This is my first reading of Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. For me, this novel was always the book referenced in academic discussion or reffered to when reflecting on high school English class, however it was a mystery to me. This being said I have quite a few unexpressed thoughts on the novel and after reading the critical history I found that some of my own thoughts did in fact align with what some of the modernists’ perspectives. I think the first thing that struck me, and we did discuss this some in our previous class, was just how gloomy the tone of the book truly is starting from the very first chapter. From there I couldn’t help but examine the three main characters and the society they lived in as well as the way the story line unfolded.
First and foremost, I couldn’t help but dissect the character Hester as I read the novel. Hester, for all intents and purposes, seems to be a very “normal” women in my view, in fact I would almost say that she is quite remarkable. She made a mistake, she is a loving mother, and she is able to show compassion towards others. In my opinion, Hester as a character could have been written into a novel in any time and he character would hold true. Hester is described as being unwomanly by the author, however from my first reading, I found that the tone of the author almost implied that he secretly admired the character’s ability to think freely and independently. This view does fall in line with the modern critics that look at the novel through a feminist view.
To continue the thought of feminist’s I couldn’t help but notice how both of the leading male characters died at the end of the story. The way the men in the story reacted to the affair contrasted Hester’s actions greatly. We knew form the beginning that Hester was going to take on the act as soon as she stepped out of the prison, and in the face of great scrutiny she holds the identities of both her husband and lover. Hester allows both men to walk away from the incident, yet both men choose to suffer greatly. I found it interesting that though Dimmesdale is never publically shamed he is the one driven to death by shame and sorrow, not Hester. Similarly, Chillingworth also succumbed to death after the death of Dimmesdale, no longer having a victim or target for his anger and hate. I wonder then why is that Hester alone prevails the incident, going on to be a loving mother of Pearl. From what I have heard about Hawthorne’s writing and from what I have read in the critical history it does not surprise me that both of the dominate male characters are the ones who are depicted as suffering the most and enduring the most pain.
I think you’re hitting on some good points here, particularly when you mention the apparent contradiction between feminist criticism of Hawthorne, and his actual feelings about Hester. It does seem, when we get some of those in-depth chapters on what Hester does for Pearl and others, that she is selfless, independent, strong, and caring. However, it could be that since Hester embodies these characteristics, Hawthorne may have want to uphold this characteristics in a person, rather than in a woman, but who’s to say for sure? But then, you mention how the male character die in the end, and their suffering. One could look at as sort of a “woman triumphant/survivor” moment, but then, like you say, that men apparently “suffer” more but it’s a chosen suffering. The critical lens of feminism definitely offers some interesting insights in this tale.