American Identity In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne And Washington Irving

In a surface examination of the work of Nathaniel Hawthorne, it is quickly evident that no good things come from the wilderness. Therein, the wilderness is often associated with the savages and the devil. In his work The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne finds herself exiled by society for having an adulterous affair with the town reverend which brought forth the child known as Pearl. Pearl is quickly established as the child of the wilderness: wild, capricious, and thought by the town to be a demon-child. She represents several entities in the novel just by her being, but when her morality is delved into, much more of the nature of the story can be revealed. Pearl’s role is often overlooked as a formative force in the novel. Some scholars have gone as far as to denounce her as unnecessary to the story’s makeup. Upon close examination, it can be determined that Pearl is indeed a necessary element. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Pearl presents themes of morality, both personal and cultural, as well as the divide between society and nature, through her interactions with Hester, Reverend Dimmesdale, and the scarlet letter itself.

In Rip Van Winkle, Irving shows his doubts in the American Identity and the American dream. After the Revolutionary war, America was trying to develop its own course. They were free to govern their own course of development; however, some of them had an air of uncertainties on their own identity in this new country. Irving was born among this generation in the newly created United States of America, and also felt uncertainty about the American identity. Irving might be the writer that is the least positive about being an American. The main reason for this uncertainty is the new born American has no history and tradition while the Europe has a great one accumulated for thousands of years. Therefore, in order to solve this problem, Irving

In the nineteenth century novel, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes different origins of allusions and archetypes to emphasize how individuals in order to encourage individuals to forgive sins and work towards redemption.

The blinds on the windows are shut, it feels like a prison cell as I sit under the spotlight. The darkness outside makes me feel somber and alone. I stare at the glowing screen and think to myself, “It’s just me and this paper.” In December of my junior year in high school, I was assigned a persuasive essay on Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter; it was my first academic essay of the year. My previous experiences with academic writing were both stressful and unfulfilling; when the essay topic was announced, I felt only resentment and anger, I remembered my past tribulations. With my mother’s help, this essay was different; after I submitted it to the teacher, I possessed a new perspective on academic writing. From my experience, I learned that strong writing skills are vital to communication, critical thinking, and life outside of the classroom.

Though never forced to don a branding like the letter “A” in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, people in modern society are always remembered along with their act of wrongdoing. However, the subjects of the public judgement may not see their choices as immoral. People shame for a difference in beliefs and morals. For instance, Kim Kardashian, a popular reality TV star attained her own personal fame by making a sex tape with rapper Ray J, and, consequently, was shamed in the headlines. Despite the bashing, Kim did not see why her act was deemed shameful. Kim acts as a modern day Hester Prynne because she underwent the same humiliation from her society.

In the book "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne there is a theme that is referred to as "rugged individualism". The concept of rugged individualism was brought to light by Karl Marx and it is the idea that an individual can do more for themselves than what the government can do for them. This term is applied to people who usually stick out among the masses and usually have little respect for the customs that society usually follow hence the idea on why they think they can do better for themselves without the help of the government. Th traits that are usually possessed by these people can benefit them, cause them to fail, or ironically both can happen where they fail but the outcome can benefit them. In the book we see two characters

The Scarlet Letter is regarded as the first symbolic novel in American Literature for Nathaniel Hawthorne 's skillful use of symbolism and allegory. The novel is also said to be the greatest accomplishment of American short story and is viewed as the first American psychological novel, which makes Hawthorne win an incomparable position in American Literature. Hawthorne’s “unique gift” for using this kind of skills taps into the roots of man 's moral nature and gives vivid explanation of the implications in his works (Lei). Hawthorne is outstanding for his skillful employment of symbolism and psychological insight. Hawthorne set the stage for all other American Literature writers.

