Representing America - American Literature AP - Blog

Stereotyping everyday...

today we watched a clip from the Chappelle show about racial stereotypes. like everyone else in the room i found it hilarious. and i think its because we all felt that at least some of what he was saying was true. from nothing comes nothing. there are a reason we have stereotypes of people, and its because there really are people out there that fulfill our stereotypes. like how we stereotype people from jersey based on what we see on Jersey shore, we stereotype Californians because of what we see in movies, we stereotype politicians because of what we se in the media. celebrities from what we see in the magazines. it's not like we are making base less assumptions about other people. i think the problem though is when we stereotype people so much, we don't let anyone break the mold, and if they do, it's widely viewed as something radical. so yes there are racial stereotypes that are funny, and its funny because its making fun of the stereotype, not necessarily the race.to be clear, i think it is a tragedy when a person can't get passed a stereotype, when they don't allow a person to be free independent of our social constructions. but stereotypes also allow us to group easily and de-clutter our heads of every type of person, because everyone is different and honestly it's easier to group people together, and to do that we stereotype.

Color or Culture?

Today, the accepted understanding of race is that it is a synthetic idea created by humanity as yet another way to define people we don't know very well.  That makes for a pretty negative connotation.

While I won't say I disagree with that definition, I must say that I see race as more complex than a vague, bad idea.

Race, to me, is the combination of your biological family's place of origin and your family's culture.  Contrary to the original definition I gave, race does have to do with your biology.  If I, a very pale blond-haired, blue-eyed girl, grew up in a Mexican family, immersed in the culture, when placed in a room of strangers, I would still be seen as a short, white chick.

The way we talk, walk, and act--three characteristics mainly influenced by our cultural upbringing--do shape society's understanding of our race though. 

That makes things even more confusing.  If a pale guy (with a skin tone that would normally be associated with a white person) is brought up in a predominately African American community and you saw him hanging out, fooling around with his African American friends, talking, talking, and acting just like them, would you consider him Black or White?

Which is more factored in, color or culture?

Transcendentalism and The Last of the Mohicans

Transcendentalism is present throughout the entire movie The Last of the Mohicans. Nathaniel Poe the main character was a white man who was raised by indians. Although he was raised by Indians he still has sympathy for the white men of America. However when the British and French begin waging war he is caught between two worlds. He does not know which path he should follow.

When Nathaniel follows his heart and goes out into nature he is becoming a transcendentalist. He runs through the forest following every clue and sensing a disturbance of nature. He even hunts down the indians that killed his freinds and the british. He is a rugged individualist because of this. Nathaniel is also a very dynamic character. He not only fights for his friends and has his own emotions but he also a romantic side. This shows that he can still be a rough character that lives of the frontier but also a romantic human being.

Nathaniel the Transcendentalist

The Last of the Mohicans is a film about Nathaniel Poe, a white man who was raised by Indians. Because of this alone, he was caught between the two worlds and never quite became a part of a certain society. This shows his breaking from society. He was on his own being his own person.

The film always shows nature. It seemed to be a big part of the movie. The opening shot, for example, was of the mountains. Nathaniel was always shown in nature and it became apparent that the Mohicans were associated with nature. When Nathaniel left Cora and jumped off the waterfall it was a big show of nature. This showed the Transcendentalist ideal about nature.

Cora the Rugged Individualist

In Last of the Mohicans, Cora represents the ideal rugged individualist. When she lived in Britain, Cora was a traditional British woman, valuing stability and tradition over individualism. Her trip to America completely changed her outlook. From the second she met Nathaniel, Cora's views of the world were changed. She did not long for her home anymore, instead she enjoyed her adventure in America. When she asked Nathaniel why the people would live in the wilderness, unprotected, she genuinely did not know as the idea is completely foreign to her. She quickly became enticed in the idea of exploring the unknown and living with nature surrounding her. Through the rest of the movie Cora possesses the qualities of an ideal American at the time.

On a side note, Cora seems to be an emotionless monster to me. Her friend, her father, and her sister were all killed as well as many others during her short stay in America. Yet she seemed to be unfazed by everything around her, only acting remotely surprised/sad when her sister died, but in the next scene she didn't seem like it hurt her one bit. She instantly forgets that people close to her are dead. Also the fact that she had probably never seen someone die before and all of a sudden hundreds of people die around her doesn't seem to surprise her in the least bit. From this I conclude that Cora is a psychopath with no capability of emotions.

The Root of War

Throughout The Last of the Mohicans the Mohicans display a great deal of rugged individualism, from running through the forest, to their grungy and natural clothing, even to their war style, they embody the image of rugged individualists. On the other hand, the British Red-Coats show a completely different form of fighting. The British walk in uniform straight lines, not bending their knees when they walk, chanting short and brief directions and carrying threatening and expensive looking weapons, all while in matching fine Red Coats. It is no surprise to me that these two opposing sides are going against each other in war because if they had any reason to fight, I'm sure that reason could escalate instantly because of any of their many differences.

The Mohicans hopes to protect their home land is a much more valid reason, in my opinion, to fight... rather than invading other peoples land to try and expand territory. The war front creates a learning environment for Cora to open her eyes to see why people like this do fight in such a fahion and why people lived in the frontier area in the first place and lastly, how nature corralates so strongly with the way many Mohicans live freely out on the frontier. 

the south

over this past week i went to alabama for thanksgiving. and while i was there i thought a lot about the frontier thesis, about what makes america great. the frontier thesis claims that the frontier is what made us as strong as we are. being from the south i have a huge appreciation for what it is, and i think that it contributes just as much as the frontier did to make the united states what it is. i realize that the USA does not just have one identity, the frontier did so much to make us strong but each region of the states has made it great to. our sense of national identity is not just one idea but many ideas and experiences all jumbled together. i think the south has a huge sense of identity, as does the west coast and east cost, and the mid west. and what made those regions so strong is not the same, their strength  came from so many places not just the frontier. america can not be defined by one word, we are to big, with so much history. america is not one word, or idea, but instead we are made up of thousands and thousands of words and ideas.

