Review of The Scarlet Letter (1)

Mengyan Li, Oct 13

The story is based on the colony times of America. It shows the cruelty of the law and the deceit of religion. It happens in Boston about 200 years ago.

The author narrates love affairs between a woman and two men. The beautiful and intelligent young woman, named Hester Prynne, has been led from the town prison with her infant baby in her arms, and on her chest is a rag of cloth which has a scarlet letter “A” on it. The scarlet letter “A” represents a symbol of her sin and for all people to see. The husband of the punished woman, who called himself Roger Chilling worth, is an old misshapen man and a doctor. He is elder than Hester and no one knows his real name. Hester doesn’t love him at all.

He sends Hester to America but he does not arrive in Boston. While Hester is waiting for her husband, she fall in love with Dimmesdale and she lead a birth to their baby. Dimmesdale is a scholar and has a high position and is highly respected by people in that town. In that age, according the law and religion, their love is sinful and forbidden. Due to this, Hester is punished by the society with a scarlet letter “A” on her chest, which considered a big shame. Facing the terrible punishment, Hester refuses to give her lover’s name away to protect him. Hester is brave enough to face the cruel reality. She is always with a mind of courage. But Arthur Dimmesdale, his sin against Hester and Pearl is that he will not acknowledge them as his wife and daughter in the daylight. He keeps his dreadful secret from all those under his care in the church for seven years for fear that he will lose their love and will not be forgiven. He is too weak to admit his sins.

 

第二篇：红字英文读后感

The Scarlet Letter offers an extraordinary insight into the norms and behavior of the 17th century if American Puritan society. The basic conflicts and problems of its main characters, however, are familiar to readers in the present. The female protagonist, has borne a child out of wedlock and has been jailed for over three months and sentenced to wear a symbol of her adultery, a scarlet “A” on her dress at all times. It concerns about the moral, emotional and psychological effect of the sin on people in general. It’s not simply a love story or a story of sin. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the scarlet letters to symbolize the harshness of Puritan society, showing how they brand sinners for life.

The story happened in Boston about 200 years ago. It narrates love affairs between three persons. The punished woman. Hester Prynne and his husband. Who called himself Roger Chillingworth . He is an old misshapen man and a doctor. Hester does not love him at all. Another man is a young minister, Dimmesdale, who has a high position among ministers and is highly respected among his people in town. Hester and Dimmesdale love each other. But their love is forbidden in that time . It is sinful. Due to this,Hester is punished by society with a letter A on her chest, which considered an evil, a shame.

In this novel, the mainline seems to be around the letter A. Hester is brave enough to face the cruel reality. She is always with a mind of courage. She has been alone with her child for so long , with litter communication. Shame! Hopelessness! Loneliness! Hester has to wear the letter A day after day, seven years as for punishment and ill fame.

When a woman has lived through a difficult experience, her character changes a great deal. If she be all tenderness, she will die. If she survive, the tenderness will leave her .Hester’s charitable deeds and quiet humility have earned her a reprieve from the scorn of the community. The letter on her chest represents her work on earth , always helping others, without expecting any thanks. Never afterwards, does that scarlet letter leave her chest. The townspeople no longer view the letter as a punishment , but rather as representing her great strength and bravery and thy say it means “Able”.

But Arthur Dimmesdale, his sin against Hester and Pearl is that he will not acknowledge them as his wife and daughter in the daylight. He keeps his dreadful secret from all those under his care in the church for seven years for fear that he will lose their love and will not be forgiven. He is too weak to admit his sins. He suffers from mysterious heart trouble, seemingly caused by psychological distress. What’s worse, he is an advisor to the townspeople about their sins.

After Mr. Dimmesdale’s death , no one changes more in appearance than Roger Chilling worth. All his strength and energy has been used to harm his patient . This unhappy man has made his aim in life to add to the suffering of the young minister. When the evil old man no longer has such a purpose, the devil takes him back to the hell . It is a curious subject of observation, however, whether hatred or love are not of the same place. Each takes a great deal of emotion from one person. The two feelings seem basically the same, expect that one is smiled upon by God, while the other is worshipped by the devil. The two lovers has ever decided to flee to Europe, where they can live with their dauthter Pearl as a family .They feel a sense of release there. However, their plan fails…… When Hester dies, she is buried next to Dimmesdale. The two share a single tombstone, with a deep colored letter A shining brightly.

通知：明天十点至一月四日晚上十二点选课。我们07级的 译文赏析，圣经与英美文学，统计理论与实践，英语惯用法，这几门课因没有老师上课不要选！ Hester Prynne: Boston settler who commits adultery and bears a child while awaiting the arrival of her husband from Europe. Authorities require her to wear a piece of red cloth in the shape of an A (standing for adulteress) on the bodice of her dress to identify her as a sinner. She refuses to identify her partner in sin. Hester is named after the title character of an Old Testament book. In that book, Esther–a Jew who marries the King of Persia, Ahasuerus (Xerxes I)–and her cousin Mordecai persuade the king to spare the lives of Jews previously singled out for annihilation. The Jewish festival of Purim, also called the Feast of Lots, celebrates their deliverance from the Persian sword.

Pearl: Hester’s child. As her name suggests, she is something good that came from sin. She is also a constant reminder–to Hester and to the townspeople–of Hester's sinfulness. At times, she is an unruly child, a burden to her mother. But Hester loves her just the same