The Scarlet Letter- scaffold as a motif
Dictated and governed by a set of religious laws, Puritan society restricted those who lived within its limits to mundane, ordinary lives. The theocratic based community was forced to live under the harsh, and often strict, guidelines of the Puritan church. Any one sin could be punished severely, whether it is a minor infraction or an offense condemnable by death. A person could not speak out or show any emotion lest they were willing to face the consequences of their seemingly legitimate actions- creating a society where outward and inner truth could not, and therefore, did not, exist. These brutal living conditions enforced by the Puritan community are depicted in the nineteenth century novel The Scarlet Letter. Hawthorne uses a myriad of motifs to provide an insightful look into the harsh society. The scaffold, the most prominent motif in the novel, reflects the characters innermost thoughts and feelings to their fellow townspeople, and proves to be the only place in the Boston community in which unbridled- and often brutal- honesty can be found.Hawthorne uses the scaffold as a tool through which he demonstrates the public revelation of one’s sins. Public penitence upon the scaffold was the only way so
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Pearl Putting, Letter Hawthorne, Truth Dictated, Scarlet Letter, puritan society, personal revelation, scaffold prominent motif, society scaffold, public personal revelation, serves forum public, presence scaffold, scaffold serves, scaffold revealed, forum public, scarlet letter, prominent motif, truth sin,
Approximate Word count = 1013
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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