1、thesymbolismintheScarletLetter讲课教案Abstract: As a great romantic novelist in America in the 19th century, Hawthorne was outstanding in handling the application of symbolism, and a study of his symbols is necessary to understanding his novels. The Scarlet Letter is Hawthornes most important symbolic n
2、ovel, which stands as the best work of Hawthorne and one of the indubitable masterpieces of American literature. This thesis aims at the exploration of the usage of the symbolism in the novel. It mainly discusses the deep symbolic significance of the Scarlet Letter A and the major characters. The Sc
3、arlet Letter is the central symbol of the novel. Its symbolic meaning changes from adultery to angel, and it also examines the symbolic meanings of litter Pearl and Hester Prynne.Key words: symbolism; Scarlet Letter.I. IntroductionNathaniel Hawthorne is a great romantic novelist in America in the 19
4、th century, and is a central figure in the American Renaissance. His novels are penetrating exploration of moral and spiritual conflicts. He is outstanding in literary skills, especially in his use of symbolism. In the Scarlet Letter, symbolism runs through the whole novel where the scarlet letter A
5、, the characters of the story and the settings are all endowed with a deep symbolic significance.This essay highlights and interprets the major symbolism of the book represented by the colors, the characters and as well, the scarlet letter.II. Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter1. The symbolism meaning
6、of “the scarlet letter”In The Scarlet Letter, the letter “A”, the spirit of novel, builds up the framework and launches a close link between the human relationships. The novel begins and ends both with the letter “A” with its conspicuous symbolic significance. In the novel, the letter appears on Hes
7、ters gown, on Arthurs heart, in Pearls hands as well as in the evening sky. Its symbolic significance changes with the development of the novel. As time passes the letters meaning on Hesters chest shifts also. This change is significant. It shows growth in the characters, and the community in which
8、they live. In the course of the story, the “A” seems to encompass the entire range of human beings, from the earthly and passionate “adulteress” to the pure and spiritual “angel”. The letter A begins as a symbol of sin. It then becomes a symbol of alone and alienations, and finally it becomes a symb
9、ol of able, angel and admirable.1.1 A for AdulteryThe letter A, worn on Hesters bosom, is a symbol of her adultery against Roger Chillingworth. As a puritan punishment way of the adultery, it is her punishment to wear the letter “A”. The puritan treatment continues, because as Hester walks through t
10、he streets, she will be looked down upon as if she is some sort of demon from hell that commits a terrible crime. This letter is meant to be worn in shame, and to make Hester feel unwanted. “Here, she said to herself, had been the scene of her guilt, and here should be the scene of her earthly punis
11、hment”(标注1) Hester is ashamed of her sin, but she chooses not to shows it. She admits this sin in the heart of passion, and fully recognizes it for the reason that though she is ashamed, she also receives her greatest treasure, Pearl, out of it. She is a very strong and brave woman. Faced with such
12、kind of punishment, many will leave Boston to seek a place where no one knows their great sin or they can emerge into another state where she could aloof from the law that condemns them. However, Hester chooses to stay, which shows that she has a lot of strength and integrity. Without enough perseve
13、rance and firm endurance can any person, let alone a woman, go through these difficulties in a situation where he is looked down upon.1.2 A for AlienationThe scarlet letter A also stands for Hesters lonely life in New England. After she is released, Hester lives in a cottage near the outskirts of th
14、e city. “It had been built by an earlier settler, and abandoned, because the soil about it was too sterile for cultivation, while its comparative remoteness put it out of the sphere of that social activity which already marked the habits of the emigrants.” Hesters social life is virtually eliminated
15、 as a result of her shameful history. Hester comes to have a part to perform in the world with her native energy of character and rare capacity. “However, there was nothing that made her feel as if she belonged to it. Every gesture, every word, and even the silence of those with whom she came to con
16、tact, implied, and often expressed, that she was banished, and as much alone as if she inhabited another sphere, or communicated with the common nature by other organs and senses than the rest of human kind. She stood apart from moral interestsseemed to be the sole portion that she retained in the universal heart.” Hester has no friends in the world, and little Pearl is the only companion of her lonely life, so the scarlet letter A also is a symbol of “alien
