NathanielHawthorne分析.pptVIP

Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804—1864) Nathaniel Hawthorne Introduction to the writer The characters and plot summary 1 2 3 Further understanding and Selected readings 4 Themes 5 Hawthorne’s point of view and Puritanism in Scarlet letter Nathaniel Hathorne Nathaniel Hawthorne Hawthorne Hathorne He said of his ancestors, esp. Judge Hawthorne, “I hereby take shame upon myself for their sakes, and pray that any curse incured by them…may be now and henceforth removed.” Salem witchcraft trials In February 1692, doctors were baffled by mysterious “fits” experienced by some adolescent girls in the Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts. Pressured to identify the “witches” who had afflicted them, the girls began naming names. By fall 20 innocent people were executed at the hands of a special witchcraft court. The court relied largely on forced confessions and intangible evidence, and the controversial trials divided the community. Major characters and plot summary Hester Prynne Arthur Dimmesdale Roger Chillingworth daughter lover husband Pearl Plot Hester Prynne, a woman taken in adultery, she must wear the letter A on her chest for all to see, yet she surrounds it with beautiful stitching, so that it advertises not only her shame, but also her skill as a seamstress.She refuses to name her lover, the Reverend Mr. Arthur Dimmesdale; and raises her daughter, Pearl on her own. Her husband, Roger Chillingworth spent all his life to take revenge. Destroyed by his lie and guilt, Dimmesdale dies in Hester’s arms, and some see a scarlet A on his chest. Destroyed by his single-minded quest for vengeance, Chillingworth bequeaths his vast estates to Pearl, who leaves America to live abroad, depriving America of all she represents. People found with a surprise, Hester returned to the little town, still wearing the Scarlet Letter, and then after her death, she was buried besides Dimmedale’s . Beginning Developing Ending Analysis of characters th