Puritanistic view on adultery in The Scarlet Letter an Example of the Topic Literature Essays by

Puritanistic view on adultery in The Scarlet Letter The psychological and moral issues of the book, written more than 150 years ago, are still relevant to contemporary society. By breaking the community's morals and standards, a woman had suffered for the rest of her life and reaped the fruits of sin in her own child. In "The Scarlet Letter" Nathaniel Hawthorne explores the realms of the sense of guilt as experienced by three principal characters - Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth - living in the seventeenth-century Puritan society. The thrust of Hawthorne's classic is that isolation and morbidity are the results not of man's living in sin but of his living in a Puritan society. Need essay sample on "Puritanistic view on adultery in "The Scarlet Letter"" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed Our Customers Usually Tell EssayLab specialists: Who wants to write essay for me? Essay writer professionals recommend: Academic Papers For Sale Buy Essay Online Writing Service Best Essay Writing Service Cheap Essays Within Hours Cheap Reliable Essay Writing Service The Puritans, who were believed to use the 'pure' Bible interpretations and were known for their intolerance to theater, music, and extravagant dress, however, excluded traditional practices of the church, when they migrated from England. In the new colony, the society, religion and government turned out to be in close cooperation. The past experience of punishment and religion-based laws, which were enforced, have created a certain aura in the Puritan society and affected all spheres of Boston life. Therefore, every citizen was involved in justice system, the Church and community at one time, and his reputation was a sole foundation for the Puritan society. So, adultery, committed by married woman, became publicly known, and, as an intolerable action, this act deserved the severest punishment. Goodwives the members of the Church and ladies with good reputation have been arguing about it, while waiting for Hester Prynne. For them she was nothing but malefactress, who caused scandal in Reverend Master Dimmesdale's congregation, who brought shame upon the whole society, and she deserved death or, at least, a brand on her forehead. (Hawthorne chapter 2). In this case, both the Scripture and the statute-book supported the resolution. It was the standpoint of the Puritan society. The Puritanistic view was that Hester must either die or wear the sign, which would represent her sin and remind her and the society all she had done. The shame on the scaffold and the scarlet letter was not considered as a fair punishment for such an unacceptable crime. They excluded any idea of forgiveness and mercy; for them, adultery was a grave and unpardonable sin, a heavy burden in this life and eternity the Puritans have already predetermined her destiny. Virtue, based on dedication, prayers and inner examination, had provided peace and organization in church and government; it was the Puritan culture they molded and strictly followed. The community, Hester Prynne had lived in, had shaped her character and insights. While Hester was standing on the scaffold, surrounded by the raged crowd, subconsciously she realized that the society was involved in the crime and her life now, as it would stay involved in the future. The Puritan concepts became a part of her, and Hester's existence would now be interrelated with the sin of adultery and the beliefs and perception of the society. However, Hawthorne stresses that "morally, as well as materially, there was a coarser fibre in those wives and maidens of old English birth and breeding than in their fair descendants" (Chap. 2). The church-members have stated judgment, turning the blind eye towards the Lord's words: "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her" (NIV John 8:7). Hawthorne parallels God's mercy, grace and forgiveness in the very beginning, telling that "the condemned criminal, as he came forth to his doom", was given a chance to enjoy "the fragrance and fragile beauty" of the rose-bush in token that the deep heart of Nature could pity and be kind to him" (Chap. 1). But, the scarlet letter "A" upon Hester's bosom separated her from normal human relations and imprisoned her in a 'self' sphere. The strict and pitiless Puritans made a prison in Hester's heart and depicted pessimistic future for human suchlike. Nevertheless, Hester in her "moral agony" found comfort in "her pride, her daring" (Bloom 34). Her inner strength was enough to stay in the community that turned its back to her, instead of looking for another place to start a new life. After imprisonment, she made her mind to redeem the sin of adultery by good deeds, kindness, generosity, credit, and alienation. Hester Prynne has proven that she was worth of social trust and normal life. Her sin gave her "sympathetic knowledge of the hidden sin in other hearts" (Chap.5), she felt the problems of others and helped needy ones; Hester really cared about the people, disregarding their attitude and gratitude. Living in isolation, she made the best she could to drive away the Puritan idea that sin permanently misrepresents the human personality. On the other hand, Dimmesdale was not as good in this situation as Hester was. Since the very start