I love looking at the names of the characters in The Scarlet Letter. They are almost laughably over-the-top romantic. The poor reverend is not a character you would expect to be gloomy and dim if you judged him solely on his profession; that however, is exactly what he is. Dimsdale is a brooding, cheerless man who nearly buckles daily under the weight of his own inability to deal with the guilt of his sin. When paired alongside Hester, the reader can so who the real "man" is. Hester owns up to her guilt, Dimsdale doesn't.
Dimsdale is portrayed as a gentleman and a scholar, one that the entire town seems to be ready to bow down and worship. Yet he is exactly the kind of man that the townspeople love to hate. His fear of their judgement mark him as a significantly weaker character then Hester, for example.
Depicted as frail and and tiny, the reverend is a walking contradiction. One would imagine the reverend being more like Chillingsworth, tall and proud rather then meek and mild and scared. It is these sort of ironies that makes The Scarlet Letter such an interesting read.
Friday, May 18, 2012
The Scarlet Letter Character Analysis: Hester Prynne
I believe that one of the most important points to consider when reading The Scarlet Letter is the characters. The characters are blocky, one-diminsional representations of a character trait or a thematic element in the novel, and the drama comes from watching them all interact with each other. With this in mind, I will be devoting a number of blogs to examination of characters in The Scarlet Letter, in order to hopefully allow the reader of this blog in engage with the text and the characters in exciting new ways.
Hester Prynne represents feminism. She is a strong female character, made stronger by that fact that she takes her due punishment rather then rebel against it. Some may disagree on this point, saying that a real strong woman character would have rebelled against her oppressive punishment, but I believe that Hester is made stronger by her self sacrifice.
Hester also represents a Christ like figure in my mind. She takes the burden of all the punishment upon herself, even though some is certainly due to Rev. Dimsdale, and even Chillingsworth for that matter. Her insistence on wearing the A even when out in the wilderness where nobody would see her anyway further cements the idea of her bearing her sins and others'.
Physically, Hester represents untamed beauty and freedom. Ironically, she shackles this beauty with her letter A, which speaks volumes about her dedication and her acceptance of her burden. Hester is a strong example for women and men alike, and a stronger example of a great protagonist. Her arch throughout the novel is truly unique to follow.
Hester Prynne represents feminism. She is a strong female character, made stronger by that fact that she takes her due punishment rather then rebel against it. Some may disagree on this point, saying that a real strong woman character would have rebelled against her oppressive punishment, but I believe that Hester is made stronger by her self sacrifice.
Hester also represents a Christ like figure in my mind. She takes the burden of all the punishment upon herself, even though some is certainly due to Rev. Dimsdale, and even Chillingsworth for that matter. Her insistence on wearing the A even when out in the wilderness where nobody would see her anyway further cements the idea of her bearing her sins and others'.
Physically, Hester represents untamed beauty and freedom. Ironically, she shackles this beauty with her letter A, which speaks volumes about her dedication and her acceptance of her burden. Hester is a strong example for women and men alike, and a stronger example of a great protagonist. Her arch throughout the novel is truly unique to follow.
Thoreau and Necessity
America is a country of progress. We are a country of luxury. With the combined efforts of our forefathers, we can now afford to do things like focus on art, literature, and philosophy, rather then where our next meal is going to come from. We can buy a cheeseburger for a dollar, for Christ's sake. In fact, we as a country are so used to the idea of plenty, that we have actually become a country of surplus and waste.
These are themes that Thoreau would argue against. In his selection from Walden, the chapter entitled "Economy," we can see Thoreau's ideas of waste and just how foolish the American concept of "necessity" really is.
Thoreau takes the ideas of Franklin and expands upon them Franklin also argued against the waste that many American were even in the colonial days prone to (in fact, one gets the idea that Franklin just views humans in general as wasteful). Let's look at something current in American society and think about how Thoreau may feel about it: cell phones. The concept, application, and market surrounding cell phones is so sickening to me that it makes me want to never own a cell phone again (a ridiculous concept of course. How could I constantly stay in touch with my besties without my cell phone?). Thoreau would agree with me, I feel. We waste so much of our resource and time on something like cell phones, which is ultimately harder at all a worthy thing to be spending so much time on. Thoreau would encourage us to spend more time on traditional romantic pursuits, such as nature and reflecting on the individual. Do you agree with Thoreau? With me? Send your feedback below.
