Justification Of Hester Prynne

Lawrence’s biblical allusions to Hester provide a comparison to that of other sinners. He uses allusion for the reader to better understand Hester and her actions. Lawrence compares Hester to a remorseful prostitute when he states, “Then when you’ve brought him down, humbly wipe off the mud with your hair, another Magdalene” (Lawrence). He compares Hester to Mary Magdalene as a way of saying that their actions are similar to one another. He implies that just like Mary Magdalene, Hester tainted a pure, innocent soul into her arms, by luring Reverend Dimmesdale to commit a sinful action with her. Lawrence further implies that Hester and Dimmesdale are, “The new Adam

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

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.

The character of Hester Prynne changed significantly throughout the novel "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hester Prynne, through the eyes of the Puritans, is an extreme sinner; she has gone against the Puritan ways, committing adultery. For this irrevocably harsh sin, she must wear a symbol of shame for the rest of her life.

Biblical allusion is the final device used to attack Hester Prynne and her sin. Using these, Lawrence is able to illustrate his beliefs and connect Hester’s wrongdoings to other literary works. He first takes on the character of Pearl, remarking on how as an infant she was “to redeem the world” and on how “It will be a startling redemption the world will get from [this] American infant” (Lawrence). While this quote does attack Pearl, it also shames her mother. Being the living example of Hester’s sin, Pearl is compared to the holy being of Jesus

‘The young woman was tall, with a figure of perfect elegance.” and “She had dark and abundant hair, so glossy that it through off the sunshine…” (4). While managing to face her realities, Hester accepts her “sin” and fate with dignity.

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.

Lawrence’s admirable diction makes Hester out to be undeniably unique in her beauty, making her stand out from the other women in the village and thus seen as an icon. He then takes this concept further by using sarcasm to mock her selfish beauty. She is “put upon the scaffold [to] worship her there” just so all will start “envying [her] sin, and beating [her] because [she’s] stolen an advantage over [the villagers]” (Lawrence). By showing off her scarlet letter and accepting worship, Hester uses her sin as a way to get pity from the public. Lawrence’s use of the admirable diction points out the irony of the situation. As a hero is worshipped for good deeds, Hester uses her looks to turn the tables and get people to worship her for her sin. D.H. Lawrence sees her as a goddess, “so picturesque in her attire and mien” (Lawrence). Hester Prynne is so beautiful that she is as unnatural and fake as a painting. She deceives the public eye into making them see her as a picture perfect woman. This is a selfish lie to manipulate people into loving and adoring her.

Lawrence utilizes terse syntax throughout his essay to briefly and clearly indicate to the reader that Hester is a wrongful character. When describing Hester’s main goal in the story, he writes that it is “[to] seduce a man. To have everybody know” (Lawrence). He uses abrupt, easily understandable sentences that get his point across to convey his idea about her character and her purpose in the novel, which he argues is to be an adulteress. Furthermore, he makes connections between Hester and others in his concise statements by declaring, “All begins with A. Adultress. Alpha. Abel. Adam. A. America” (Lawrence). By incorporating these choppy one-word sentences into his essay, he is able to make his words come across as bullets that target Hester. The words he uses are meant to describe her sin and relate it to other ideas- such as Abel, because she pretended to be the victim. He attacks Hester’s character for being an adulteress and then attempting to disguise her impurity by

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.

By utilizing brief diction, D.H. Lawrence ridicules Hester and exposes the severity of sin itself. Lawrence simultaneously attacks Hester Prynne in a figurative and literal manner as he refers to her as “[an] Adulteress. Alpha. Abel, Adam. A] (Lawrence). It is through these brief insults that she is shot down by the words that best describe her. His acclimations greatly define her as the superior sinner. There is no reason for Lawrence to elaborate on the details of her sin; he attacks her in a consistent tempo

Hester Prynne lived in a Puritan world, everyone dressed the same, everyone thought the same, and when Hester Prynne strayed from this world, she faced death. Hester Prynne had sex with a man outside of wedlock, and became pregnant. In a puritans mind, this is one of the most heinus crimes. Hester’s punishment was public shame. She was forced to wear the letter “A” on her chest to show to the world that she had committed an act of Adultery.

Lawrence’s use of concise syntax throughout the passage helps convey his claim by providing his argument about Hester Prynne and sin in short, easy to understand sentences. For example, in line 17, he implies that Hester Prynne’s objective is “to seduce a man. To have everybody know. To keep up appearances of purity” (Lawrence). By using concise sentences, Lawrence gets his point across to the reader by simplifying his argument so the reader can easily recognize and understand it. It becomes clear that by saying that Hester Prynne’s main goal is to seduce men, he implies that Hester is the sinner for purposefully seducing Dimmesdale into sin. He also explicitly states that Hester is a sinner, not a victim. By doing so, Lawrence contradicts Hawthorne’s portrayal of Hester Prynne. Unlike Hawthorne, Lawrence believes that “Hester Prynne is the great nemesis of woman...Having her own back. Understanding” (Lawrence), which expresses his claim that Hester is unworthy of Hawthorne’s praise because she is a sinner

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s character, Hester Prynne, is known to be a controversial character, garnering praise and criticism alike. Literary critic D.H. Lawrence, in particular, challenges Hawthorne’s portrayal of the character, contending that Prynne is a character of sin and is deserving of perdition. In his essay, “On The Scarlet Letter,” Lawrence critiques the way Hester Prynne is depicted through various literary techniques, such as terse syntax, scriptural allusions, and an overall satirical tone.