“let her cover the mark as she will, the pang of it will be always in her heart.” (Hawthorne 92)

As The Scarlet Letter progresses, the scarlet letter takes on a human identity in the form of Pearl, her existence externalizes Hester's punishment. Hester acknowledges that Pearl is her living, breathing punishment. In The Scarlet Letter, she says, “He gave her in requital….Ye shall not take her! I will die first” (94 ,Ch 8). Hester’s love for Pearl makes her beg the ministers and governor to allow her to keep Pearl. Her argument was that God gave her Pearl, and whilst Pearl brings her joy, she is also a reminder to the crime she committed, like the scarlet letter that she wears on her breast. Hester has been agonizing over how she will repent for her sin, since the beginning. Yet, she agonizes more over the idea that perhaps her sins

In The Scarlet Letter, author Nathaniel Hawthorne examines the moral consequences of sin, or an offense against religious or moral law, and poses the question to his readers; can individuals be redeemed for their sins? The two central characters in the novel, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, both commit the sin of adultery. However, each character deals with their wrongdoing in opposite ways. Initially it seems that Hester Prynne’s sin is worse than that of Reverend Dimmesdale due to her sin being visible to all of society. Even though Hester’s sin causes her alienation from society, she is able to find independence while living on her own that gives her strength. On the other hand, town reverend Arthur

Children encompass parents’ lives from the day they are born into this world, often altering their plans for the future and their desired outcomes for life. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the most seemingly complex and misinterpreted of characters is Pearl, the illegitimate daughter of Hester Prynne and Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. The deviations in Pearl’s temperament, conduct, and character in the progression of the plot are a guide to the varying moral statuses of Hester and Dimmesdale. Performing the role of a compelling, rather than static force within the novel, Pearl saves both Hester and Dimmesdale, even motivating Dimmesdale to confess publically his sins and reminding Hester of her sin. As a result, Pearl serves as a moral guide to both her mother and father throughout the entirety of the novel.

American writings have portrayed numerous ideologies of what it means to be an American and these ideals have transcended throughout time and can clearly be depicted by the major influential literary aspirants from each century. The one thing that remains the same is that it has always been a struggle to forge a truly "American" identity given the fact that our nation is one of immigrants. These early works reached the level of literature, as in the robust and perhaps truthful account of his adventures by many literary aspirants such as: Thomas Jefferson, William Bradford, Crevecoeur, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Through the tendentious journalistic accounts as directed by the edification of these credited writers, the identity of these

Throughout history, Puritans have been known for extremely strict views towards other religions and people of other religions. Because they “deeply and fervently believed that they were doing the work of God”, Puritans often punished and shunned those who did not follow their rules or share their same views (Collier 62). In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne presents these popular ideas and truths about the Puritan way of living in a symbolic story of submissive defiance. He creates a strong feminist that contradicts the majority of the Puritan views on feminism. This rebellious main character, Hester Prynne, greatly sins and, thus, the town punishes her and shuns her in hope that she will repent and take on her proper duties once more. However, Hester shows the strength of a woman through this public humiliation, and takes on the role of a feminist by showing this feminine strength. Despite the attempts from society to force Hester into their Puritan ways, Hester Prynne fulfills the notion of a feminist through her rebellious qualities and actions, and she proves to be a contrast by assimilating into the role of a Puritan woman and thriving in this role despite her public humiliation.

The scaffold is a symbol of isolation and guilt throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. All three of the scenes that take place on the scaffold show major character development that deal with the realities of being alone in suffering, punishment, and guilt. All the scenes have at least the four main Characters: Hester, Pearl, Rev. Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. Chillingworth is Hester’s husband’s pseudo name to protect his identity while he exacts revenge. Since the scaffold scenes are such major parts of Hawthorne’s story, I believe that they also directly impact the overall theme.

In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the main characters have different kinds of burdens to carry depending on their level of ownership over their actions and identity. Dimmesdale has the worst burden to bear because he did not own up to his actions until the very end, Hester has to adjust to the punishment that the Puritans gave her, and Pearl has no burden because she is honest. Throughout the novel, they face different obstacles that contribute to their everyday lives that makes it hard to process everything at once. It’s also to show how the characters were able to face the problems and deal with them