Hester Prynne's Development Of Women In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

In the 1850’s, America was undergoing a massive internal changes via the industrial revolution. With this new era, American culture was drastically changed as women started to take a more prominent role in American society. In his novel The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne attempts to stimulate this change by illustrating the positive influence of a strong female character in a Puritanical society through his heroine, Hester Prynne, by putting her in a scandalous situation capable of drawing out the worst in people.

Hester Prynne of Nathanial Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter defies the Puritan belief system through her rebellion and compassion. Hester defies the Puritan belief system through her rebellion. Hester Prynne, while in Boston waiting for her husband to come from Amsterdam, commits the crime of adultery and gives birth to a child, causing her to be punished. Hawthorne describes her crime in dialogue between Hester’s husband, who has just arrived in Boston and is unaware of Hester’s circumstances, and a towns member who infers as to what she has done and how much of an uproar it has caused, during her public punishment, in the government forces her to stand on a scaffold for three hours and condemned to wear an A on her chest

Nathaniel Hawthorne portrays the ideology of Puritan society in the novel the Scarlet Letter; however reader also get to witness his characters being an illustration of hypocrisy and victims to their own guilt. In the Scarlet Letter, as in many of Hawthorne’s shorter works, he makes profuse use of the Puritan past: its odd exclusionary belief, its harsh code of ruling, its concern with sex and witchcraft. The Scarlet Letter is a story that is embellished but yet simple. Many readers may view this novel as a soap opera due to the way Hawthorne conveys this Puritan society’s sense of strictness and inability to express true emotion along with the secrecy and how deceiving the characters are being. As the story unfolds the main character Hester Prynne is bounded in marriage at an early age. She engages in an adulterous affair with an unknown member of their small village. Hester soon becomes pregnant and with her husband’s absence the chances of this child belonging to her husband are slim. The towns’ people know that she has committed a sin and imprisons her for her crime.

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

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

Hester Prynne is the protagonist of The Scarlet Letter, a novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. She was a beautiful woman who, because of her adultery, experienced persecution and was ostracized by everyone in her town. Her shame and guilt gave her an understanding of sin and redemption. She serves as an example of someone who is rejected by society and, because of it, grows in both strength and wisdom. Hester’s sin overshadowed her beauty and talent, but her humble and generous deeds gained her respect over many years.

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne develops the dynamic characterization of Hester Prynne from a beautiful, innocent girl into a somber, hardened women to showcase the evils and hypocrisy of Puritan New England’s culture of shaming. Hawthorne employs rhetorical devices such as metaphor and juxtaposition to further develop the characterization and his critique of Puritan society. When initially describing Hester, Hawthorne emphasizes her incredible beauty, and juxtaposes this with the other ugly, judging Puritan women, adding to the hypocrisy of her being shamed for sinning. Hawthorne emphasizes the verbal assault on Hester by employing metaphor and imagery in its description. After the community shuns and shames Hester for years, Hawthorne uses metaphor again to show how Hester’s body and character changes for the worst, emphasizes the malice and evil of public shame.

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” Hester Prynne is accused and convicted of adultery. During the puritan era women in this society had specific obligations and rights they had to maintain. By Hester having an affair and acting unladylike the community disapproved of her actions causing everyone to isolate her in her town. Due to Hester Prynne’s Isolation and the harsh judgment she received from everyone in her town, she goes through having to deal with Antifeminism acts towards her. Those who lived in the puritan era were not aware that their behavior and actions towards Hester and those who were associated with her were considered sexist. Throughout the story we see Hester deal with criticism and judgment from the community. By her paving her own way and doing what she thinks is best for her self and not sticking to the Status quo, she appeared to be “fearless” and “Bold” to those in the puritan era. Because of the actions Hester Prynne’s displayed she would be considered a modern day feminist, one who believes that women and men should have equal rights. In “The Scarlet Letter” Hester going against what society think is acceptable for a women living during the puritan era shows how she fits the modern expectations of feminism.

Although Hester consistently displays her composure and strength, she is still regarded as weak because she is a woman. When elaborating on the ‘A’ Hester must wear on her bosom, the narrator describes Hester as “the general symbol at which the preacher and moralist might point, and in which they might vivify and embody their images of woman 's frailty and sinful passion” (53). In town, men point to Hester to depict women’s weaknesses. Regardless of Hester’s actions, she is still viewed as inferior to other men. As the novel progresses, Hester proves her worth to society by feeding the poor and nursing the sick. The narrator then notes that “some attribute had departed from her, the permanence of which had been essential to keep her a woman” (100). Instead of entertaining the idea that a woman could naturally be strong and helpful, those around Hester view the change as Hester losing her womanhood. She is not seen as a strong woman. Rather, her act of gaining strength is regarded as the loss of her womanhood. This overtly sexist standard suggests that Hawthorne thought it to be

