Examples Of Transcendentalism In The Scarlet Letter

Hawthorne’s message about obtaining salvation through the means of being open and true to yourself, is shaped by the contrasts of consequences the characters Hester Prynne, who publicly acknowledges her sin, and Arthur Dimmesdale, who hides his sin, face. In Hester’s case, she was publicly shamed for her sin from the beginning and was forced to wear the symbol of her sin, the scarlet letter “A” representing adultery, to isolate her from the rest of society. She had the opportunity to leave the town and begin a new life free from the scarlet letter, but she decides to stay as, if she were to run away or remove the scarlet letter, she would be admitting to the shame of her sins. Her staying, shows she wants to change the scarlet letter to not represent her sin, but her as a character.

In The Scarlet Letter Hester Prynne is more than a literary figure in a classic novel, she is known by some people to be one of the earliest American Hero’s. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Hester commits adultery and has a child that she must care for all alone. She is forced to wear a powerful, attention grabbing “Scarlet A” on her chest while she must try to make a living to support her and her child, Pearl. Even though she must face all the harsh judgment and stares she does not allow her sin to stop her from living a successful life. She looks past the Letter as a symbol of sin and turns it into a sign of approval. Hester

Nathaniel Hawthorne once said, “I do not want to be a doctor and live by men’s diseases, nor minister to live by their sins, nor a lawyer and live by men’s quarrels. So, I don’t see that there is anything left for me but to be an author” (Nathaniel). This statement describes Hawthorne’s personality and life in a way that no other quote could. Nathaniel Hawthorne was an Anti-Transcendentalist writer meaning that he had a negative view of all humans. The Anti-Transcendentalist movement was a pessimistic branch of Romanticism and it began in mid 1800s and lasted until late 1800s. Nathaniel Hawthorne was influenced greatly by his childhood, which is what caused him to be an anti-transcendentalist, yet in his novel The Scarlet Letter there was a bridge created between anti-transcendentalism and utopian transcendentalism.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, is a compassionate yet riveting piece of English literature that supports the movement for equality of suppressed women during a most tumultuous time during the 1800’s. Hawthorne’s use of emotional diction and imagery throughout his novel employs a deplorable tone upon the story. It serves as a stark representation of an imaginative yet realistic example of the indifference of men and women during these changing times. Deeply held Puritanical beliefs led countless of people to believe that individuals, especially women, who committed sins of any type would never reach heaven upon their passing. Men, on the other hand, were judged less severely if accused of a crime. Hester Prynne, the

The title of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter refers to the literal symbol of ignominy that Hester Prynne’s community forces her to wear as a reminder of her sin. Though the word “ignominy” is used in sympathetic passages that describe Hester Prynne’s disgrace as an adulteress and out-of-wedlock mother, its use at the same time reveals an extremely critical description of Hester’s community; Hawthorne finds that what is truly disgraceful is the way the community relishes and exploits the opportunity to punish one of its members.

Hester was once a transcendentalist, but has failed to transcend upon being shamed. She fails to transcend due to her conforming to the Puritan tradition, her lack of simplicity, and her lack of self-reliance, basic aspects of transcendentalism. Though she seems like a transcendentalist for similar reasons, such as the A being a symbol of her individualism or the fact that she lives alone in a cottage makes her self-reliant. But she wouldn’t be doing these things if she had choice. She would’ve loved to have been free of the letter A, and actually move into a house with Dimmesdale, but she didn’t have a choice.

