Gender Roles In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Yes, I consider The Scarlet Letter is a work of feminist literature. During the time of Hawthorne, the writings of his opinions for the womens were very forward and powerful. The novel has discovered the typical lessons on the themes of feminist by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850. In The Scarlet Letter, the main heroine Haster Prynne and Pearl as her daughter are considered the two main prominent characters. So, the knowledge about them is persuaded the early feminist considering the heroines in the writing of The Scarlet Letter. The narrator has established the work opposing a feminist central character. It describes Haster’s sin and love that has given a view of woman’s unique.

Many people believe that feminism is the domination of the of the female gender. However, that is not the case. Merriam Webster dictionary states that feminism is the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism is equality between the genders. The idea of feminism didn’t start until the 1840’s, so Nathaniel Hawthorne’s intention might not have been to feminize his characters. His beliefs could have came from the society that he lived in. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story is a feminist piece of work that shows Hester Prynne and Pearl as strong characters in a male dominated society with strict beliefs.

Do you believe that women of this present generation have always received the same level of respect as they receive now? Today, women are treated exceptionally well as compared to their counterparts in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and treated even better than those in the very early years of America. Women in the past were restricted from freedoms and rights; their individuality was stripped and they were constantly forced to meet the constraining view of a “traditional” America. In contrast, women of modern America are granted a level of recognition and respect unexplored by American women of previous generations.

Gender roles in The Scarlet Letter can be described as both traditional and unconventional depending on which character is being observed. Characters such as Hester Prynne, Chillingworth, Dimmesdale, and Hester’s daughter Pearl are the main characters that portrayed one or the other. In this book, perhaps one of the more notable differences is that men seem to be portrayed as the weaker of the two sexes, as far as fundamental strength is concerned. It is interesting to consider that comparison when noting that the important men responsible for deciding Hester’s fate are so intent on convincing her to tell them the name of the man who was her “tempter.” At the same time, however, the men seem to be more inclined to be more lenient and somewhat tolerant of Hester and her sin than the women of the colony. The women are supposed to have the upmost ladylike persona, who follows their husbands’ wishes and provides for the family through caring for the children, cooking, and cleaning. These characters chosen almost seem to represent everything opposite, yet everything common in this

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne has a major theme of women in society. This novel was published in 1850, just as the women’s rights movement was beginning in the United States. This was an organization created to fight for basic rights for women, such as voting and. By the use of a female protagonist during this time period, Hawthorne was able to bring more attention to women and how they were treated, specifically in Puritan society.

Women in Puritan society, as in many other societies throughout time, were repressed. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter it is womanhood, not women themselves, that is being repressed within Puritan society. On the surface, this is because of its traditional religious association with sin. However, Hawthorne depicts femininity and womanhood as having divine power and influence, [as in, they] ? are a God-approved force leading people towards moral good. This is shown through his depiction of women deprived of womanhood as morally corrupt, the way in which Hester’s feminine qualities inspire forgiveness, and in Hester’s belief in the power of a woman to change Puritan society. Hawthorne does this in order to subvert those traditional religious ideas about femininity, instead suggesting that the reason womanhood is repressed lies in the fear the Puritans have of womanly power destroying their patriarchal society.

The Scarlet Letter uses perspective effectively to encourage a consideration of hierarchies and power in the puritan society, as well as their patriarchal views. The novel tells of a young woman, Hester Prynne, who is shunned, vilified and outcast by the puritan community after being charged with the sin of adultery. Hester doesn’t show resentment towards the town necessarily, instead we see her rejection of formalised religion and the strict, oppressive puritanic views and values. Hester is in a state of disempowerment for the majority of the text, she is othered and viewed as merely more than that of her gender and her sin by the townspeople. The dominant culture was that of older, authoritative male figures, who led the town unchallenged and in both a patriarchal and oppressive manner.

