The Scarlet Letter Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The ruddy Letter - Research Paper ExampleOveruse of symbolization A. Mystic A and the embroidered badge B. Imagination of the Letter A in lines of red IV. The newspaper is a reflection of the creators life A. Metaphors vs. direct narration B. uncertain portraiture of women C. Hawthornes family life V. Inadequate depiction of historical context A. English spoken in that era VI. Dual nature of characters A. Chillingworths sweet-smelling and demonic nature B. More than one aspect of human nature The Scarlet letter has been defined as a fine piece of cunning that readers would want to return to during any era. What sets it apart is the gamey level of intellect and originality of thought as opposed to the crude, violent and warm depictions of most other novels of resembling nature at that time. Yet it has been criticized heavily for its slow progression and failure to involve the readers through drama, action and violence. The powerful impact of vivid imagination, sublime messag es and civilise literary discourse is constrained to some extent by the lack of action, overuse of symbolism and inadequate historical depiction in Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet letter begins with in a village setting where Dimmesdale and his companion Moose are on a peace mission. However, considering the persistent foundation of adultery in the novel, the Scarlet Letter does not touch upon madness and jealousy which reduce its effectiveness (Bloom 7). It is only when Chillingworth is brought into limelight in the story does the author give an account of the romance and obsessive feelings that accompany jealousy (Bloom 7). Therefore, the warmth and passion that shouldve accompanied the subject was not present. Furthermore, there was ample scope for a lot of action since liberation is the topic of focus throughout the novel. This is one of the major issues in the novel where no such action is depicted. Hawthorne seems to have captive the characters to the Puritan set ting whereby these individuals are engaged in cognitive behavior of thinking, interpreting and speculating as well as feeling, loving and hating however, rarely are they seen doing anything. From the theme of the novel, readers would expect violence, assault, rape, suicide as well as extended romance however, all this is rarely described as happening in the novel. This lack of depiction results in little drama in the story as the scope of the theme has not been fully exploited by Hawthorne. Although, the absence of passion and the mothy and ingenious fantasy cannot be termed as weaknesses of The Scarlet Letter, they tend to make the story less touching to even the most intelligent of all readers. A little more hideously human and crude depiction of natural violence and love could have left more impact on the readers. Nevertheless, the high level of intellect and sophistication delivered in this work of Hawthorne leaves the reader with a feeling of having a fine and delicately craft ed piece of work. Most importantly, however, the overuse of symbolism has been criticized. Authors have claimed that symbolism has been used to the extent of producing a mechanical effect in the novel has been criticized (James 55). For instance, the thought of the mystic A that is imprinted on the shirt of the unfledged minister along with the embroidered badge that Hester is destined to wear are evidence of such overuse (James 55). This suggestion should have been