Throughout, “The Scarlet Letter,” Hawthorne is able to enhance the plot by intricately incorporating symbols which represent a deeper meaning. One of which, is the infamous, and ambiguous, scarlet letter that lays upon the bosom of Hester Prynne. In the beginning of the book, the audience is immediately introduced to the scarlet letter as a symbol of shame and adultery. The narrator describes the Puritan society as very judgemental and harsh. Comments like, “This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die,” creates this negative and unwelcoming atmosphere which surrounds Hester for a majority of the book. From then on, the Puritans constantly refer to the

Considered an outcast from society, Hester continues her job as the town’s seamstress. In 1888, Emerson publishes an essay called Self Reliance. In Self Reliance, Emerson writes that people must “accept the place the divine providence has found for [them], the society of contemporaries, the connection of events” (Hodgins 190). In essence, Emerson says that people need to accept their life’s path. Hester learns to do just that. She knows that she will live alone with Pearl and accepts her roll as the soul provider. During the tough times, Hester never loses her spirit or determination. She “never sacrificed her moral integrity for the sake of her own benefit” (Analysis). Towards the middle of the novel, Hester accepts that the scarlet letter remains a part of her, but discovers that it no longer defines her. Hawthorne says “…that many people refuse to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able” (Hawthorne 146). What the people say about Hester explains her self-reliance perfectly. The A no longer has its original meaning to the town people. The town people begin to accept Hester for her qualities, not for the symbol upon her

The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, reflects the ideals of American Romanticism by the use of the concept of Dark Romanticism, the evident appreciation of nature and innocent children, and the rejection of the standard rules of society and the influence of England, instead, answering to a higher moral code.

Hawthorne explains the theme of how one should not let society determine their individuality. Although Hester is given the choice of escaping society and the pain along with it, doing so would prove that she admits the scarlet letter as a symbol of her shame. She refuses to let the community choose who she is, and she instead accepts the scarlet letter as a part of her own history and does not attempt to escape from it.

The novel, “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a about people from the seventeenth century living under a strict society, where the system and all of its components were based on God (Puritan era). Hawthorne describes Hester, who is one of the main protagonist, by using liminal space through her daughter Pearl and through her actions. He uses it to describe Hester’s passion, sin, and her reason to stay in town. By not giving a great amount of information about her life, he reveals through her public humiliation and subsequent, isolated life in Puritan society that her character is quite remarkable.

Hawthorne's critical diction helps determine his didactic tone over the course of the novel. We see the Hawthorne believes that happiness can be harnessed through one's perseverance. Even though Hester disheartening sin of adultery constructs a beautifully crafted scarlet letter they she must wear for the remainder of the time she stays in town. The letter, as elaborate and powefuklas is it presents her apparel to her town along wither newborn fearlessly.

To begin, the scarlet letter had lost its meaning over the course of time. “Then, also, the blameless purity of her life during all these years in which she had been set apart to infamy was reckoned largely in her favor.” (Chapter XIII) The author’s purpose is to call attention to the Puritan’s weak shaming system. For example, if the person being subjected to the humiliation does not draw attention to them self, the villagers will lose interest in the crime; this allows the villagers a healing time. In Hester’s case the people were able to see her in a new light. “Such helpfulness was found in her-so much power to do and power to sympathize-that many people refused to interpret the scarlet “A” by its original signification. They said that it meant “Able”; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s

In the novel, Hawthorne exemplifies that sin isolates the sinner by physically isolating Hester from society. One example of Hesters physical isolation is the scarlet letter. When Hester first leaves prison, the people of the colony notice that, “On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth… appeared the letter A... but greatly beyond what was allowed by the sumptuary regulations of the colony” (60). The scarlet letter that she bears on her chest is the sign of her sin. Hester is the only person in the colony that wears the scarlet ‘A’. The letter is a sign that

Although Puritanism, Romanticism and Transcendentalism do not coexist peacefully, these almost worldview kind of people groups are deeply embedded into three fictional characters from the book, The Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. This enthralling and rich classic which takes place in Boston Massachusetts during the time of Puritanism gives the reader not only a taste of the Puritans and their staunch attitude, but also of a less common way of thinking and behaving which is expressed through a certain character in the book. The three main characters in this book are all diversely different but are bound tightly together by a long kept secret and discovering their methods of thinking and acting upon