead More - Hester Prynne, the main character of the novel, was a courageous and honorable person; even though, what she had been known for wasn’t such an admirable deed. Hester Prynne was a very strong person in one’s eyes, because even though she had been publically humiliated in front of all of Boston, she still remained confident in herself and her daughter. She was ordered to wear a scarlet colored piece of fabric, with the letter “A” embroidered in gold on it, on her bosom at all times to show that she had committed adultery. She was mocked all the time and constantly looked down upon in society, because of her sin; but instead of running away from her problems, she st...
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how nathanial hawthorne, of the scarlet letter, provoked many emotions throughout his novel.
- Explains that hester prynne, the main character of the novel, was a courageous and honorable person, even though she had been publically humiliated in front of all of boston, but still remained confident in herself and her daughter.
- Opines that pearl, the illegitimate daughter of hester prynne and reverend arthur dimmesdale, was a mischievous and temperamental young girl.
- Analyzes how reverend arthur dimmesdale, the father of pearl and the lover of hester prynne, was a remorseful man. he became sick because of his guilt.
- Analyzes how hawthorne made each character with a unique quality and wanted the reader to imagine them as if they were real.
525 wordsRead More