"The Scarlet Letter"

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how the characters in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter" have often been described as allegorical in nature. The paper explains that they seem to represent something throughout the novel. The paper looks at the various views of critics and asserts that the novel uses allegory to highlight the lack of compassion in Puritan society. The paper contends that the whole novel is about Puritan society and the Church where they are attacked for their false teachings, wrong ideals and lack of compassion.

From the Paper:

"The Scarlet Letter is one of the most widely admired works by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The characters have often been described as allegorical in nature since they seem to represent something or the other throughout the novel. Yvor Winters called the novel "pure allegory" where he felt that the characters represented various degrees of sins: "Hester represents the repentant sinner, Dimmesdale the half-repentant sinner and Chillingworth the unrepentant sinner." (p.3) Matthiessen on the other hand did not agree with this interpretation and felt that the characters represented various degrees of allegory with Pearl bearing the greatest responsibility of representation."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Fifth Edition. W.W. Nina Baym, Editor. Norton & Co. New York, N.Y. 1998.
• Winters, Y. Maule's Curse: Seven Studies in American Obscurantism. New York: New Directions, 1938
• FO Matthiessen. American Renaissance: Art and Expression in the Age of Emerson and Whitman (Galaxy Books): 1941
• Richard, Chase. The American Novel and Its Tradition: The Johns Hopkins University Press; New Ed edition (May 1, 1980)

More papers on "The Scarlet Letter":

• Analytical Essay # 142408 : "Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter"
• Analytical Essay # 124563 : "Characters in "The Scarlet Letter"
• Analytical Essay # 124489 : "Perspectives on "The Scarlet Letter"
• Analytical Essay # 120733 : "Adultery in "The Scarlet Letter"

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