An Analysis Of Alison Easton's A Critique Of Puritan Society

As a sociologist, Kai T. Erikson looks at history as a reflection of changes in societal norms and expectations. Erikson re-visits his look at historical happenings of the Puritans in his novel “Wayward Puritans: A Study in the Sociology of Deviance”. By examining several “crime waves” throughout history, Erikson points out several aspects of how we see deviance. After researching Puritan lifestyle and the corresponding influences of deviance, Erikson explores the Antinomian Controversy, the Quaker Invasion, and the Witches of Salem Village.

The Puritans had a heavily important part in the formation of early America, as well as a religion that influenced our early American society. This society has been the target which many authors have picked to set their novels in. The topic of Puritan life contains a broad list of aspects that can be easily compared to one another in several different books. Two selections that go into detail about some of the different aspects of the Puritan people are The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, and The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. These two particular writers who wrote of Puritan times conveyed, in their text, the similarities of religion, punishment, and adultery in the Puritan community of 17th century.

Rummel gives an analysis of the history and development of Puritanism in New England during the 1600s. In simple words how the people had formed a society in order to reform England and separate church from government. Puritans had God as an almighty, they were known as people with strict education, solitary environment, and own beliefs such as their obsession with the devil, evil and good. Rummel states that even if Hawthorne mentions religion in his short stories most of it Puritanism, he still never recommended any particular opinion. The story is focused on Puritan elements and Hawthorne’s approach to it. Hawthorne uses religious phrases and elements that makes the reader analyze each several object, action, figure, and scenario in the story. That’s why Goodman Brown has too much conflict going on and is very detailed on what he feels and sees. The article is one great piece of information that supports the understanding of the Puritan religious mindset and Hawthorne’s attitude towards it. Of course into the interpretation of what might had happened in the story.

Holding on to sin can lead to isolation and alienation. Hester falls in love with another man and commits adultery.

Also, Pearl has a strange attachment to the scarlet letter. As a baby, she would reach out and try to grab it on her mother's breast (Hawthorne 87). She seems to innately realize that it has great significance, but when she confronts Hester about it, her mother lies to her, telling Pearl that she wears it because of its beautiful gold thread. This scene shows an excellent example of innocent curiosity from Pearl, and Hester's lying because of societal regulations (Hawthorne 164).

In the short story “Young Goodman Brown,” the author Nathaniel Hawthorne shows the fragility of humans when it comes to their morality. Goodman Brown goes on a journey through the forest with the devil to watch the witches’ ritual and observes the evil in the Puritan society. He loses his faith as he sees the people he respects the most participating in the sinful ritual. Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes setting, and symbolism in his short story “Young Goodman Brown,” to show how a person’s perspective can change by showing the hypocritical nature of the Puritan society

The Scarlet letter shows hester as a humble person. She had to suffer a lot in the beginning. I tried to convey this with her distaste of the town shaming her. I also made sure to highlight her persistence to protect herself and her child. That’s the one thing Hester always did, protect Pearl. I decided

Hawthorne’s work takes America’s Puritan past as its subject, but The Scarlet Letter uses the material to the greatest effect. The Puritans were

Together with the transformation of Hester, the scarlet letter once again symbolizes her identity as pure as an angel. Though she committed adultery and had to suffer a lot from this sin, her soul still remains in an original shape of purity. And the red color of letter A on her bosom, which once was the call of scorn, hate and bitterness towards Hester, now attracted people's warmth, admiration and love as if it were a red burning color deep inside her heart. Hester deserves the highest recognition that the scarlet letter has done for her: a woman with a pure heart and soul of an angel.

