Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
nathaniel hawthorne themes in his writing
nathaniel hawthorne literary analysis
nathaniel hawthorne literary analysis
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: nathaniel hawthorne themes in his writing
The Conscience in Roger Malvin's Burial by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne creates an intricate and amazing dialog within the short story "Roger Malvin's Burial". Reuben Bourne and Roger Malvin, presented with a particular dilemma, are forced to battle each other, as might two lawyers in a courtroom. Here however, the two sides are not against each other, moreover their verbal war rages on in pursuit of what would be best for all others involved. Reuben ignorantly fears that he will choose his best course of action out of selfishness. That being an ignorant fear because Reuben has no other choice but to act out of selfishness. His conscience, not understanding this and failing to grasp that what he did was not wrong, ultimately leads to more death than just that of Roger Malvin.
With Reuben seriously wounded, Roger spends all night awake, in pain and realizing his own wound will prove to be fatal. He no doubt contemplates the wisest plan of action throughout the night, and thus tells Reuben when the boy wakes, "This rock, beneath which we sit, will serve for an old hunter's grave-stone. …The Indian bullet was deadlier than I thought." And thus the verbal chess game began.
The argument is a noble one. Both combatants wish to do right by the other, and while Reuben insist that he does not want to act out of selfishness, Roger persist that the honorable course is to do as a man must sometimes, and take the bad over the worse. To leave Roger Malvin alone to die in the woods is bad, all can agree on that. But the crux of the argument lies in what happens if Roger Malvin is not left alone to die. -He still dies, and Rueben dies, and Dorcas is left without her father or eventual husband. Roger understa...
... middle of paper ...
...oresight to see just how much Reuben's conscience would smother and kill everything around it? Clearly, Reuben has fallen very short of his potential, and for that reason, he may well have been better off had he stayed with Roger. Roger tried to give Reuben the gift of life, yet Reuben made that gesture a mute point by living his life while only thinking about death.
And when the story comes to its dismal close, Reuben ultimately discovers that Roger Malvin did not die alone in those woods. Reuben is there with him; if not his body, then all the rest of him, all that matters…his conscience always debating, his mind always wondering, his heart always broken, his love always tainted, his honor and self respect forever blemished (more-so in the fact that no one ever knew). And ultimately, even Reuben Bourne's only son lies dead under that "noble tomb-stone".
Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne attempted to expose the varying ways in which different people deal with lingering guilt from sins they have perpetrated. The contrasting characters of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale ideally exemplified the differences in thought and behavior people have for guilt. Although they were both guilty of committing the same crime, these two individuals differed in that one punished themselves with physical and mental torture and the other chose to continue on with their life, devoting it to those less fortunate than they.
Throughout the book, Dally does not care for his life too much, due to him constantly committing crimes and such. “I knew he would be dead, because Dallas Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted”(154). Finally, Dally has gotten what he wanted his whole life. The only view of life that he has, due to him thinking that he is not worth being alive. Dally does not see life as a good thing, but a dread similarly to Johnny’s thoughts on life. Johnny has wanted to die for most of his life. “‘I’ll kill myself or something’”(47). He believes life is not worth it for himself. Johnny thought that life does not matter and that if he kills himself then everything would be better. If Johnny lives in a better home, then he may not want to kill himself. Unlike before, Johnny and Dally are bonded by their
In the literary classic, The Scarlet Letter, readers follow the story of a Puritan New England colony and the characteristics of that time period. Readers begin to grasp concepts such as repentance and dealing with sin through Nathaniel Hawthorne’s indirect descriptions of these detailed and complex characters by their actions and reactions. The character Roger Chillingworth symbolizes sin itself and deals with internal conflict throughout the course of the story. The narrator describes Chillingworth in a critical attitude to reveal to the reader the significance of repentance and revenge by the use of many literary techniques such as
Considering first “Roger Malvin's Burial,” the reader is immediately caught off-balance in terms of the presentation of the background to the story. A battle has been fought and won. This, in the introduction, is presented in a fashion when Hawthorne tells us that “The battle, though so fatal to those who fought, was not unfortunate in its consequences to the country; for it broke the strength of a tribe and conduced to the peace which subsisted during several ensuing years” (20). In this lack of empathy for the Native Americans protecting their own homeland, we may realizes from the beginning that we are dealing with a writer whose sensibilities we may not ourselves share. As the story develops, this tends to be confirmed.
Darl is a complex character who his family had labeled crazy because he was aware of all situation going on around him. In darl’s perspective he realizes that there's no point of a dangerous journey to Jefferson and that the motive of the father isn't as noble as he makes it. He then decides that the fastest way to end the journey is to either let the coffin wash down the river or burn it in the farm. His intentions were questioned and everyone thought that the reason for Darl doing is because he is crazy and not at all because he thought that ending the journey would be better for everyone. Even cash understood what Darl was trying to achieve. He said, “It would be God’s blessing if He did take her outen our hands and get shut of her in some clean way...and then when Darl seen the it looked like one of us would have to do something, I can almost believe he done right in a way”. In everyone else's perspective they thought that Darl was crazy, not because he was crazy, but because him being sent away would be good for them. Their perspective was based on selfish thoughts.
The narrator feels trapped with the current life he lives and this makes him depressed. When Robert is over...
