Scarlet Letter Feminist

A feminist is defined in the British Dictionary as a person who advocates equal rights for women. However incredulous it may sound, women had to fight for rights for equality in things such as politics, economics, and their personal affairs. If the revolutionary feminist concepts were surfacing in the time of Nathaniel Hawthorne, circa 1850, then how was it that he was inspired to write Hester’s character? However,one consideration may be that it was written unintentionally with a feministic tone. This novel stands for the main ideas that gave feminism its momentum: gender equality and love for oneself as a woman. Hawthorne displays Hester as a free woman in the ending of the book, and also deems her and Dimmesdale as equals by having them receive identical markers on their tombstones. The Scarlet Letter epitomizes the strength of women while also providing as an indicator for early feminism, as it’s profound perceptions were not something yet established in this earlier time period. The Scarlet Letter is indubitably a feminist piece of literature.The three main characters work off of one another; Hester is strong while Dimmesdale is feeble and Chillingworth is corrupt; She effortlessly conquers her sin and continues with her new life, while Dimmesdale cannot admit his sins, and Chillingworth seeks revenge on Dimmesdale.

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne effectively composes a “tale of human frailty and sorrow” through visions of even the holiest men sinning and depictions of the sorrow of the most revered men on Earth. Hawthorne uses Dimmesdale chiefly as the example for humanity as a whole—the man who is supposed to be overjoyed, because all revere him, and a remarkably holy man, a priest who has ease with words. Principally, Dimmesdale is viewed as a man with an extraordinary life who has everything anyone could every dream of. However, in reality, he is a somber fellow who, because of his sins, is constantly tormented. Due to his past sins, Dimmesdale’s conscience relentlessly agonizes him, with no means of outlet because of his high religious ranking.

To begin, the role of women is crucial to each novel in their own individual ways. In both fictional texts, the women that are important to the novel can be described in few words, strong, can support themselves even when they are being ridiculed like on a scaffold, caretaker, the women from each novel are taking care of others, and finally, selfless, concern for the needs of others rather than their own needs. The Scarlet Letter has perfect examples in the text of some of the descriptions of women. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne states, “I will not speak!” and later, “ And my child must seek a heavenly Father; she shall never know an earthly one!” (Ch.3 Pg. 47). This quote can characterize Hester into two of the adjectives listed above. It shows her strength considering she refused to back down after being publically humiliated and berated by the town's elder in their balcony. Another quote from The Scarlet Letter is seen in chapter fourteen when Hester confronts Roger Chillingworth about his torturing of Dimmesdale, “It was myself!” and “It was I, not less than he. Why hast thou not avenged thyself on me?” (Chapter 14 Pg. 118). Hester falls under all three categories from this one quote. Her selflessness is seen in view of she is more concerned about the wellbeing of Dimmesdale than that of her own self. A clear-cut definition for the word, selfless. She is strong for that fact that she raised Pearl on her own and is still asking for the torturing and punishment to be on her. Hester, being a woman as the main character really gave her

Feminism is the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. In the novels the Awakening and the Scarlet Letter, they relate to feminism. In the Awakening, the protagonist character Edna Pontellier lived her life under men and society rules. Her only job was to be a wife and a mother to her two children. She didn’t have any right to hers own individuality so she committed suicide to be let free from the life of abuse.

With a “tall…figure of perfect elegance…and dark and abundant hair,” Hester has but one fault about her: the “scarlet letter…upon her bosom” (Hawthorne 44). Destined to wear the letter A on her chest for the rest of her natural life, Hester recognizes that this is not only her punishment, but also a reminder to every one of her adulterous actions. With the act of adultery being Hester’s only known sin, thus far, the reader is left wondering just how deeply it will affect her. Coming with a larger price than she could have ever imagined, Hester’s sin essentially makes her an outcast and “in all her intercourse with society…there [is] nothing that [makes] her feel as if she belong[s]” (Hawthorne 67). After her sinful act is brought into the open, Hester is isolated within her own realm, with only her young daughter to accompany her. This sense of isolation builds a metaphorical barrier between the people of Hester’s community and herself, despite her attempts to integrate back into their sphere. Following seven long years of this lifestyle, it seems that Hester finally is accepted by her community, and shockingly enough, “many people refuse to interpret the scarlet letter A by its original signification [, and instead,] they sa[y] that it

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” Hester Prynne is accused and convicted of adultery. During the puritan era women in this society had specific obligations and rights they had to maintain. By Hester having an affair and acting unladylike the community disapproved of her actions causing everyone to isolate her in her town. Due to Hester Prynne’s Isolation and the harsh judgment she received from everyone in her town, she goes through having to deal with Antifeminism acts towards her. Those who lived in the puritan era were not aware that their behavior and actions towards Hester and those who were associated with her were considered sexist. Throughout the story we see Hester deal with criticism and judgment from the community. By her paving her own way and doing what she thinks is best for her self and not sticking to the Status quo, she appeared to be “fearless” and “Bold” to those in the puritan era. Because of the actions Hester Prynne’s displayed she would be considered a modern day feminist, one who believes that women and men should have equal rights. In “The Scarlet Letter” Hester going against what society think is acceptable for a women living during the puritan era shows how she fits the modern expectations of feminism.

