https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07 1. How does religion add to the dramatics of this passage? Think of Dimmesdale as a Priest! 2. Where do we see elements of romanticism in this passage? Odd-numbered rooms answer question 1, even-numbered rooms answer question en-us 2021-03-07 21:07:00 UTC 2021-03-12 22:46:02 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289163632 We see elements of romanticism in the passage fueled by Dimmesdale's internal strife and psychological stress. One instance is when he sees visions of his mom showing him pity towards him. His realization of all the people lost in his life makes him fall deeper into a depression. He describes his mother and friends as ghosts who haunt him.
For example, Hawthorne, on page 139, states, "...and thus, while standing on the scaffold, in this vain show of expiation, Mr. Dimmesdale was overcome with a great horror of mind, as if the universe were gazing at a scarlet token on his naked breast, right over his heart."]]> 2021-03-09 18:20:15 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289163632 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289166238 Religion adds to the dramatics of the passage because Dimmsdale, as a christian, knows that he is breaking a sacred rule in the Christian world. He is breaking one of the Ten Commandments, where it says that one shall not commit adultery. In addition to this, Dimmsdale himself is a preist. He considers himself as teacher that teaches the Lord's words. He considers himself a hypocrite because he himself is not following the Lord's words. this leads to a conflicting fight within him. ]]> 2021-03-09 18:20:41 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289166238 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289166425 Elements of romanticism are present in Dimmesdale's personal conflict, both through the drama of it and through the themes of connections, between him and Hester and also him and Pearl. While the scene itself is simple in terms of what's going on, the style of writing places such emphasis on their actions that it becomes dramatic, which is a feature of romanticism. The events are embellished with metaphors, most notably the line which describes the ghosts "...that grinned and mocked." (Hawthorne, 131) These ghosts are those of his mother and friends, showing how he is haunted by them in a very literal way.]]> 2021-03-09 18:20:43 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289166425 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289174642 Religion plays a big part in making Dimmesdale's psychological torture much more dramatic. This is because he's a minister, and he's supposed to exemplify the behavior of a good Christian person. Having broken a rule with his affair with Hester, that makes his offense even worse. Because of this he feels massive amounts of guilt for his newfound popularity, like he is deceiving his audience into thinking he is a good person. This leads to actions like self-harm. One of the many examples of this psychological torture was "Without any effort of his will, or power to restrain himself, he shrieked aloud; an outcry that went pealing through the night, and was beaten back from one house to another, and reverberated from the hills in the background; as if a company of devils detecting so much misery and terror in it, had made a plaything of the sound, and were bandying it to and fro." Dimmesdale is experiencing such pain and anguish that his howl literally embodies the feeling of a company of devils.

]]> 2021-03-09 18:22:07 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289174642 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289177189 Religion adds to the drama of the passage because the priest has a responsibility not to sin. It's more of a betrayal because he is a person of faith, which makes his actions more reprehensible. Drama is directly influenced by conflict, by adding the conflict of religion to the story, the story becomes more dramatic. The ideals of religion directly conflict with his actions, forming more drama than if a person of less faith were to do the same.]]> 2021-03-09 18:22:31 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289177189 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289180320 Religion definitely makes the passage more dramatic, in Dimmesdale's case being a priest he's supposedly going against the word of god when he breaks societal expectations to help those in need.]]> 2021-03-09 18:23:02 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289180320 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289181327 Religion adds to the dramatics of the passage by raising the stakes of the situation. Because the nature of Hester's punishment is made greater by the local religion, the shaming that the town exhibits goes beyond just a personal matter. Dimmesdale is a priest, so he carries this shame even heavier, as we see when he tortures himself: "It was his custom, too, as it has been that of many other pious Puritans, to fast,—not, however, like them... but rigorously, and until his knees trembled beneath him, as an act of penance,"(Hawthorne 131). Religion heightens the tension of this situation by making it about Dimmesdale and Hester's relationship not only to each other, but to the higher power that the town praises.]]> 2021-03-09 18:23:13 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289181327 https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289203845 We see elements of romanticism primarily in Dimmesdale's conflict both in the drama of his conflict as well as its description-he sees visions of his mother pitying him and of Pearl recognizing that he's her father, only heightening his dread. Moreover, the way he describes the ghost of his mother and the ghosts of his dead friends "that grinned and mocked" him conveys this idea that he is literally haunted by his past and that his involvement with the spiritual world is built on this quest for salvation. Using romanticism, throughout the passage, the author gives off a dreary vibe, that Dimmesdale is feeling in his conscious as he is revealed to be the main antagonist. The scene in all actuality is just Hester pointing her finger at her scarlet letter and then at Dimmesdale but is is played up to such a degree using romanticism that it would make it seem that Dimmesdale's world is ending right then and there. ]]> 2021-03-09 18:27:08 UTC https://padlet.com/dshapiro17/3ccja9isfqnuhd07/wish/1289203845