Hester Prynne In The Scarlet Letter By D. H. Lawrence

In his essay, “On The Scarlet Letter,” D.H. Lawrence provokes Nathaniel Hawthorne’s portrayal of Hester Prynne as a miraculous hero. Throughout the whole essay, he implies that Hester Prynne is a shameless transgressor, who only cares for herself. Hester Prynne is shamed by Lawrence for her atrocious actions. Lawrence provides several writing techniques in his essay including biblical allusion, degrading diction, and hyperbole, to prove that Hester Prynne is a wicked sinner.

Hawthorne's Hester Prynne is the underdog protagonist that the reader cannot help but want to succeed. She is flawed but her flaws are outshone by her good heart and spirit. This shamed and humiliated woman is the one the reader, with the help of Hawthorne’s descriptions, wants to support. This sinful woman, with a child from wedlock, a diabolical “husband”, and a secretive lover is the motivating force that drives the reader to continue on with The Scarlet Letter. The language, descriptions, and plot of The Scarlet Letter show that Hawthorne believes the reader should look past gender stereotypes because not everything is what is

Lawrence incorporates a sarcastic tone in his essay to belittle the adulteress because she is not deserving of a high reputation. Hester is degraded because she is shameful to all women. Lawrence sarcastically insists that she be put “upon the scaffold and worship her there” (Lawrence). Since the author does not approve of Hester’s adultery, he uses sarcasm so his readers can envision another side of Hester as a woman who is worthy of anything but praise. Lawrence sarcastically comments that she is being worshipped, which contrasts with Nathaniel Hawthorne’s judgement towards Hester who he believes plays the heroine in the novel. His sarcastic tone enables him to bring more emotion beyond the words’ literal meaning. In addition to Lawrence’s disrespect for Hester regarding the unnecessary worship she receives in the novel, he is also sardonic when he describes her appearance. Hester’s scarlet letter only represents her shameful sin of adultery in Lawrence’s eyes. He speculates that the women will be “envying [Hester’s] sin, and beating [her] because [she’s] stolen an advantage over them” (Lawrence). His sarcastic tone indicates that he has no respect for any woman who commits adultery. Because Lawrence believes that it is the woman, not the man, who is at fault for the development of an unorthodox relationship, he immediately blames Hester for creating such a relationship with Dimmesdale. Lawrence will not change his opinion on Hester no matter what she does in attempt to better her reputation.

He does this sarcastically and in a way that provokes a reaction out of the reader. Nonetheless, he goes on to mock the couple and point out how Hester had purposely ruined a once pure man in Dimmesdale. Instead of being depicted as the victim as Hawthorne does, Lawrence uses this line to point the woman out as a villain. Eager to assert his point, he further mentions that “When Hester Prynne seduced Arthur Dimmesdale it was the beginning of the end” (Lawrence). Insulting the woman, Lawrence continues to imply on how it was all Hester’s fault that everything fell apart. She had initiated the romance and from there nothing was ever the same. In this case, he states it figuratively by over exaggerating on how her actions would doom them all for the “end.” It is with this tone that the reader knows what judgements Lawrence holds for Hester, and on how the rest of his paper would play out.

  "What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us," stated Oliver Wendell Holmes. This eventually proves to be especially true for Hester Prynne, the main character in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Hester Prynne, a fair young maiden whose husband had disappeared two years prior to the opening of the novel, has an affair with the pastor of her Puritan church, resulting in the birth of her child Pearl. Because of this act of adultery, Hester Prynne is branded by the scarlet letter "A," which she is forced to forever wear upon her attire. The plot thickens as Hester's former husband returns to New England and becomes

In D. H. Lawrence’s essay “On The Scarlet Letter,” Lawrence analyzes Nathaniel Hawthorne’s portrayal of the adulteress Hester Prynne. He argues that Hester’s character is not worthy of the praise she receives in The Scarlet Letter because of the severity of the sin she commits in the novel. Instead of focusing on Hester’s character after the sin, he bases his argument on the sin itself. Lawrence uses terse syntax, an accusatory tone, and biblical allusions to depict Hester as the sinner of the story.

Hester Prynne, protagonist made by Nathaniel Hawthorne in his novel The Scarlet Letter, is a female seductress. Not only does she seduce the town, but even the reader into pitying her situation as it unfolds. In D.H. Lawrence’s article “On the Scarlet Letter,” he proves this most effectively through praising diction, repetition, and biblical allusions.

