Throughout Hawthorne’s novel, “The Scarlet Letter”, conformity and individuality play a big part within the Puritan society. Many of the characters are faced with the choice of conforming to the Puritans beliefs, which would ultimately prevent a person from having his or her own identity. Throughout “The Scarlet Letter”, most of the characters are required to conform to what the Puritan society wanted while others ventured out on their own to in order to create their own individual identity. In the end, a few of those who had made the choice in the beginning to conform to what the Puritan society believed was acceptable regretted their decision and in order to find peace within, became individualists in the end. Just because society as a whole has a certain view that does not mean that everyone will be accepting of the same views. It is important for a person to find his or her own individual identity for them to be truly happy.
When looking at the Puritans and their beliefs and conformity, they could be viewed as hypocrites. The reasoning behind the Puritans leaving England was to begin anew in the New World and not be subjected to the beliefs or rules of the King. However, they were requiring the women, such as Hester, to conform to their own beliefs on adultery. How can the Puritans leave a country because they did not want to conform to their beliefs yet they expect those within the community and church to conform to theirs? The Puritans just wanted to create their own rules and beliefs for their own townspeople to conform and abide by.
Hester Prynne is a prime example of a person who refused to conform to the beliefs of the Puritans for the most part. Overall, Hester remained an individual however, t...
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...out having a child, Pearl, her outcome may have been different. Hawthorn exemplifies on how a mother will do whatever she can to protect her child from the harsh views of society. Hester’s individuality was not just her own but Pearls as well. Pearl was able to learn about individuality at an early age and that even if different, such as Hester with the letter on her chest, she could still have a say in how people view her. A person has the power to make the best out of any situation, and Hester did just that. Through her kindness, she was able to regain her individuality. Society will often force their beliefs upon a person, and it is up to that person if they choose to conform or create their own individual identity.
Reference
Hawthorne, N. (2005). The Scarlet Letter and Other Writings. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
Nathaniel Hawthorne was a truly outstanding author. His detailed descriptions and imagery will surely keep people interested in reading The Scarlet Letter for years to come. In writing this book he used themes evident throughout the entirety of the novel. These themes are illustrated in what happens to the characters and how they react. By examining how these themes affect the main characters, Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth, one can obtain a better understanding of what Hawthorne was trying to impress upon his readers.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. Enriched Classic ed. New York City: Simon & Schuster, 2004. Print.
Sewall, Richard B. "The Scarlet Letter: Criticism." Novels for Students. Ed. Diane Telgen. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 2001. 319-27.
Smiles, Samuel. "The Scarlet Letter." The Critical Temper. Ed. Martin Tucker. New York City: Frederick Ungar Publishing Company, 1962. 266.
Puritans believed in strict religious dedications, by trying to follow the holy commandment. “The discipline of the family, in those days, was of a far more rigid kind than now.”(Hawthorne 9). They wanted to be considered the holiest of all people because they try to reflect a world of perfection in the sight of God. While they where trying to portray a holy life; however, they where also living a sinful life because they have been judgmental, slandering, uncompassionate, resentment, and forbearing, which are all sinful acts of the bible.
Despite Hester never fitting the description of what a Puritan actually stands for, she emerges and transforms into a respected young woman of society during her revolution. Even though Hester’s humanity degrades itself based on her imprudent actions that resisted Puritan society, the scarlet “A” transforms her rebellion. Hester creates her own symbol for herself rather than one that masks her all along. In writing the Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne highlights the importance of being a nonconformist. Evidently, through the character of Hester Prynne, self-awareness is key in order to achieve happiness. To repress defining characteristics of a human being is to ultimately destroy their individuality.
In every generation there are certain rules and etiquette that play a large role in dictating the appropriate behavior for the time. An individual may choose to live his or her life according to this code of conduct and do fairly well, or in contrast live a life full of trials and hardship as a result of their transgression. This is especially true for the early inhabitants of 17th century colonial America, a period rife with the religious zeal and harsh castigation carried out on behalf of the Puritans who settled the area. During this time, as is still the case today, offenders of this societal moral code were made examples of and forced to suffer so that they may serve as a warning to the rest of the population. This is the case in The Scarlet Letter where the protagonist Hester Prynne is ostracized from her conservative community after committing the then unforgivable sin of adultery. In his novel, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses both themes of guilt and redemption to create trials that test his character Hester Prynne and in the process transforms her from a pitiable sinner, to a symbol of strength.
In the beginning of the story, Pearl is a young infant who symbolizes the goodness of her mother’s sinful act of adultery. Although she is the outcome of her mother’s sin, Pearl does not let it define her. When Hester is first determined in the story she is put in front of everyone in the market-place for public shaming. The author states, “she bore in her arms a child, a baby of some three months old … acquainted only with the gray twilight of a dungeon” (Hawthorne 95). This quote shows that Pearl has only been in a dreary environment since she was born. Her mother’s sin has deprived Pearl of a normal life with sunshine and familial love. Stade expla...
Letter while discovering that a hidden lie left to fester causes more grief and pain than he
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "The Scarlet Letter." Nathaniel Hawthorne's Tales. Ed. James McIntosh. New York: Norton, 1987.
Pearl lived a different life than any of the other puritan children. She is a free spirited child. Hester lets her blossom intointo the brilliant child she blooms into through the story. Pearl is not afraid to speak her mind. “She could recognize her wild, desperate, defiant mood, the flightiness of her temper, and even some of the very cloud-shapes of gloom and despondency that had brooded in her heart” (Hawthorne 93). Hester saw the light in her child and embraced it. The other Puritan children are confused by Pearls behavior. They have never been around a child li...
Baym, Nina. Introduction. The Scarlet Letter. By Nathaniel Hawthorne. New York City: Penguin Books USA, Inc. 1986.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “The Scarlet Letter”. American Literature: Volume One. Ed. William E. Cain. New York: Pearson, 2004. 809-813. Print
In 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.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s ‘The Scarlet Letter’ was considered by many as the controversial novel of its time, given its themes of pride, sin and vengeance. It was also set in a time when very few were thinking about the equality of of men and women, but Hawthorne managed to bring gender-based inequality to light through the novel’s male-dominated Puritan setting and by reversing the gender roles of characters, such as Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale.