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John Winthrop

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The Scarlet Letter  | Themes | Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Nathaniel Hawthorne started writing early in his life. From August to September of 1820, he would write in a newspaper called The Spectator that he published, himself. He would take these papers and distribute them to his family. For the rest of his life, he would end up writing over one hundred literary pieces. Hawthorne's first novel was almost never released, he wanted to destroy the novel. But, in 1828, Fanshawe: A Tale was anonymously published. In 1849, Hawthorne was fired from his job at the Custom House. His mother passed away around that time, too. After that he wrote The Scarlet Letter. Which was published in 1850.

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Puritan 17th century Massachusetts Bay Colony

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Puritan 17th century Massachusetts Bay Colony

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The Puritans that moved to the New World were refugees. But, once they started making their colonies, they became the people that they escaped from. They tried to make the Native Americans convert to Christianity, they would banish anybody and everybody that they believed had "false beliefs"; including Anne Hutchinson. She contested the ministers by saying that they taught the shallow version of the Protestantism religion, she also claimed that she spoke directly to God, which was a major offense. Roger William was also an example, he questioned why the Puritans were taking Native American land and that the state shouldn't punish people for differing beliefs.

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Puritan 17th century Massachusetts Bay Colony

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Puritan 17th century Massachusetts Bay Colony

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The Massachusetts Bay Colony was settled in 1630 by Puritan refugees.

The colony's first mayor was John Winthrop.

Salem, Massachusetts, was settled in 1626, but was taken over by the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1628.

By 1640, more than 40,000 colonists have migrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

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Hawthorne was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts.

While in Salem, he met a woman named Sophia Peabody in which he married her on July 9, 1842.

Hawthorne lived in Salem for most of his life, until after 1850 he has stopped living in Salem for good.

He passed away on May 18, 1864 in Plymouth, New Hampshire.

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Sin

A big theme in The Scarlet Letter is sin. The book tells a story about a woman, Hester Prynne, who has committed adultery, with a man named Arthur Dimmesdale. Adultery is a sin in the Christian religion, the religion in which Puritans followed (Puritans were Protestant, which is the second largest form of Christianity). Hester Prynne, is forced to wear the Scarlet Letter "A". Dimmesdale is also forced to live with the guilt, that he, a minister, has committed a sin and could not confess it. The sin and guilt puts him into a spiral of pain until, just before his death, he finally confesses. The book's overarching plot is about adultery, so there is no surprise that one of the biggest themes is focused on sin.

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Individual vs. Society

Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale deal with their sins in very contrasting ways. Prynne feels no fear in showcasing what she's been through to the public. To the point where she proceeds to wear the letter even after she is told she doesn't have to.
Whilst Dimmesdale keeps his guilt inside him, and Prynne helps him with keeping it a secret by not telling anybody who the man was for seven years. Her keeping the fact she sinned open is freeing, and she does this to show the public she won't subject herself to the "shame". Meanwhile, Dimmesdale's guilt is constantly hurting him and is a constant burden on his shoulders, which becomes sounbearable to the point where he is screaming to the world the night of the comet. This is not the only time the guilt he keeps inside him finally makes him explode, it is also when he finally reveals to the public that he is the man that committed adultery with Prynne.

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Pearl

Not only is she a character, but she is also a symbol. "...and little Pearl, herself a symbol..." She is a living reminder to both the minister and Prynne of the sin they committed. But, she is not just a burden on both of them; she is both a blessing and a curse. They both love her very much, and she ties them together, "...as if the mother and the child were communicating their vital warmth to his half-torpid system. The three formed an electric chain." Hester Prynne does whatever she can for Pearl, she is Prynne's driving factor when she is in need, and the physical embodiment of hope and redemption.

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The Scarlet Letter "A"

This is the biggest piece of symbolism even the whole book was titled after it. The letter means much to Hester Prynne. She is made to wear it as a symbol of shame, originally. But the bright red letter that was sewn into her identity was not going to get to her. She wore it knowing that it doesn't fully define her and she won't let other people in her society define her as just an adultress. She begins to work hard and the public begin to view her differently, and the "A" begins to mean something different to them. Able. When she was allowed to take the letter off, she even continued to live with it.

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2. “Biographical Information Relating to Nathaniel Hawthorne: Introduction.” Text of The Deposition of Ann Putnam, Jr. Against Giles Corey, September 9, 1692, 31 Oct. 2008, www.hawthorneinsalem.org/Life&Times/BiographicalInfo/Introduction.html.

3. “Welcome to the Literary Career Section.” Text of The Deposition of Ann Putnam, Jr. Against Giles Corey, September 9, 1692, www.hawthorneinsalem.org/Life&Times/LitCareer/Introduction.html.

4. Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Massachusetts Bay Colony.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 18 July 2017, www.britannica.com/place/Massachusetts-Bay-Colony.

5. “History of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.” History of Massachusetts, 13 Aug. 2018, historyofmassachusetts.org/history-of-the-massachusetts-bay-colony/.

6. “Puritan New England: Massachusetts Bay.” Khan Academy, Khan Academy, 15 Nov. 2016, www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/colonial-america/colonial-north-america/a/puritan-new-england-massachusetts-bay.

7. “Themes in The Scarlet Letter.” Conflict between Faith and Doubt in Galileo, www.bachelorandmaster.com/britishandamericanfiction/themes-in-the-scarlet-letter.html#.W56byNJKjrc.

8. “An Analysis of Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter.” Bright Hub Education, 19 Feb. 2016, www.brighthubeducation.com/homework-help-literature/42055-symbolism-in-the-scarlet-letter/.

9. SparkNotes, SparkNotes, www.sparknotes.com/lit/scarlet/symbols/.

10. Kestler, Justin. "The Scarlet Letter Themes." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 22 Jul 2013. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-scarlet-letter/themes