The Scarlet Letter Themes

Guilt is a major theme in the scarlet letter, and appears primarily in the psychology of arthur dimmesdale.dimmesdale is tormented both by guilt at his sinful act of fathering an illegitimate child, and then by the guilt of failing to take responsibility for his actions and having to hide his secret.

The scarlet letter themes. A summary of themes in nathaniel hawthorne's the scarlet letter. The nature of shame and judgment; Throughout history, people have committed all types of sins, and whether they are major or minor, people have been punished.

Some people feel that sinners should be deeply punished no matter how little the wrongdoing was. The differences between our public and private lives; This symbol also shows how objects transform.

The scarlet letter addresses themes such as forgiveness, guilt, truth, identity, and good versus evil. However, the severity of a punishment is very difficult to agree on. Although it seems at first that hester has committed a serious sin—adultery—it is dimmesdale and chillingworth who are the true sinners as they are consumed by the sins they commit.

Major themes in nathaniel hawthorne's the scarlet letter. Hawthorne explores the individual’s relationship to society. The letter of “a” written in scarlet color and placed around the neck of hester becomes a symbol of sin, especially adultery.

We'll see examples of these themes in the following quotes. However, it is fascinating to note that the same letter becomes a symbol of innocence, penance and angelic character of hester by the end of the story. Learn how the author incorporated them and why.

The scarlet letter by nathaniel hawthorne and the great gatsby by f. The scarlet letter presents a critical, even disdainful, view of puritanism. These suggestions will help you improve writing skills.