Forms of Violence in the Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel...

Violence carries several meanings. It is commonly defined as an action causing pain, suffering or destruction, but can also refer to a great force, or an injustice, a wrong. Actually, violence is not only physical, it may also imply a moral dimension. In other words, it plays both on the field of the outer and inner worlds. In all cases, violence stages a relation between domination and subjection which are entangled in it. In The Scarlet Letter, violence seems to be the leading string of the plot: Hester Prynne has to undergo the ordeal of penance in a Puritan society that harshly condemns adultery. One can see here the atmosphere of violence she is plunged into. More generally, or rather more specifically, violence is present on various†¦show more content†¦The Puritan society is actually extremely discriminative, particularly against women, who may be incriminated for being witches, and with the common religious belief that a mothers sin engenders the miscarriage of a â⠂¬Å"demon offspring† (67). One can fully realize the prevalence of religion over human matters with the execution of Mrs Hibbins, Governor Bellinghams sister, because she is suspected of being a witch. Then, society gives religion greater importance than to family ties, and, to a larger scale, human feelings. Actually, it doesnt hesitate to dominate people and abandon them at the same time: Hester and Pearl are both secluded from the rest of society while pertaining to it. The image of the Eagle in the Custom House, representative of the Republic of America, is revealing of this paradox between domination and abandonment: it is represented as being â€Å"fierce† through her beak and eye and â€Å"apt to fling off her nestling† (8-9). Thus, The Scarlet Letter imparts society with pitilessness, and the narrators experience in the Custom House was actually an introduction to what would be depicted as such in the Scarlet Letter: the â€Å"axe† and â€Å"guill otine† (32) are used against the political side that loses and represent the violence of one dominant ruling group against individuals in disagreement, or at least with different views from theirs. Society is actually about the relation between the strong and the weak, the latter who must cope with theShow MoreRelatedThe Scarlet Letter And The Other Wes Moore841 Words   |  4 Pagesstories around the same theme, there is an undeniable importance in the message being delivered. 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You may select a work from the list below or another