Hawthorne is trying to advocate about the women in the society though the main protagonist, Hester Prynne and her actions. He is able to utilize the character of Hester to show the contrast of what the society wishes women would be and act like. She endures the shame of public humiliation from the other ‘perfect’ Puritans and is eventually able to put up a shield to protect and save herself from all the negativity; this shield ultimately establishes an improved female image. Hester acquires unruly and bold energy along with a tough mindset, “the tendency of her fate and fortunes had been to set her free. The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread (174). Perhaps Hawthorne was trying to get across that

Throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, the reader is shown how the main character, Hester Prynne, overcomes her public humiliation and stands against the traditional ideals held in her Puritan society. Hester Prynne is considered an outcast in her patriarchal society because she does not display the ideal woman in the Puritan town. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne exemplifies a feminist heroine who faces limits and persecutions in her Puritan society, challenges the traditional views of society roles, and demonstrates personal values. In contrast of viewing Hester Prynne as a heroine, some may view her as a corrupt individual.

Did you know that The Scarlet Letter is one of the first to feature a strong female character. The Scarlet Letter is a famous novel written by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne. At the end of the novel, Hester plans to run away and find happiness with her beloved but Dimmesdale dies. Why is it that right when Hester wants to get away from her past, her love mate dies? Were they not meant to be together?

The scarlet letter does not just mean “adulterer”, Hester has become more apart of society, and helps out by bringing food to the poor, and taking care of the sick. So the letter is stands more for “able” than for “adulterer”. The letter now is just a reminder of her past and that she has changed since her mistakes. She believes that she really has changed. She has become more speculative about what it means to be a woman in her society. She wants to be a bigger part of the Puritan society, not just second class or in her case third class. One theme that came up was “Within each person is the capacity of both good and evil”, when Chillingworth figured out something about Dimmesdale, his mood changed and even the look on his face changed

Middle class women in the early nineteenth century became known only for their “passionless” sexuality and the ability to bear children (Myers-Shirk). While married men had the option to impregnate any woman they chose, women had the primary responsibility of raising the children while remaining faithful. During this era, common practice dictated that only women would face prosecution for infidelity or else face charges of a serious crime (Mawa). Society’s frame of mind during this time served to place men at the top of the “gender hierarchy” until, later in the century (Myers-Shirk). The notion that women received unjust treatment as compared to men also existed in the literature of that era. The Scarlett Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrates the disparity of equality at the time. In this book, the author writes of a woman, Hester Prynne, who committed adultery and bore a child out of wedlock. Hester 's punishment handed down by the church resulted in incarceration followed by parading her through the town in an effort to shame her for her misdeeds (Hawthorne).

In The Scarlet letter, Hester is first introduced as a woman who committed adultery. Fated to wear a scarlet letter for the rest of her life, she faced public shaming and humiliation each day. Though throughout the entire case, Hester still held her head high and ignored the curses of the New England town. Hester was one of the first Americans to be aware of the hypocritical society. She believed if a person were to do wrong, admitting to it and trying to change is the right thing to do.

Throughout the 19th Century, Feminism was a new revolutionary theory. During this time, many women's right movements were created. Feminism shows equality for women, but it also highlights the critical factors of being a female. It is much more than trying to prove women are just as good as men, in the Schmoop Feminist Theory, it states " The focus can be on how women’s bodies are digitally altered....how race or sexuality affects women's lives". This topic has been a controversial topic in society for ages, and the steps to change sexism are just now beginning to be implemented in the 1800s. There were many ways people conveyed their feelings towards the feminist movements. The influence of women's rights was shown throughout all of

In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester is shamed for her sin of adultery, and she lives alone with her daughter Pearl. This book can be viewed using the feminist theory because within this book it shows how a woman can overcome anything that is in her way. The feminist theory is used in this situation because using this lens it shows how this piece of literature undermines the psychological oppression of women (Tyson). Hester is able to help many of the unfortunate people because she knows how it feels to be looked down upon. She wants to help people because she knows that no one else will care to help those less than themselves. That is why when many people referred to the scarlet letter “they said it meant Able; so strong was