his took a position of a liar and was hiding the burden till his death. For Puritan society Arthur Dimmesdale was a minister, a brilliant preacher and sinless man. Just like the Puritan society at a whole, he was intolerant to weaknesses of other people, but loyal to his own sins. While Hester, with his own child, was standing on the scaffold, he dared to ask her to speak out the father's name. By his own words, Dimmesdale doomed himself to tortures and the burden of guilt "better were [to stand there beside thee] than to hide a guilty heart through life" (Chap.5). The scarlet token "A" on his breast left no peace and order for his heart. Neither exhausting fasts, nor physical tortures could take away the burden of guilt. Once standing on the scaffold at a night time, he felt that the whole universe was starring at him and the fear of committed sin went through his life. The eloquent Reverent Dimmesdale was a "viler companion of the vilest, the worst of sinners" (Chap.11); thus, depicting the picture of the whole Puritan society, and "the burning wrath of the Almighty" (Ibid) was upon his soul. The Dimmesdale's hypocrisy is a symbol of Puritanism, though an adulterer was regarded as the most holy man. His sermons were addressed to sinners, yet he was one of them; Puritans fled from English intolerance, but failed to apply tolerant attitude to weak and needy. His authoritative and impressive preaching shows the power of the Puritan Church; but his weak character and poor health evoke pity and compassion, rather than respect. Just like the Puritan Boston, 'the light to the world' and the 'city on the hill', which, at the same time, mixes old traditions and ideals, Arthur was afraid of the scaffold and public disgrace. Only in darkness, representation of this heart's condition, his intentions came alive to make an outcry to hypocrisy. Once again, Arthur Dimmesdale showed that Puritans consider personal good reputation as a genesis of peace and order. His success in community was gained by "his intellectual gifts, his moral perceptions, his power of experiencing and communicating emotion" (Chap.11), but it did not give him rest for his burdened soul. Though, his sin of adultery was hidden from outer world, this black secret had been destroying his heart. Hester was imprisoned by community perception of her sin; on the other hand, Dimmesdale was imprisoned by his own perception of the sense of guilt. Night confessions did not ease the pain, for the sin was not revealed to people (Bryson 87). Yet, after an astounding sermon, he publicly confessed his sin and, released from the burden of sin, died. Elizabeth Poe, in her "Teacher's Guide to "The Scarlet Letter", have listed three main characters, contrasted and portrayed feelings that come up while reading: Hester Prynne her plight can arose sympathy. Arthur Dimmesdale his hypocrisy can provoke anger. Roger Chillingworth his evil revenge can elicit disgust. (Poe, p.2). The only negative character in "The Scarlet Letter" seems to be third one Roger Chillingworth or Prynne, as he used to be. As a real husband and the only supporter of the family, he, however, refused to take the responsibility and accept his wife's unfaithfulness. He chose the way of tortures for others and himself. As a man with a strong character, he came along with an idea of loosing the family, when he watched the scene of public disgrace and rage addressed to his ex. But, as a man of honor, he craved for revenge. As soon as he identified the 'fellow-sinner', Chillingworth planed future torments he deserved. A former scholar, Roger Prynne, became a famous doctor, Roger Chillingworth; however, the bodily disease of Arthur Dimmesdale was neither cured, not eased. He wanted to drag the confession out of his wife's lover, by sufferings and tortures, as a man without compassion, strong physically, as well as mentally. The turning point of his revenge was after Dimmesdale's public confession till that moment, Chillingworth was playing games on his mind. While Hester and Dimmesdale became stronger, while suffering tortures and misunderstanding, because of the good intentions they had; Chillingworth found himself in meaningless situation after Arthur's death. An educated scholar had sacrificed everything (his "intellect had now a sufficiently plain path before it") and dedicated his life to revenge (he "was really of another character than it had previously been" (Chap.11)). Besides, Hester and Arthur were a part of the Puritan society and church, while Chillingworth stayed aside from the community life. Roger had missed his chance to live a life of his own; therefore, he had no goal to live for. In Hester's and Dimmesdale's cases, their lives were sacrificed for the good of the society; but Chillingworth's isolation and anti-social revenge had sentenced him to death. Works Cited Barker, Kenneth. "The NIV Study Bible". Zondervan Publishing House. 1984. Bloom, Harold. "The Scarlet Letter". Blooms Notes. New York: Chelsea, 1996. Bryson, Norman. "Hawthorne's Illegible Letter." Critical Interpretations. Ed. Harold Bloom.New York: Chelsea, 1984. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "The Scarlet Letter". The Literature Network. June 28, 2007 Poe, Elizabeth. "A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter". Penguin Group. 2004 http://us.penguingroup.com/static/pdf/teachersguides/scarletletter.pdf>

Sample Essay Outlines - Learn How to Make Lesson Plans Using Sample Essay Outlines

Sample Essay Outlines - Learn How to Make Lesson Plans Using Sample Essay OutlinesThe world is a brave new world with the invention of computers and internet and computers are making things easier than they ever were. If you are an English teacher, especially in this current economy, you may find yourself struggling to write and read and grade essays.Teachers today often find that the class work gets more complicated with each passing day. Students have more class assignments, paper projects, homework and tests to complete. Parents may be there to help but often times it seems as if time slips away too quickly when teachers are trying to help out with homework.To help your teachers and your students in the brave new world of the 21st century you can start using sample essay outlines for your writing assignments. Sample essay outlines are a great way to get your teaching experience on track. The idea is to look at the sample essay outlines and see how they can help you with your writi ng. You can incorporate the outline ideas and methods into your own writing and lesson plans.First of all, many teachers find it beneficial to have a whole classroom focused on a single topic or class project. While you will have a huge number of students, there is no better way to encourage them to work together and produce a final product. Not only will you be helping them, but you will also be able to give them some great opportunities to read and digest the materials being offered.A good example is to start an activity where students are given a specific task and have to complete them. Some of the tasks may include reading chapters from a book, answering questions, writing up and proofreading an essay or even re-writing a chapter.It can sometimes be difficult to find a specific assignment that is being given to students for a special topic. For instance, let's say you're teaching a class on astrology. Since so many of the students will be learning about planets, it might be hard to find a topic that will fit all of them.However, try a different approach by using a sample outline that is focused on one subject. Look at a sample essay outline that has an astrological theme, such as you would use in astronomy class, with the planets being the focus of the lesson. The assignment would be to research planets and their relationship to the person you're teaching.This would not be hard to do considering the research papers and note books will give you a starting point for your lesson plans. In fact, when you get started you will find that you will be able to set up an entire lesson plan just based on a few topics for a short period of time.

Vitis Vinifera essays

Vitis Vinifera essays Vitis vinifera, better known as grapevine or wine grapes, is native to Asia Minor where wild grapes still grow. V. Vinifera is commonly cultured for fruit, eaten fresh or processed into wine, raisins, or juice. Over 8,000 cultivars are listed, most of them having been selected for a specific region and purpose. Cultures are mainly limited to the Northern Hemisphere. In United States this grape is grown in California and Arizona, and will not tolerate the cold winters and humid summers of eastern United States. Requirements are for long, warm to hot dry summers and mild winters. Plant damage occurs at -18C; frost kills young shoots. Daily mean temperature should be at least 18C. This species will not endure the high temperatures coupled with high humidity of tropics. Thus grapes are unsuitable to humid, steamy, hot tropics, as they need a cold period for resting and a dry sunshine climate for ripening fruit. However Vitis vinifera has been identified in some tropic conditions includ ing Sri Lanka, Trinidad Forms of V. Vinifera date as far back as 4000 B.C. where forms of the wild were already being selected and in cultivation in the Middle East. Ancient Egyptian records from 2500 B.C. mention the use of grapes for wine making. The Old Testament references to wine confirm this early origin and the significance of the wine industry in the Middle East. The familiarity of grape vines can be seen in both physical and metaphorical references to the 'vine'. The Greeks had an active wine trade and planted grapes in their colonies throughout the Mediterranean region. The Romans brought grape growing into the valleys of the Germany and France. The need for Wine in the Christian mass continued this wine-growing tradition after the fall of the Roman Empire, monastic orders preserving and developing many of the highly regarded wine-producing areas. ...

Passage to Modernity Dupre Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Passage to Modernity Dupre - Essay Example At the early stages of modernity, artists still viewed themselves as creating in unison with nature; â€Å"mind and nature relate harmoniously to one another† (p. 49). Moreover, nature’s perception began to change. Galileo expressed the idea of natural form in mathematical terms, â€Å"loosening the union between physical essence and artistic ideal† (p.51). He found a systematic study of nature, rather than depending on direct observation. This notion of rational knowledge of the world become central to the transformation from medieval age to modernity. In the emergence of modernity, chemistry played an important role towards the scientific revolution. Alchemy is frequently forgotten when we talk about the breakthroughs of science that changed our perception of the world. Alchemists believed in the harmony between the individual and the cosmos. â€Å"at the basis of the alchemical enterprise is the concept of a microcosmos perfectly tuned to the macrocosmos of nature†. The notion that we are should interfere with natural processes in order to achieve harmony transforms the perception of nature. â€Å"rather than serving as nature’s assistant, the person now becomes its controller.† (p.54). There was a thorough rejection to the idea that the stars controlled man, that we were passively submitting to matter. Nevertheless, the interest in astrology was not completely eliminated; but as it happened with alchemy, they became less appealing at the face of new physical theories that rationally explained the universe.

Service Activity Summary Report ( for Human Service Class) Essay

Service Activity Summary Report ( for Human Service Class) - Essay Example They prefer to do some routine things by themselves. I guess this is an element of pride and soon started to get involved when my help was necessary, or when they asked for it. There is a senior citizen that shared the pain of losing his wife and facing the rest of his life alone. From his story, I gathered that he was very lonely and the center offered him the chance to meet people closer to his age as well as people to talk to. There are times when is suspected that living family members had abandoned their elderly when they became too much of a burden. The disturbing thing is that they do not admit this. They claim that at the present times, all people are too busy to carry unwanted baggage. I learned that senior citizens have an element of pride and deserve to be treated in a manner where they feel dignified because sometimes, their dignity is all that they have left. I also learned about the value of social services in the community. There are many things that I took for granted and this activity enlightened me. I also learned that eventually, everybody would grow old and hence lose their productive ability (Midlam, 2004). It is best to make use of all the energy that comes with youth because I will miss it when I become a senior citizen. Their stories clearly show that some are satisfied with their achievements. I hope I can tell similar stories when I am their age. In addition, I have also come to appreciate the benefits of having a retirement benefit. I am likely to be very compassionate about the affairs of the elderly. In addition, I will make an effort to visit and take care of my own grandparents because I have realized that it is really lonely when a person is no longer able to work. The world is becoming busier, and sometimes an occupation is the sole reason to live for the senior citizens (Midlam, 2004). I will also ensure that I volunteer at these

Systems that Transformed How the Organization Operates Essay Example for Free

Systems that Transformed How the Organization Operates Essay Abstract This paper details how UPS was able to stay relevant in the shipping and distribution world by updating old practices with new and proven technology. By spending some of their profits on a newer and more efficient way of doing things, UPS was able to stay ahead of their competition while receiving great reviews and profits from their customers. Specifics of who was impacted, how they were impacted, and what results occurred have been discussed in this paper. Mainly the workers, the business leaders, and the consumers have been affected by this change. When we look back at certain advancements that companies have made, what seems to be the common factor? Technology. Anytime a company rolls out new technology it is not because they want to waste their hard earned profits on something that might make their business business more competitive or increase their profit margin. They spend the money on the new technology because they know they will be more competitive and make higher profits than had they not. In any type of industry we can see examples of this being true, from the automotive, to the postal, and even the medical industry, the use of new technology has mostly lead to benefits that make companies stand out from the rest. One of the companies that has profited the most from new technology or the advancement of technology is UPS. UPS is known in the world as one of the largest parcel and freight delivery companies. Their main competition comes from companies like FedEx, DHL, and USPS (United States Postal Service. The  big wigs as UPS came together because they noticed customer ratings and efficiency rates were down and steadily decreasing year after year. After examining certain sectors of their business, they realized where the mistake was being made. Customer ratings were declining because of packages that were shipped to the wrong address, delivered at the wrong house, or lost in the may lay at UPS’s packaging warehouses and distribution centers all over the world. The way the company decided to rectify this problem was by purchasing and utilizing automated package sorters. They called it package flow technology and basically what it involves is the automatic and rapid sorting of packages to guarantee efficient and accurate shipments. The tradition of relying on human sorters to memorize hundreds of streets and back roads in particular communities leads to a small share of parcels that either are loaded on the wrong truck or misplaced among other customers packages, said Dan McMackin, a UPS spokesman in Atlanta. While the company still relies on people to load customers packages, UPS is investing heavily in technology to make the labor-intensive work more efficient. (Bennett, 2005) This change from people to machine did not sit well with employees who became laid off or switched to a different department, but after seeing the company rebound it was recognized as being the right choice and solution to their problem. The problem UPS did not recognize sooner was humans make mistakes and unfortunately too many were made and the company was placed in the public spotlight which caused this solution to come about. While it is true that often time’s companies choose new technology or manual labor, the results heavi ly favor the new technology. Nobody wants people to be laid off or lose their jobs to a machine, but in this day and age companies have to spend the big dollars in order to remain relevant and successful in today’s economy. The cost for this technology for UPS was not cheap by any means, in fact the upgrade from manual labor to automated machines cost an estimated six hundred million dollars. (Bennett, 2005) Besides the expense for rolling out this new system to all its distribution warehouses, UPS has the potential to still come out on top of this deal. When they devoted themselves to this newer way of doing things the results were less training time for employees and the ability to shift employees into areas that were lacking personnel or that demanded more personnel. The savings though in the year after this upgrade might even be greater than the initial cost and  put the company further ahead. UPS expects to gain immensely from the new system. Between now and 2007, when the system is fully installed , the delivery company expects to save $500 million to $600 million through a combination of less miles driven, less fuel consumption and less delivery miscues (Bennett, 2005) The people who were greatly affected by this change in procedure were the UPS drivers. Instead of going through their trucks looking for packages, the packages are loaded into specific areas of the truck and that information is transferred to the handheld scan tools the drivers use. The drivers seem impressed with the new technology and somewhat relieved that they can do their job no without the added stress of locating mislabeled or lost packages buried in their trucks. The future for this technology is not well known because it has seemed to rectify and solve all the problems that existed before. After all machines can do one thing that humans cannot, and that is do what it is programmed and instructed to do. The fact that a company is willing to spend this kind of money to hone their craft should speak volumes. At the beginning people were pessimistic but as the numbers started turning around and customer ratings increase, the company knew they made a wise choice. This was a turni ng point for UPS and the only thing they became concerned about was why they did not make the switch earlier. References Bennett, D. (2005). Package-flow technology delivers results for UPS. Crains Cleveland Business, 26(29), 8. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/198625167?accountid=458

Shakespeares Tempest :: essays research papers

I love the way Prospero speaks! Although I hate his character, his way of speaking is eloquently biting—whether he is speaking lovingly to his daughter or abusively to Caliban, he gets his point across beautifully. I tried with all my might to decide whether I like Prospero†¦ but to no avail. I had a bad taste in my mouth from the get-go because I remembered a comment about the ambiguity of the Caliban situation—how maybe he did try to rape Miranda, but maybe he didn’t, so maybe Prospero was noble by enslaving Caliban†¦ but maybe he was tyrannical. Prospero definitely reminded me of The Duke (Measure for Measure). Both played God-like roles, deceiving for a good cause yet deceiving nonetheless. I also love how Ferdinand sees Miranda, walks up to her, and says, â€Å"Hey baby, you single? A virgin? Attached? Wanna be a queen?† and that’s all he has to do. Besides Prospero’s fake-objections and all the wood-hauling, Miranda is as good as won. They have some really great lines between them—it’s one of my favorite love-dialogues. It probably helped that he thought he was gonna die and she had only seen two other men in her entire life. But love’s love. My favorite part was how he, a prince, stooped to a â€Å"patient log-man† level to prove his love for her, and how she offered to help while he rested! When Ferdinand first sees Miranda and promptly begins wooing, Prospero accuses him of attempted usurpation. I thought this was ironic†¦ and then realized that usurpation may be a theme that runs through the course of the play. Which it is. I think. Because Antonio usurped Prospero (right?), Prospero usurped Caliban, Sebastian is thinking about usurping Alonso, and Caliban is lookin to usurp Prospero. Maybe ‘usurp’ isn’t the right word for all of these cases—maybe ‘kill’ would suffice. I’m not sure of the exact definition of usurp, but I’m pretty sure a transfer of power via overthrow or murder plays a part. Onward to conventions! I saw lots of dark/light imagery, storms (of course), magic (also of course—there was a magic cloak, after all), nature vs.