Hester As A Strong Female Character And The Scarlet Letter

Jailah Johnson Mr. Powell English III CP Per.5 06 November 2015 Hester as a Strong Female Character and The Scarlet Letter as a Feminist Novel In The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a question arises: Is The Scarlet Letter a feminist novel? First, what is feminism? Feminism is â€Å"the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men†. Feminism is really about a woman’s strength since the act of feminism causes a woman to go against traditional views and be ridiculed for that. What does feminism have to do with The Scarlet Letter? Hawthorne denotes true feminism through his main character, Hester Prynne. Hester represents a strong woman who had to deal with life’s trials and tribulations from being publically humiliated for committing adultery, having to raise a child by herself, being forced to take all of the blame in her situation, and even being seen as one who is not worthy as a knowledgeable Puritan woman in Puritan society. Hester represented feminism well before feminism was even culturally relevant. Hester’s remarkable s trength is portrayed through direct and indirect characterization, and it is this very strength that makes The Scarlet Letter a feminist novel. The Scarlet Letter was first published in 1850. Hawthorne originally wrote the novel to expose the hypocrisy that was going on in organized religion. While doing so, Hawthorne wrote a novel that also challenged the idea of Puritan society during theShow MoreRelatedFeminism In The Scarlet Letter Essay1313 Words   |  6 Pageshow a female character or some part of the fictional world is being hurt or deprived of a certain right that women deserve. In such a way, readers and authors alike are able to dispute whether classic literary reads are feminist literature, such as The Scarlet Letter. Author Nathaniel Hawthorne’s writing did not portray a new right being made for women in society due to the scandal it aroused, nor change how women saw Hester Prynne, and it offered a balance of strong male and female characters withinRead MoreHester Prynnes The Scarlet Letter : A Feminist Novel805 Words   |  4 Pages The scarlet letter would be considered a feminist book becau se of the strength that Hester showed while all of society rejected her, and her daughter pearl. 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The story was written by a man named Nathaniel Hawthorne, only about a decade after his story took place, which meant that society in hisRead MoreThe Scarlet Letter, By Nathaniel Hawthorne And The Hungarian Novel Colours And Years1500 Words   |  6 PagesThe categorisation of female characters as heroines is often less obvious than the one of male characters as heroes. In a lot of contexts, â€Å"women and men are left with the impression that women are not heroic†. In other words, sometimes people tend to regard fictional women as inferior characters to whom the traditional notion of heroism cannot be applied. Yet, with the purpose of proving such a thesis wrong, this essay will examine the historical romance The Scarlet Letter written by NathanielRead MoreFeminism in Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter Essay551 Words   |  3 PagesWritten in 1850, The Scarlet Letter stood as a very progressive book. 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After 7 more years, it picks up and the readers can see what she goes through and how she and the townspeople around herRead MoreFeminism in the Scarlet Letter1297 Words   |  6 PagesJane Jonga Research Paper 11 March 2008 Hawthorne’s Hester Prynne and Feminism â€Å"In Heaven’s own time, a new truth would be revealed, in order to establish the whole relation between man and woman on a surer ground of mutual happiness† (ch.24).The definition of feminism would be women are inherently equal to men and deserve equal rights and opportunities. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is the key example for feminism in the novel. In Puritan times, women were thought