For example, Roger Chillingworth desperately tried to find out who committed the act of adultery with his wife Hester Prynne and explained what his response will be: “… the man lives who has wronged us both! Who is he? ... I shall see him tremble … Sooner or later, he must … be mine!” (Hawthorne 27-28).Chillingworth’s feeling of deceit and the reaction is the polar opposite of the reaction from Hester Prynne. Hester Prynne wanted to be noticed by Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, her secret lover; she did not want to harm the Reverend. Unlike Chillingworth, Hester’s feeling of deceit is caused when Dimmesdale refused to tell the truth or recognize her. Even though Hester never ...
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, there are many moral and social themes develped throughout the novel. Each theme is very important to the overall effect of the novel. In essence, The Scarlet Letter is a story of sin, punishment and the importance of truth. One theme which plays a big role in The Scarlet Letter is that of sin and its effects. Throughout the novel there were many sins committed by various characters. The effects of these sins are different in each character and every character was punished in a unique way. Two characters were perfect examples of this theme in the novel. Hester Prynne and The Reverend Dimmesdale best demonstrated the theme of the effects of sin.
As the years go by, Ruth has a son with Ruby, Justin, and begins to regret her marriage to him. Ruby has his own weaknesses and failings that appear as the story progresses. The family tensions rise and reach a climax when Ruby snaps, beats and strangles Maylene in the basement. Ruth grows progressively stronger and self-assertive, not only able, but also willing to heal the wounds of her troubled childhood.
In Nathanial Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the deceptive Roger Chillingworth could most certainly be considered a morally ambiguous character. Throughout the novel, Roger Chillingworth everlastingly remains misleading as to whether he lies on the side of good or evil. Even at the end of The Scarlet Letter, the knowledge of Roger Chillingworth is extremely nebulous. The mysterious Roger Chillingworth, although ultimately emanating to be evil, attests to be a challenge when determining his morality. Roger Chillingworth attempts to beguile us by enacting the role of a physician, and ensconces his relationship with Hester Prynne. He lives with Arthur Dimmesdale, vindicating that he is serving Arthur Dimmesdale a helpful medicine, while he is actually depleting the very life from his bones. Roger Chillingworth, therefore, achieves his moral ambiguity through deception, cleverness, and an unknown history.
Guilt, shame, and penitence are just a few of the emotions that are often associated with a great act of sin. Mr. Arthur Dimmesdale, a highly respected minister of a 17th century Puritan community, is true example of this as he was somehow affected by all of these emotions after committing adultery. Due to the seven years of torturous internal struggle that finally resulted in his untimely death, Mr. Dimmesdale is the character who suffered the most throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Mr. Dimmesdale’s ever present guilt and boundless penance cause him an ongoing mental struggle of remorse and his conscience as well as deep physical pain from deprivation and self inflicted wounds. The external influence of the members of his society
Guilt and shame haunt all three of the main characters in The Scarlet Letter, but how they each handle their sin will change their lives forever. Hester Prynne’s guilt is publicly exploited. She has to live with her shame for the rest of her life by wearing a scarlet letter on the breast of her gown. Arthur Dimmesdale, on the other hand, is just as guilty of adultery as Hester, but he allows his guilt to remain a secret. Instead of telling the people of his vile sin, the Reverend allows it to eat away at his rotting soul. The shame of what he has done slowly kills him. The last sinner in this guilty trio is Rodger Chillingworth. This evil man not only hides his true identity as Hester’s husband, but also mentally torments Arthur Dimmesdale. The vile physician offers his ‘help’ to the sickly Reverend, but he gives the exact opposite. Chillingworth inflicts daily, mental tortures upon Arthur Dimmesdale for seven long years, and he enjoys it. Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth are all connected by their sins and shame, but what they do in regards to those sins is what sets them apart from each other.
Nathanial Hawthorne, the author of The Scarlet Letter, provoked many emotions throughout his entire novel. The emotions ranged from grief to anticipation. Each character played an important role in the novel and I believe that each character evoked a different emotion in the reader. Three of the characters in which Nathanial Hawthorne demonstrates this are Hester Prynne, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale and their daughter Pearl.
Nathaniel Hawthorne's works are notable for their treatment of guilt and the complexities of moral choices. "Moral and religious concerns, in short, are almost always present in Hawthorne's work"(Foster, 56). Given Hawthorne's background, it is not a stretch of the imagination to say that his novels are critiques of Puritanism. Hawthorne lived in the deeply scarred New England area, separated from Puritanism by only one generation. His grandfather had been one of the judges in the Salem Witch Trials. Personal issues include the various ways Hawthorne's family and specific events in his life influenced his writing. Readers can easily recognize how "Young Goodman Brown" incorporates facts about his Puritan ancestors. Father Hooper in "The Minister's Black Veil" may be symbolically paralleled to Hawthorne's ancestors, trying to hide a sin they have committed. His descendants' remarks on him in The Custom House introduction to The Scarlet Letter mix pride in Hawthorne's prominence and a sense of inherited guilt for his deeds as judge. Hawthorne's guilt of wrongs committed by his ancestors was paramount in the development of his literary career. He investigates human weaknesses through the time period of his ancestors. Generally Hawthorne's writings contained powerful symbolic and psychological effects of pride, guilt, sin and punishment.
The amazing short story writer Nathaniel Hawthorne. Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem July, 4th 1804. He is a short story writer. He is one of the Best short story writers in his time. Hawthorne is most famous for his novel The Scarlet Letter. Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author of The Scarlet Letter, makes symbolism, romance, and tone stand out the most.