The puritans were a religious group made up of people who wanted to "purify," the Church of England. The puritans were activist that wanted to get rid of the catholic system within the church. However, people in England sought out to remove these groups of people from the area because they saw them as a threat to their religion. This is how the puritans ended up in Massachusetts Bay Colony. The puritans moved to this colony in hopes of recreating and ideal community, a "utopian" society that others could look up to. The puritans ideal community consisted of peace and partnership; they wanted to remove all evil and improve the quality of life. The puritans then became strict to ensure that every person was equivalent in the eyes of God. I think the religion puritans created casted a fear in other people especially in England because they are so used to being ruled under one king. The

This ridicule has a trickle down effect on Hester as she too is banished from her own community for committing adultery. The comparison between Hester and Hawthorne defines the external struggle for the reader to fully understand the effect of opinions from society on them Although reluctant to allow Hester to leave prison, the members of the town suggest that her punishment be to wear a scarlet red letter A on her bosom, thereby allowing all to know of her crime. The scarlet letter “ was red-hot with infernal fire, ” (Hawthorne 81) and defined the state she was currently in, that being eternal hell. Though she was forced to marry an older man at a young age, her rebellion to have an affair is not seen as an internal struggle that she overcame; rather, it is merely seen as a woman who sinned, a woman who shall therefore endure the punishment for the sin, rather than a woman who was never given a say in what she wanted with her life. Time and again, Hester Prynne is seen defying society by allowing herself to stand out from societal norm just as the roses “with its delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer their fragrance and fragile beauty to the prisoner“ (Hawthorne) did. Instead, she returns to the community and is observed aiding those in need, all with seven year old Pearl by her side.

Influenced by his Puritan background, Hawthorne focused on individuals and their relationships within their community. Works by Nathaniel Hawthorne such as The Scarlet Letter and Young Goodman Brown focus on the issues and hypocrisies of a Puritan society. Hawthorne explores the view that many fundamentalist religious groups have in regard to the alienation of members of a society who have been judged as sinful, while also uncovering the hidden evil in everyone, including the most honorable of preachers. He accomplishes this by developing plot lines, which focus on interactions of ignorant but wicked religious characters with sinful but relatable protagonists.

Hester continues to face conflict, this time with herself. When Hester faces the reality of the unpleasant situation she is faced with, her self conflict begins. Hester’s feelings are expressed when it is stated, “She clutched the child so fiercely to her breast that it sent forth a cry; she turned her eyes downward at the scarlet letter, and even touched it with her finger, to assure herself the infant and the shame were real” (52). Conflict within Hester’s life continues in mothering her curious child. Pearl’s curiosity is revealed when she asks, ‘ “. . . Mother dear, what does this scarlet letter mean? –and why dost thou wear it on thy bosom?” ’ (161). Hester feels the responsibility of protecting Pearl from knowing her mother’s sinful actions. The constant questioning puts Hester in a contradictory position. Mothering Pearl causes conflict a second time when Pearl is considered an outcast from other

The scarlet letter is the Puritan’s method of broadcasting Hester’s sin to the world, but it also has an internal effect on Dimmesdale. Puritanism is a strict religion where pleasure is strictly forbidden and is punishable. When Hester Prynne is discovered to have committed adultery, she is forced to wear a scarlet A, which is short for ‘adultery’. When this is first revealed, Hester stands in the jail carrying baby Pearl and, with the people jeering, is asked by Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale if she would tell the world who the Pearl’s father is; Dimmesdale is relieved when the answer is ‘no’– and it is later revealed that Dimmesdale is the father. Over the course of the novel, Dimmesdale’s

Puritan values, ideas, and beliefs are evident in the works of Anne Bradstreet, William Bradford, and Jonathan Edwards. Through her poetry, Bradstreet reveals her Puritan values and ideals. Bradstreet was aware of a woman’s role in Puritan society and tried to portray herself as a humble, pious, obedient, and modest wife. William Bradford’s work also encompasses beliefs, values, and ideas of Puritan life. One can see that in Bradford’s writing such as Of Plymouth Plantation, Bradford emphasizes Puritan suffering specifically through the Mayflower journey and how, with the grace of God, they prevailed. Jonathan Edwards’ work also displays Puritan beliefs, values, and ideals through the installation of fear. In an excerpt from Sinners in the