Nathaniel Hawthorne: An Early Pro-Feminist
Nathaniel Hawthorne: An Early Pro-Feminist The Puritan society as portrayed in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is based upon the idea of patriarchal views. Men are the heads of society and women are viewed as lower class citizens. Hawthorne’s personal opinions however, do not correlate with the views of the Puritans and he often makes his pro feminist ideas evident to the reader. Specifically, Hawthorne’s use of literary devices throughout his novel emphasizes his own opinions on feminism. In Hawthorne’s use of imagery, motifs, and irony his ideas about women are portrayed strongly to the reader and he gives the reader not only a sense his own opinions towards feminism, but also the opposing views of the Puritan society during the
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In the opening scaffold scene, Dimmesdale says to Hester, “Heaven hath granted thee an open ignominy” saying to her that she is lucky that she is an open book to the townspeople (Hawthorne 58). This is in an action to persuade Hester to reveal the father of her child to the townspeople. The irony in this statement, however, is that Dimmesdale is the the father and he himself, is hiding his sin from the town, yet he contradicts his statements as he speaks them, for he is doing the same as she is by hiding the truth from the townspeople. He eventually is consumed with guilt of his sins and strives to confess in any way possible, but his contradictory statements from early chapters remain with the reader throughout the rest of the novel. Chillingworth’s efforts to help Dimmesdale imply irony, in addition to Dimmesdale’s statements. He comes to Dimmesdale, pretending to be a doctor, in an effort to help the Reverend, but actually, his efforts result in making Dimmesdale worse. It is ironic that Chillingworth’s helpful ideas end up making matters worse in the end. Both men in this novel are described as very broken characters. They contradict themselves in their every move, yet they do not notice it. They both are so distressed by the situation they have been put in, that they become weak and unable to properly function. Men in the patriarchy are supposed to be the power source of the town, yet they become a detriment and weaken the readers’ perspective of men in general by their
In the opening scaffold scene, Dimmesdale says to Hester, “Heaven hath granted thee an open ignominy” saying to her that she is lucky that she is an open book to the townspeople (Hawthorne 58). This is in an action to persuade Hester to reveal the father of her child to the townspeople. The irony in this statement, however, is that Dimmesdale is the the father and he himself, is hiding his sin from the town, yet he contradicts his statements as he speaks them, for he is doing the same as she is by hiding the truth from the townspeople. He eventually is consumed with guilt of his sins and strives to confess in any way possible, but his contradictory statements from early chapters remain with the reader throughout the rest of the novel. Chillingworth’s efforts to help Dimmesdale imply irony, in addition to Dimmesdale’s statements. He comes to Dimmesdale, pretending to be a doctor, in an effort to help the Reverend, but actually, his efforts result in making Dimmesdale worse. It is ironic that Chillingworth’s helpful ideas end up making matters worse in the end. Both men in this novel are described as very broken characters. They contradict themselves in their every move, yet they do not notice it. They both are so distressed by the situation they have been put in, that they become weak and unable to properly function. Men in the patriarchy are supposed to be the power source of the town, yet they become a detriment and weaken the readers’ perspective of men in general by their