Society and Characters in The Scarlet Letter :: essays research papers

Nathaniel Hawthorne chose the market place and the forest as settings used to symbolically develop his portrait of society and the characters in The Scarlet Letter. In this novel a story unfolds of three people who are torn apart by sin, revenge, and guilt. The market place reveals to the reader a place of restraint and severe Puritan laws. The setting of the forest yields the impressions of wild unrestraint and passion.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The market place paints a careful picture of restraint and law that seldom delves into the depths of raw human emotion. As we study the buildings, we receive an equally strict message. The churches plant a vision of austere religion and conformity into the minds of eager readers. The closeness of the buildings in proximity to one another demonstrates the level of care and interest each member of the population is meant to take in the others. One of the most prominent structures in the market place is the scaffold. 'It was in short, the platform of the pillory; and above it rose the framework of that instrument of discipline, so fashioned as to confine the human head in its tight grasp, and thus holding it up to public gaze. The very ideal of ignominy was embodied and made manifest in this contrivance of wood and iron'; (56). It was made clear that this structure was a symbol of punishment to the people, but it also came to be a symbol of sin, guilt, death, and release. How did this structure take on so many meanings throughout the book? The answer is that each time there was an event occurring at the scaffold, each of the main characters was present. The place that Hawthorne chose to unite the characters and hoard symbolic meaning was the scaffold. In the second chapter, entitled 'The Market-Place,'; the reader is first introduced to Hester Prynne as she serves her punishment on the scaffold with her child, Pearl, in her arms. A careful survey of this scene reveals her minister Dimmesdale above the scaffold and her husband, Chillingworth, in the crowd. From the very beginning, Hawthorne has brought these characters together in the ominous presence of the scaffold.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In chapter seven, entitled 'The Minister's Vigil,'; we find Dimmesdale standing atop the scaffold with his arms outstretched to his mundane lover and daughter. Chillingworth also emerges out of the darkness to call in the minister. In the final scaffold scene, we see the minister openly admit his sin, with Hester and Pearl by his side, and Chillingworth at the bottom of the

The Last Castle

The movie â€Å"The Last Castle† provides examples of good leadership and bad leadership. Colonel Winter, the warden of a military is the example of bad leadership, while General Irwin, a prisoner at Winter’s prison is an example of good leadership. The film illustrates that a leader does not have to have a technical leadership position to gain followers, and how two leaders who have differing viewpoints on leadership cannot exist in the same space without conflict. Henri Nouwen, in his book on leadership â€Å"In the Name of Jesus,† says â€Å"power offers an easy substitute for the hard task of love†¦easier to control people than love people. In â€Å"The Last Castle,† we see the contrast of Irwin’s and Winter’s leadership styles in regards to the prisoners. Winter constantly reads the inmates files about the crimes they committed in order to remind himself that they are capable of violence and so he will not ever feel compassion for them. He is hard-nosed and takes no interest into their personal feelings, and he refuses to ever recognize how they could change over time. Irwin, on the other hand, chooses to ignore the inmates’ pasts and focuses on who they are in the present. He recognizes that no matter what they have done, they have a good side as well. In addition, Irwin treats the inmates as men, instead of treating them like stupid children. In the film, Irwin takes interest in a prisoner named Aguilar. Aguilar is not well liked because he is Hispanic. In addition, he has a speech impediment so others think he is dumb. He has no confidence but when Irwin starts treating him like a soldier, and not like a worthless man, he gains his confidence. Irwin recognizes that Aguilar is smart and knows masonry so he puts Aguilar in charge of building the wall. Since Irwin treated Aguilar like a man and a soldier, Aguilar gained confidence and was able to himself become the leader of the wall-building project. In building the wall, the prisoners were building themselves a figurative castle to protect themselves from the unfair practices of Winter. Irwin inspires the men to build the wall to be something that is their own. Irwin suggests that they all work together in order to build a better, stronger wall. Building the wall was something the prisoners did on their own, without the directive of the warden.

A New Health Care System - 1850 Words

The United Sates’ economy has endured several periods of collapse; but periods of regrowth and prosperity as well. However, the rise of income inequality over the past decade has become a major economic issue in America, affecting 99% of working citizens. With an increasing gap in income inequality between the top 1% and bottom 99% of citizens, negative repercussions Americas health care system are becoming more prominent. Income inequality has resulted in higher health insurance premiums (the most expensive of any developed country) and a lack in the quality of health care one receives. Rising health care costs, along with a poor quality of health care being provided for low-income families is resulting in a greater increase in the income†¦show more content†¦have a high-percentage of low-income families as well as older residents that wish to get away from the urban lifestyle. Income inequality has forced older residents to focus their income earnings on more basic needs such as food and shelter, rather than spend it on costly health care. This has made it impossible to expend the little savings they have accumulated on health care costs in the late years of their life because they simply cannot afford it. In addition, income inequality impacts the ability for many people to receive outpatient hospital care because they can’t afford it. Misuzu Fujita et al. found that there is a linear pattern associated with the level of income and the number of visits to an outpatient care service provider. The assumption has been made that â€Å"poor people have limited access to proper outpatient care, despite having a greater severity of ailments† (Fujita et al.). There is an increase in mortality rates in low-income areas because many people forgo their trip to the doctor, which can have fatal consequences. This needs to be a major concern for people in the United States because as a developed country, no citizen should have their life at risk because they cannot afford to go see a doctor for route check-ups and more serious conditions such as cancer. Low-income citizens in the United States need assistance in being able to pay for health care. This is something that the American government needs toShow MoreRelatedA New Health Care System1438 Words   |  6 PagesA New Health Care System One of the major problems nagging America is the need for a new health care system. The number of uninsured Americans needing medical treatment is rising. Medicare, a major part of the American health care system, is projected to go broke in 2019 according to USA Today s article, Congress refuses to swallow cures for ailing Medicare. I have seen this ruin people s pursuit of happiness. I worked in a nursing home for the past five years. 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