The Scarlet Letter

1. The Scarlet Letter Leah Pionati Period CD

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on July 4, 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts. He was of Puritan descent. William Hathorne was included among his ancestors. Hawthorne added a “w” to his last name in order to hide himself from his family’s involvement in the witch trials. He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1825. In 1828 he anonymously published his first book titled Fanshawe. In 1837 he published a collection of short stories that was titled as Twice-Told Tales. He entered a career as a Boston Custom House measurer in 1839. In 1842 he married Sophia Peabody. They had three children. In 1846 he published Mosses from an Old Manse. He also was forced to return to the Boston Custom House because of lack of financial support from his writings. In 1848 he lost his job due to new presidency. He now had time to write his most famous novel The Scarlet Letter. He then wrote The House of the Seven Gables in 1851. He also wrote The Blithedale Romance in 1852. He wrote one more novel titled The Marble Faun in 1860. Shortly after he wrote the novel he fell ill. He passed away in his sleep on May 19, 1864, in Plymouth, New Hampshire. Carl Van Doren, an author that wrote The American Novelincluded a review of Hawthorne in the novel that said ,"When Hawthorne published The Scarlet Letter in 1850 he could not profit by a long series of native experiments in the art of the novel but had to initiate the mode in which he has since seemed supreme. And yet The Scarlet Letter represents in Hawthorne's own career the fruit of an apprenticeship to art the like of which no other American man of letters has demanded of himself." Source Info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_Hawthorne

3. Hester Prynne has many conflicts in the novel. One of her main conflicts is with Roger Chillingworth. In Chapter 3, Hester had recognized Chillingworth as her husband. In the beginning of Chapter 4, Chillingworth, known as a physician, was called to help aide the frenzied behavior of Hester and Pearl. He came and gave Hester and Pearl medicine. He then started conversing with Hester about her affair. He then said to her, “I ask not wherefore, nor how, thou hast fallen into the pit, or say rather, thou hast ascended to the pedestal of infamy, on which I found thee. The reason is not far to seek. It was my folly, and thy weakness!” (69) Hester replied, “thou knowest that I was frank with thee. I felt no love, nor feigned any.” (69) Chillingworth knew that Hester didn’t love him but still married her. Chillingworth also felt that it was his fault that Hester cheated on him. He said, “Mine was the first wrong, when I betrayed thy budding youth into a false and unnatural relation with my decay. Therefore, as a man who has not thought and philosophized in vain, I seek no vengeance, plot no evil against thee.” (70) Chillingworth took advantage of Hester’s youth and beauty. He was an old decaying man. He feels like they're both even now, so he doesn’t need to get revenge on Hester. Conflict Analysis-Hester Prynne

4. Chillingworth grew tired of asking Hester who her lover was and said he was going to find him himself. He then asked Hester to keep a secret for him. “One thing, thou that wast my wife, I would enjoin upon thee,” continued the scholar. “Thou hast kept the secret of thy paramour. Keep, likewise, mine! There are none in this land that know me. Breathe not, to any human soul, that thou didst ever call me husband!” (71) It may have been because he didn’t want to be known as the husband of a dishonorable woman. At the end of the chapter Hester asked Chillingworth if he was like the Black Man and cursed her soul. “Not thy soul,” he answered. “No, not thine!” (72) Chillingworth was talking about Dimmesdale’s soul. He wanted to personally have revenge on her lover, although at the time he didn’t know who it was. Chillingworth made Hester nervous. She was scared of the evil things that he could do to Dimmesdale if he found out who Dimmedale was. In the end, Hester told Chillingworth’s true identity to Dimmesdale in attempt to foil his plans of revenge. Chillingworth in turn, never got to fulfill his revenge.

5. André Gide, a famous French author once said, "It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for something that you are not". In life we need to be true to ourselves. There will be many circumstances that will make us want to stray from who we are. When this happens, we start to live a cowardly life. The more you start to lie about yourself, the farther from reality you become. Being a hypocrite may work for a little bit, but will eventually tear you apart on the inside by the guilt. In the novel, Dimmesdale views himself as the worst sinner. To the townspeople, he shows himself as the idolized minister that they believe him to be. By doing this Dimmesdale tortures himself on the inside. He is filled with guilt and self-punishment. It leads him to whip himself, fast, and hold nightly vigils. When the townspeople worship him as they do, he feels even more sinful and wrong. He knows that it is wrong to hide his true self to the town, but continues in order to preserve his image. Hester asked him if the town worshiping him helps ease the pain. He answered, “Canst thou deem it, Hester, a consolation, that I must stand up in my pulpit, and meet so many eyes turned upward to my face, as if the light of heaven were beaming from it!--must see my flock hungry for the truth, and listening to my words as if a tongue of Pentecost were speaking!--and then look inward, and discern the black reality of what they idolize?” (172) The more the people looked up to him, the more miserable he became. On the other hand, Hester remained true to herself throughout the entire novel. She made the scarlet letter beautiful in spite of the Puritans. She was also an independent thinker and free-willed. For example when Chillingworth told her that they were discussing the removal of her scarlet letter she said, “It lies not in the pleasure of the magistrates to take off this badge. Were I worthy to be quit of it, it would fall away of its own nature, or be transformed into something that should speak a different purport.” (153) In conclusion, failing to forgive yourself, will cause you to focus on your shortcomings and faults, preventing you from being what you truly are, or what you can be. In 2 Peter 1:9 "But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins." Be sorry for your actions, and don't hold grudges against anyone including yourself. It is alright to keep a souvenir of past actions so that you do not commit the same mistakes in life over again. Theme

6. Personal Reflection For the most part, I liked the novel. I liked the way Hawthorne portrayed the characters. For example, Hester was portrayed as a strong-willed, independent woman. He described Dimmesdale as a conflicted, but worshiped minister and Pearl as a free-spirited, impish elf. I felt like the novel was hard to read at some points in the story because it was hard to follow. I also didn’t like that Hawthorne didn’t give much background information about the characters before the infamy happened. I learned what it means to be a true woman from Hester. After being sentenced to wear the scarlet letter the rest of her life and having to stand on the scaffold, Hester had to go back to her regular life with no one helping her. She refused to tell her lover’s name. She then was sworn into secrecy by her husband Roger Chillingworth, to not reveal his identity to the town. She had to go and live in a little cottage on the outside of town, raising Pearl without a father. Every time she went somewhere, she felt eyes upon her chest, staring at the scarlet letter. She had to deal with the shame and embarrassment of her infamy. She made sewing her job to support herself and Pearl. She let the public scrutinize her every move, without saying a word in defense. In the end, after Chillingworth and Dimmesdale both died she left town for many years, but eventually came back. When she came back, she helped other people with their problems. Hester showed what it means to be a strong person. She took her unfortunate situation and turned it into a way that she could help others. I can relate to Pearl and Hester in Chapter 7, when the Puritan children were throwing mud at them. Pearl started throwing a fit and scared them off. Hester and Pearl are viewed as outsiders from the rest of the town. I can relate to being an outsider when changing schools or joining different sports’ clubs. Sometimes people never accept me and I have to just deal with it. When people do accept me, than I know that those people are the people that I want to associate myself with. Hester and Pearl eventually were accepted by some of the townspeople. Hester helped people who had problems like her. I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a love story or an intense storyline. Hawthorne portrays a love triangle in the novel. He also shows different sides of intensity, happiness, despair, and guilt. I think that they would like all of the different aspects that Hawthorne brings out. He also shows what being a hypocrite can do to someone. It could teach someone that they need to reveal themselves as they really are to the world.