Nathaniel Hawthorne is the author of the classic novel the Scarlet Letter based on the Puritan Era in Massachusetts. D.H Lawrence a British writer critiques the novel and gives his opinions on the piece in a persuasive argumentative manner. He believes that the heroine of the novel is not the beloved, marvelous character we all believe she is.He uses confident literary techniques like powerful tone, abrupt syntax and classic biblical allusions to convince people that the beloved character Hester Prynne is truly a conniving adulteress who thrives off of stealing one's purity.

In the book, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne holds the character Hester Prynne high up on a pedestal. The main focus in D.H. Lawrence’s critical essay was the fact that Hester committed adultery and should be put into place. The uses of strong words and phrases used by Lawrence shows how much he disagrees with Hawthorne on the matter of punishments given to Hester Prynne. D.H. Lawrence uses biblical allusion, sarcastic tones, and brief syntax literary devices to express his feelings towards Hester in which they are incorporated in his writing.

Mark Van Doren’s “Hester Prynne” explains how the Scarlet Letter addresses Hawthorne’s opinion and view of Hester. Van Doren’s “Hester Prynne” article explains how Hawthorne praises Hester in his novel. Mark Van Doren goes in depth and provides literary devices to explain his point of Hawthorne’s reference to Hester. The author uses mythological allusion, praising tone, and specific diction.

D.H. Lawrence’s critical essay “On the Scarlet Letter” displays his views of how the protagonist of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne, is depicted, as well as how he feels she should have been depicted in the novel. Hawthorne and Lawrence have many clashing views about Hester’s sin; Hawthorne seems to focus on the effects of the sin whereas Lawrence focuses on the sin itself. Lawrence utilizes the literary devices of choppy syntax, biblical allusions, and satirical tone to emphasize his opinion that Hester Prynne’s sinful actions should not have been “praised” by Hawthorne. Lawrence uses choppy syntax to sarcastically emulate the way in which Hawthorne praises Hester throughout the novel.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is a great piece of literature. It explores problems in society that still occur today. It is fascinating to see how the Puritans punished adultery then and the lack of punishment of adultery in our society now. It shows how all the characters affect Hester and what everyone does in the community. It shows that no one is exempt from any type of crime in that town. In Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, he analyzes the characters of Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale and Pearl.

Hawthorne’s Evil Seductress Some people claim that D. H. Lawrence effectively achieves his purpose in his essay “On the Scarlet Letter” by criticizing Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter using literary techniques. Lawrence explains in his essay that Hawthorne depicts Hester in a way that is interpreted differently by critics. Lawrence uses short syntax, a sarcastic tone, and famous allusions to effectively convey that Hester Prynne is an evil seductress.

Critics generally agree Hawthorne uses the effects of the scarlet letter to reveal the atrocities of the patriarchy and masculine hegemony. The patriarchal forces women to carry the burden of an action despite the entity of the original sinners. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne takes the responsibilities and consequences of adultery, even though Dimmesdale should have equal, if not more, punishment. When Hester stands in front of a jury and endures the tremendous hatred from the individuals within the audience who believe Hester “has brought shame” to society, she declares,“Ye cannot take it off, and would that I might endure his agony, as well as mine!” (Hawthorne 39, 49). Hawthorne reveals how society isolates and condemns women for the actions and results of men. If the women do not hold the accountability of all sin, they experience ignominy from society; if they do hold accountability of all sin, they still experience ignominy. The patriarchy enforces the idea that women should hold all responsibilities for all of men’s actions. Advancing Hawthorne's argument, critic Jane Swisshelm reveals the treatment of women as they endure ignominy: “[Hester] was the moral leper whom none might dare to touch - the blazing emblem of the virtuous indignation of an entire community” (Swisshelm 273). So long women exist, the consequences of the world’s

Hester Prynne, a character within The Scarlet Letter, is a prime example of Hawthorne's common transformation of individuals within his books. These mutations involve the qualities and attributes of her physical appearance, feminine emotions, and reputation among the townspeople. Throughout the novel, the mentioned elements of Hester's character develop and change several times, providing the reader with better understanding of the influence that the scarlet letter and other characters have on her.