An analysis of important literary elements of the scarlet letter

Certified Educator So far, you are doing well! For your third literary device, how about setting? Throughout the novel, the setting is dark and dismal.

One important influence on the story is money.

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Hawthorne had never made much money as an author and the birth of his first daughter added to the financial burden "Biographical Note" VII. He received a job at the Salem Custom House only to lose it three years later and be forced to write again to support his family IX.

It was only intended to be a long short story, but the extra money a novel would bring in was needed "Introduction" XVI. His forefathers were strict Puritans, and John Hathorne, his great-great-grandfather, was a judge presiding during the S!

Hawthorne did not condone their acts and actually spent a great deal of his life renouncing the Puritans in general VII.

Similarly, The Scarlet Letter was a literal "soapbox" for Hawthorne to convey to the world that the majority of Puritans were strict and unfeeling. For example, before Hester emerges from the prison she is being scorned by a group of women who feel that she deserves a larger punishment than she actually receives.

Instead of only being made to stand on the scaffold and wear the scarlet letter on her chest, they suggest that she have it branded on her forehead or even be put to death Hawthorne Unlike the transcendentalists of the era, Hawthorne "confronted reality, rather than evading it" VII.

Likewise, The Scarlet Letter deals with adultery, a subject that caused much scandal when it w! The book revolves around sin and punishment, a far outcry from writers of the time, such as Emerson and Thoreau, who dwelt on optimistic themes VII. This background, together with a believable plot, convincing characterization, and important literary devices enables Nathaniel Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter to the develop the theme of the heart as a prison.

The scaffold scenes are the most substantial situations in the story because they unify The Scarlet Letter in two influential ways. First of all, every scaffold scene reunites the main characters of the novel.

In the first scene, everyone in the town is gathered in the market place because Hester is being questioned about the identity of the father of her child Hawthorne In her arms is the product of her sin, Pearl, a three month old baby who is experiencing life outside the prison for the first time A short time later, Chillingworth unexpectedly shows up within the crowd of people who are watching Hester after he is released from his two year captivity by the Indians In the second scene, Dimmesdale is standing on top of the scaffold alone in the middle of the night When Dimmesdale recognizes them and tells them to join him, they walk up the steps to stand by his side Chillingworth appears later standing beside the scaffold, staring at Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl.

In the final scaffold scene, Dimmesdale walks to the steps of the scaffold in front of the whole town after his Election day sermon He tells Hester and Pearl to join him yet again on the scaffold Another way in which the scenes are united is how each illustrates the immediate, delayed, and prolonged effects that the sin of adultery has on the main characters.

Literary Devices in "The Scarlet Letter" by John Burk on Prezi

The first scene shows Hester being publicly punished on the scaffold She is being forced to stand on it for three hours straight and listen to peop! Though he never actually says that he is not the other parent, he implies it by talking of the father in third person Since his first sight of his wife in two years is of her being punished for being unfaithful to him, he is naturally surprised.

It does not last for long though, because it is his nature to control his emotions She obviously would never had been there had her parents resisted their love for each other. The second scene occurs several years later and shows the effects after time has had a chance to play its part.

It begins with Dimmesdale climbing the stairs of the scaffold in the middle of the night because it is the closest that he can come to confessing his sin This scene is especially important because it shows how pitiful he has become.

Dimmesdale shows just how irrational he is when he screams aloud because he fears that the universe is staring at a scarlet token on his breast It also shows how much guilt he is carrying by the way he perceives the light from a meteor as the letter A.

He believes it stands for adulteress while other people think it stands for angel since the governor just passed away This scene also shows how Hester is managing her new situation. When Dimmesdale tells her to come up the scaffold and asks her where she has b!

Ironically, her first well known piece of work was the scarlet letter that she wore on her chest. As a result, she owes her own success to her infamy.

In this scene, she constantly asks Dimmesdale if he will be joining Hester and herself on the scaffold tomorrow at noon and accuses him of not being true The Scarlet Letter - Analysis, Free Study Guides and book notes including comprehensive chapter analysis, complete summary analysis, author biography information, character profiles, theme analysis, metaphor analysis, and top ten quotes on classic literature.

The Scarlet Letter Analysis Literary Devices in The Scarlet Letter. Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory. The prison door is described as having never known "a youthful era," i.e., innocence ().

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It’s made of iron and is a little worse for wear, if you catch our drift. Yet, the wild rosebush that g. Literary analysis involves examining all the parts of a novel, play, short story, or poem—elements such as character, setting, tone, and imagery—and thinking about .

The Scarlet Letter's important quotes, sortable by theme, character, or chapter. The Scarlet Letter: Characters Description, analysis, and timelines for The Scarlet Letter 's characters.

The Scarlet Letter Literary Analysis chapter of The Scarlet Letter Study Guide course is the most efficient way to study the literary analysis of this novel. Get an answer for 'What are three literary devices Hawthorne uses to communicate the theme of good emerging from evil in The Scarlet Letter?

I have identified characterization (Pearl, Hester) and.