Puritan Beliefs in American Literature

Written by A Friend (Anon)

The description of Hester Prynne’s creation of the scarlet letter is used as a symbol of the ease of disobeying Puritan beliefs in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Despite its inherent meaning of bringing shame to its wearer, Hester “artistically” creates the letter with “fertility and gorgeous luxuriance of fancy” (46). Hester embraces the disgraceful symbol, showing the weak power of Puritan values over the lives of its people. While the main goal of Puritans is to purify society, they have no way to control the actions of others, as proven by Hester’s sin of adultery. Punishment is used to attempt to keep in line, but Hester demonstrates that even punishments are limited in their effectiveness By “artistically” making the symbol, Hester alters its meaning to the opposite of the intended purpose, as it can now be admired for its beauty rather than used for humiliation. Additionally, designing it as a “luxuriance of fancy” causes a difficulty in using it to look down at someone, since fancifulness and luxury are normally respected. Clearly, the description of Hester’s creation of the scarlet letter represents the struggle Puritans face in achieving conformity to their morals.The description of Hester Prynne’s creation of the scarlet letter is used as a symbol of the ease of disobeying Puritan beliefs in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Despite its inherent meaning of bringing shame to its wearer, Hester “artistically” creates the letter with “fertility and gorgeous luxuriance of fancy” (46). Hester embraces the disgraceful symbol, showing the weak power of Puritan values over the lives of its people. While the main goal of Puritans is to purify society, they have no way to control the actions of others, as proven by Hester’s sin of adultery. Punishment is used to attempt to keep in line, but Hester demonstrates that even punishments are limited in their effectiveness By “artistically” making the symbol, Hester alters its meaning to the opposite of the intended purpose, as it can now be admired for its beauty rather than used for humiliation. Additionally, designing it as a “luxuriance of fancy” causes a difficulty in using it to look down at someone, since fancifulness and luxury are normally respected. Clearly, the description of Hester’s creation of the scarlet letter represents the struggle Puritans face in achieving conformity to their morals.