On Hawthorne's Political Stand In The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), the great literary genius in American literature during the Age of Romanticism, earns his fame mostly through his work: The Scarlet Letter, which is still widely read as a classic tale today. It is undeniable that The Scarlet Letter turned out to be his one undisputed masterpiece of world literature.There is at least one very definite reason why Hawthorne occupies such a unique position in the literature of the entire world. It is because of his mastery of that form of fiction known as the "romance", his own original and specialized brand of romance. The difference of Hawthorne's concept of romance from that of others lies in his inclusion of mysterious events, as well as scenes and ideas, which are generally considered remote from everyday life.Hawthorne was by nature serious and reclusive, and his works are often dark, gloomy. However, he lived in the Age of Romanticism, and in an age which witnessed great changes home and broad. Influenced by a new set of values and belief quite different from those held by the puritans, Hawthorne tries to throw a thread of light to reveal his political stand in the dark world that he creates in The Scarlet Letter.This thesis tentatively explores Hawthorne's political point of view implied in his masterpiece: The Scarlet Letter. By analyzing the factors influencing his political stand, and his own expressions of his political ideas in the fiction, the author of this thesis (hereinafter referred to as the author) comes to a conclusion that, in terms of political stand, Hawthorne is fairly progressive, though sometimes a bit conservative, too.The thesis unfolds itself in four aspects: revenge on his political enemies, political freedom, feminist ideas and Hawthorne's conservativeness. It is intended to focus more on the progressive Hawthorne than on the conservative Hawthorne.Chapter I tries to explain the relationship between Hawthorne's dismissal and the writing of The Scarlet Letter, and then reveals that Hawthorne chose a repressing Puritan environment as the setting of The Scarlet Letter in order to get revenge on hispolitical enemy. According to what Hawthorne says in "The Custom House", Hawthorne's service at the Salem Custom House generated the fantasy of The Scarlet Letter, while his ouster from it finally led to the creation of the fiction, which is self-evident in both the "The Custom House" sketch and the romance itself.D. H. Lawrence expressed the same idea. "That blue-eyed darling Nathaniel knew disagreeable things in his inner soul. He was careful to send them out in disguise." (1)So in The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne purposely makes the dark puritan society the setting of the story. The repressing puritan authority is to indicate the dark political situation in which he lost his job, and Hester's rebellious spirit for her political right is just like Hawthorne's fight against his political enemies.Chapter II attempts to discuss one of Hawthorne's democratic views, political freedom. Influenced by both his bitter experiences and revolutions home and abroad, Hawthorne achieved a new and just angle to examine the society, and thus became aware of the darkness of the society, which allows no political freedom. In a society where magistrates must judge a moral failing without apparent consequences but in terms of politics, and where religion and law were almost identical, any passionate feeling or progressive idea is doomed to be repressed. By examining the factors contributing to Hawthorne's political point of view, and by analyzing the political context and conflicts presented by Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter, the author finds that Hawthorne makes Hester his spokesman to reveal his rebellious spirit and democratic view, and expresses the hope that a society allowing greater political freedom may gradually evolve.Chapter III talks about Hawthorne's feminist ideas. Hawthorne is a pioneer feminist, which is largely due to the influences exerted on him by the women who are close to him. With his ever growing awareness of women's right, Hawthorne comes to realize women's inferior social status, and the reasons behind. When he wrote The Scarlet Letter, a new political consciousness characterizes his fictional treatment of his heroine, Hester Prynne. By examining his portrayal of Hester, the author finds that Hawthorne accords much sympathy not only to the adulteress but to all women victimized by wrongs against their sex in order to express his feminist ideas.Therefore, Hawthorne speaks in defense of women's rights, rebukes the male authority, and finally lets Hester express his hope that "When the world should have grown ripe for it, the whole relation between man and woman on a surer ground of mutual happiness will be established." (2)Chapter IV focuses on the conservativeness of Hawthorne. In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne mainly demonstrates his progressive political point of view, but limited by the time in which he lived, Hawthorne is sometimes conservative, too. The author tries to explore Hawthorne's conservativeness implied in The Scarlet Letter, and the reasons behind, and eventually gets the conclusion that Hawthorne is more progressive than conservative.In conclusion, Hawthorne, a complex progressive-conservative fiction writer, reveals his political stand in The Scarlet Letter. Though he is sometimes restrained, considering the time he lived in, the author finds Hawthorne more progressive than most of his contemporaries.