In the novel, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the character Hester Prynne, as a representation of feminist views and perspectives. The Puritan society views Hester as a sinner and unable to receive forgiveness or grace; however, she overcomes her adversities and finds joy within her being. In general, critics agree that The Scarlet Letter exemplifies the definition of female empowerment. For example, critic Wang writes: “Although shamed and alienated from the rest of the community, Hester does not fall but becomes a miniature of a resistant ‘Feminist Angel’, a strong woman looking forward to the equality between men and women” (Wang ). Wang demonstrates how Hester approaches unfair circumstances with maturity and diligence. Furthermore, critic John Updike states: “Hester Prynne can be seen as Hawthorne's literary contemplation of what happens when women break cultural bounds and gain personal power” (Updike ). The novel defines the position of a feminist

Hester is an outcast from town. “[Hesters] sentence bore that she should stand a certain time upon the platform… under the heavy weight of a thousand eyes, all fastened upon her and concentrated on her bosom” (63-64). This act of standing upon the platform means that she is now officially an outcast from the colony. She has gone from a respectable women living on her own to a women of disgrace that has had sex out of her marriage. The colonists see her as socially unacceptable and leave her as an outcast to their social society. Social isolation is seen again when Hester is dropped to the bottom social class. Before Hester exits the prison gates to stand on the platform, the women of the town begin to gossip. They begin to gossip about how Hester “has brought shame upon us all” (59), and how she really should be punished for embarrassing them. Hester used to be a good role model for the town, but now that she has sinned it makes the other upper class women look bad. Hester is dropped to the bottom because the upper class women could not bear to be seen socializing with a sinner like her. The women don’t socially accept her anymore. Hesters sin socially isolates her when the town only sees her as a symbol. Hester is seen by the colonists as, “the general symbol at which the preacher and moralist might point and in which they might vivify and embody their images of women’s frailty and sinful passion.

While Puritan women are weak and dependent upon their husbands, Hester Prynne is empowered and self-reliant. A character designed by Hawthorne to show 19th century women that women’s work could be valuable, Hester supports herself and her daughter by needlework. “For, as the novel unfolds, the letter, intended by the Authorities to signify harsh but just condemnation, is made by Hester to signify something entirely different—able, admirable.” (Bell 109) All aspects considered, the ability of Hester, a woman who committed sin and was publicly punished for this crime, to manipulate this punishment into a virtue

Nathaniel Hawthorne highlights the habitual societal conflict of surfacing gender equality ideology throughout The Scarlet Letter. The typical female role in society during the mid-seventeenth century was to be a caretaker. Hester Prynne’s sentence for breaking this stereotype through adultery is to wear a large, red letter A on her chest. Hawthorne uses Hester’s character to add characteristics of early feminism. For example, Hester not only takes on the so called male and female role put in place by society at some point throughout the story, but she also challenges societal views of women. To fully understand the situation women were going through, you must be familiar with the historical context. The story takes place in a Puritan

While Hester is a feminist, not only does she share the ideals but shows superiority to the town while being fearless. " It may seem marvelous, that this woman should still call that place her home, where, and where only, she must needs be the type of shame.” (chapter 5, paragraph 2) Hester does not let the shame and remorse of the sin keep her away from the town like most would do. Hawthorne even states that Dimmesdale is weaker than Hester by punishing himself and holding his heart while Hester embraces the sin and is strong while carrying the letter on her chest. She leads a self-righteous life, although she could keep what she earns, she gives most away. Even the townsfolk say Hester is "so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comfortable to the afflicted."(chapter 13, paragraph 5) Hester can be seen over the townspeople helping them although they shamed her. Hawthorne presents that Hester’s “tendency of her fate and fortunes had been to set her free.” (chapter 18, paragraph 2) With this Hester has a “radiant and tender smile, that seemed gushing from the very heart of womanhood. (chapter 18, paragraph 12) These quotes from Hawthorne show that Hester’s kindness helps her overcome her sin on her own. With Hester’s contribution to the town, “Her handiwork became what would now be termed the fashion.” (chapter 5, paragraph 6) In his research, Sacvan Bercovitch remarks that “Hester Prynne ‘builds upon the tradition of the biblical Esther -

“Women belong in the kitchen.” “All women should be barefoot and pregnant.” “Women are strictly homemakers.” These are a few of the commonly used phrases regarding the female role in society that date back to the mid-seventeenth century. However, ardent supporters of gender equality have surfaced in almost every culture where this ideology is practiced. Nathaniel Hawthorne explores this inveterate societal conflict through his story The Scarlet Letter. The main character, Hester Prynne, is punished for committing adultery by being forced to wear a scarlet letter upon her bosom; Hawthorne created a story sympathetic to the female cause and demonstrated, through Hester, qualities of early feminism that later establish themselves during his