These are themes that Thoreau would argue against. In his selection from Walden, the chapter entitled "Economy," we can see Thoreau's ideas of waste and just how foolish the American concept of "necessity" really is.
Thoreau takes the ideas of Franklin and expands upon them Franklin also argued against the waste that many American were even in the colonial days prone to (in fact, one gets the idea that Franklin just views humans in general as wasteful). Let's look at something current in American society and think about how Thoreau may feel about it: cell phones. The concept, application, and market surrounding cell phones is so sickening to me that it makes me want to never own a cell phone again (a ridiculous concept of course. How could I constantly stay in touch with my besties without my cell phone?). Thoreau would agree with me, I feel. We waste so much of our resource and time on something like cell phones, which is ultimately harder at all a worthy thing to be spending so much time on. Thoreau would encourage us to spend more time on traditional romantic pursuits, such as nature and reflecting on the individual. Do you agree with Thoreau? With me? Send your feedback below.
Emerson: The Importance of a Title
Ralph Waldo Emerson is a very literal man. At least, in terms of his titles he is. But what exactly is said by a title? As a leading transcendentalist, romantic, and writer of his time, Emerson spearheaded the movement with his bold, brilliant, and simple titles. It's hard to get much simpler then "Nature." But it is in this simplicity that we find the core of the transcendental movement. Emerson strove to introduce the American public to a brand new concept, and he chose to do so through careful marketing.
For example, when one goes to buy a perfume, they generally pick a brand like "Devastation" or "Rush," and not "The Modern Theories on the New American Movement." Emerson was thinking like a true American already, displaying just the kind of ingenuity and creative thinking that would become a hallmark of American ideas.
For example, when one goes to buy a perfume, they generally pick a brand like "Devastation" or "Rush," and not "The Modern Theories on the New American Movement." Emerson was thinking like a true American already, displaying just the kind of ingenuity and creative thinking that would become a hallmark of American ideas.
The Price of Progress
Irving and Cooper are two men with one common idea: the cost of progress. Is the price that we pay worth what we sacrifice? Both men explore this topic in their own way, while simultaneously coming to the same conclusion, or at very least, the same state of open-ended though. Let's explore the two works separately, and then bring them back together for the the final analysis.
Irving's story of a man who falls asleep in the wilderness only to wake up years later to an entirely different world may seem nothing more then a simple tall-tale told for the purpose of entertainment, however there is the theme of the price of progress underlying the entire story. Winkle wakes up years later to an entirely different world, one that he did not necessarily want to see. One gets the idea that he was happy with his town the way it was before, and that while the colonies have indeed made great progress towards equality and the like, they lost something too, a sense of cultural identity that Winkle enjoyed.
Cooper too has such themes. The entire tale presents the suffering of the native people and the costs that the European's sense of progress has exacted upon the natives. A unique sense of culture and identity was lost with the assimilation of the Europeans, and it only gets worse as the years go on.
What does this mean for American literature? Throughout the Romantic period that Irving and Cooper were an early part of, writers questioned pre-established norms, among these the destruction of nature at in the name of progress. Romantic writers valued tradition and nature, and both were lost as America continued to grow exponentially. Was the cost worth it? Irving and Cooper leave that up to the reader, and therefore so shall I.
Irving's story of a man who falls asleep in the wilderness only to wake up years later to an entirely different world may seem nothing more then a simple tall-tale told for the purpose of entertainment, however there is the theme of the price of progress underlying the entire story. Winkle wakes up years later to an entirely different world, one that he did not necessarily want to see. One gets the idea that he was happy with his town the way it was before, and that while the colonies have indeed made great progress towards equality and the like, they lost something too, a sense of cultural identity that Winkle enjoyed.
Cooper too has such themes. The entire tale presents the suffering of the native people and the costs that the European's sense of progress has exacted upon the natives. A unique sense of culture and identity was lost with the assimilation of the Europeans, and it only gets worse as the years go on.
What does this mean for American literature? Throughout the Romantic period that Irving and Cooper were an early part of, writers questioned pre-established norms, among these the destruction of nature at in the name of progress. Romantic writers valued tradition and nature, and both were lost as America continued to grow exponentially. Was the cost worth it? Irving and Cooper leave that up to the reader, and therefore so shall I.
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