In “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne the character of Hester symbolizes as an objectification women, victimization of a female, social definition of feminine of sin, and growth into feminine independence.

The strength Hester demonstrates as compared to the men in Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, dispels the myth that women are the weaker sex. As Hester grows in confidence and independence, the significant men in her life grow weaker and ultimately die. The novel reveals that in a repressive and closed society, men tend to act as the leaders with all the power, even though women, such as Hester, have the capacity to implement more societal change than the men because women continuously fight for independence.

Hawthorne projects his ideas of women strength and independence through Hester by giving examples of how she is a strong woman. The puritan society gave Hester a very shameful punishment, which was to stand on the scaffold for three hours and wear the “A” representing adultery on her chest for the rest of her life (Marietta 2). People would look at the letter and judge the sin she committed. “Behold, verily, there is the woman of the scarlet letter; and, of a truth, moreover, there is the likeness of the scarlet letter running along by her side! Come, therefore, and let us fling mud at them!” (Hawthorne 7). While

It is not only these women who the narrator gives masculine qualities. Hester Prynne, the protagonist, is also given vigor and resilience against a tough environment. The many stresses in the plot burden Hester, including her own young daughter named Pearl, and the fiery scarlet letter. Yet, she somehow maintains a stable mentality and ensures the joy of her daughter. Although Hester is unhappy, she remains calm and accepts her punishments without complaint or resistance. Rather, in a scene in which Hester is threatened with the prospect of Pearl being taken away from her, Hester manipulates her burdens as a way to protect Pearl when she says, “Nevertheless… ‘this badge hath taught me—it daily teaches me—it is teaching me at this moment—lessons whereof my child may be the wiser and better, albeit they can profit nothing to myself,” (Hawthorne 84). Additionally, Hester’s strength is comparable to Reverend Dimmesdale’s strength. Both characters are placed in the same situation: with strict Puritan rules and pressures, the fear of punishment, and the shame of the crime of adultery. Even so, Hester, as a female, lives through

The novel follows the path of a young woman, Hester Prynne, in a town in Puritan America who committed one of the most grievous sins: adultery. She finds herself pilloried by the town and forced to retreat to the edge of the settlement, ostracized by all. Hester, besides the physical exclusion, is also humiliated mentally. She is forced to wear a letter A, colored a bright scarlet, on her chest at all times. Through her circumstances, she is forced to confront her sin mentally, with the display of the letter, and physically with her social ostracization. It is ensured that the weight of her ignominy would always be visibly present and on her mind. However, Hester endured these adversities, and in doing so, found herself going beyond the limitations established by Puritan society. She matured in her character and became a better version of herself which would not have been possible without the tribulations she had to face. Nathaniel Hawthorne explored the idea that one’s true potential cannot be reached until they undergo mental and physical trials by following Hester’s journey and her growth throughout his novel, The Scarlet

Hawthorne associates Hester with the feminist attitudes of his own time. Hawthorne portrays Hester as a sympathetic rebel whose passions and actions lead to unpleasant consequences for herself, her daughter Pearl, as well as Dimmesdale and Chillingworth. She leaves Boston after Dimmesdale's death, but returns later, puts on the scarlet letter again, and teaches younger women to be more patient and conservative than she was in her

The character of Hester Prynne plays a vital role in The Scarlet Letter as a feminist novel. When Hester conformed to society, nature shunned her with the rest of society. When Hester accepted her heart and her true love, nature accepted and worshiped

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, shares revolutionary new ideas about independence, and the struggles that women were faced with in 17th century Boston, Massachusetts. Hester 's constant struggle to discover where she belongs within the Puritan community changes throughout the novel, and so does her relationship towards the Puritan patriarchal authority. The narrator presents Hester as submissive and well-aware of her guilt in accepting her punishment. In the 1850’s when the novel was published, feminism was not widely supported. She only acted upon what she wanted, like her sexual desires; despite

Now that it has been established the Hester is, in fact, a strong female lead, there are two more questions left to be answered. One of these is, What is Hawthorne saying about the nature of women? This is, for the most part, a fairly simple question due to the fact that Hester has already been proven to be a strong character. The answer is that he is trying to say that women don’t need a husband to control them and that they are more than capable of living their own life. This could also be related back to the time in which this novel was written. As previously discussed the novel was released only two years after the first women’s rights convention and writing a story about a strong independent women could possibly have a huge effect on them achieving their goals of obtaining