Lion Time (15 mins)

Scarlet Letter Reflection

"Roger Chillingworth was a striking evidence of man’s faculty of transforming himself into a devil." What role does Chillingworth play? Do you think he is morally more degenerate than Hester and her lover, or do you have sympathy for his campaign of revenge? Do you think he redeems himself at all with his bequest to Pearl at the end of the story? Why do you think Hawthorne wrote those actions towards Pearl into the ending of the story? 

Is The Scarlet Letter a feminist novel?

What is the significance of Nature (Mother Nature) in The Scarlet Letter? How does Nature drive the plot and theme?

What do you make of Pearl? Although she at first appears to be a secondary character in the novel, Pearl figures significantly into many of the novel’s key narrative events. What is Pearl’s significance in the novel as a whole?

On page 178, Hawthorne remarks on the root similarities between hate and love.  Do you agree with him? How might this change your view of the story?

What does The Scarlet Letter teach us about mental and spiritual health?  Many characters (and perhaps whole communities)  in the novel possess spiritual and psychological traits which the modern reader (and perhaps Hawthorne) might view as extreme or unhealthy; some characters might be deemed more psychologically healthy or spiritually enlightened.  Or is it as simple as this character is healthy while this one is not? How does Hawthorne make it more complex? In summary, what does Hawthorne seem to be suggesting about healthy and unhealthy spirituality and psychology?

Dimmesdale is a figure of hypocrisy who preaches virtue from the pulpit and refuses to take his daughter’s hand in public, but pays a terrible personal price for his actions. Others see elements of redemption in his final acts. What points do you think Hawthorne is trying to make about organized religion? Does the book suggest or hint at reforms, or simply offer a critique?

The Scarlet Letter draws heavily on religious images, symbols, and allusions. One common character type in Western literature is the Christ-type.  Using evidence from How to Read Like a Professor and The Scarlet Letter, make an argument for how one of the characters in The Scarlet Letter functions as a Christ-type and how Hawthorne uses the Christ-type elements of that character to develop and convey a particular theme or message.

Pearl can be confounding.  Is she a force for good or evil, how does Hawthorne use her to develop a theme or message?  

No homework

On Monday we will talk about specific writing options for The Scarlet Letter