Whatever you do don't give Clint whiskey

The movie Unforgiven is a western movie in which Clint Eastwood is hired to kill two cowboys. Clint lives on the western frontier which has made him rugged and individualistic. He distrusts most people and is working only to support his two children. Clint Eastwood’s character directly supports William turners frontier thesis as living in a sparsely populated area has made him individualistic and the struggle for survival has made him rugged. Clint Eastwood in many of his roles has portrayed a rugged individual on the margins of society but in this movie he is especially brutal.

 Most western movies tend to support the frontier thesis as the old west is portrayed as a brutal land in which one could only trust themselves and had to be tough to survive. Whether or not this is historically accurate our image of the west is how popular culture has shown it.

This film presents a darker side of frontier culture and shows it as a reality. This part of the portrayal may diverge from Turners thesis as he envisioned the west as having a positive influence on American society. This film shows the effects of a rough life style on the characters and how muddled the line between right and wrong could become. The reason for the title is that once clint is given even a drop of whiskey he becomes a cold blooded killer, this may say something about temperance or maybe just a character flaw.  

The Last of The Mohicans (week of Nov. 21st blog)

As we all know, in class we are watching the Last of the Mohicans. The movie is intresting and all but the thing that I find standing out is not the plot but the camera techniques and use of music. Untill I actually started to take note of these things I never really cared about them. But they make a huge difference.

One example is the first time we are introduced to Cora. The camera starts up in the sky and slowly goes down to her. I actually have seen this in other movies but didn't really notice until now about what impact it had on a viewer. It looked really cool.

Another thing that I noticed, but actually I notice in about any action movie is of course, the slow motion. During battle scenes with the Indians they slow down the camera to emphasize the action. It makes the scene more intense.

And of course, let's not forget the music. The music is like a forshadowing technique in the movie. You can actually predict what is about the happen when the music slows down and gets all creepy and changes to the key of minor. And then during the action scenes the music adds to the surrounding and makes the scene more intense and worth watching.

Think about it, if they had country music in the background, would the action scene be as intense? Music choice is very important.

I will continue to take note of these techniques as we finish up the movie because like I said before, I find these very interesting.

Final Thoughts on TSL

So when I first started to read the scarlet letter I was extremely skeptical of the book. I already knew the basis of the story and I thought to my self that it would be another shakespeare-like tragedy. Well.. My expectations were exceeded. True, everybody dies in the end and Hester doesn't get a happy ending but you learn a valuable lesson. Humans are inherently blind to so many things that are present in society.

In the book, after Dimmesdale kind of confesses the first time, the townspeople love him even more. They think that he is more of a saint. It got me thinking about how we turn a blind eye to so many things. This past weekend, my mom and I were driving through downtown and I noticed a lot of homeless people. What shocked me the most was how many people didn't even stop to look or even acknowledge them. And those that did  just kept walking. I would like to say that I have never done that but that isn't true. There have been many times where I turned a blind eye to things around Chicago that I don't like and even those commercials asking people to feed the starving children in Africa (I mean the spokepeople are already there filming a commercial that costs millions of dollars and informercials too! why don't you take the money that you would spend to make the commercial and use it to feed the children! Hello!!). But the reality is that I have at some point in time passed people by and not acknowledge them.  I feel bad about it now but I started thinkg about we are doing all this work for other countries when our country desperately needs our own help.

The Last of the Mohicans

This past week as we have watched The Last of the Mohican's, I have seen many transcendentalist ideals. The movie begins with the British armies traveling through the frontier. To them they feel as if they can conquer the frontier yet, they lack an understanding of nature to truly know the realities of the frontier. Cora, who is startled by the traumatic events on the frontier, discoverers a new meaning of nature and Romanticism through Nathaniel.

As Cora watches Nathaniel, traverse through nature she is inspired that there is more to it than she knows. From Nathaniel she learns about the stars, nature and how the frontier is a place to be free from restrictions. The frontier is a place for the poor, and those who want to be free can go. But also it is a very dangerous place that is not safe. Through Cora watching and learning about Romanticism, she develops a romantic relationship with Nathaniel. She ultimately chooses to live a life free from restrictions in the frontier with Nathaniel, than in the comfort of her British heritage.

 

 

Rugged Individualism

In The Last of the Mohicans the idea of Rugged Individualist.  A Rugged Individual is supposed to be tough, an individual and sharp.  All these characteristics are shown through Nathaniel's and the Frontier settlers' life.  

The settlers show they are sharp by being able to navigate the forest and rely on themselves for food to eat.  Nathaniel shows that he is sharp and street smart by not burying his beloved family.  When Nathaniel sees that his friends that stayed behind are dead he is sad but knows if he buries them they could be tracked.  Nathaniel thinking about his own safety when he just found out his friends are dead shows how sharp and street smart he is.  

Before even going to war the settlers are worried that if they leave their family will be attacked.  This worry shows how they cannot rely on anyone else for safety but only themselves.  Their families are attacked by a war party when they are gone.  When Nathaniel tells the British army about the attacks the British say there is not enough proof and would be a waste of their time.  The British ask Duncan if what Nathaniel says is true and he lies and says no.  The way the British neither believe nor protect the families of the Frontier settlers illustrates how they need to support themselves.  

The Last of the Mohicans demonstrates to the viewer that the Frontier settlers were not only Rugged Individualist because they had to be strong and know their way in the wild.  They also had to rely only on themselves and the other Frontier settlers because no one else cared about them.  

Romantacism to romantacism

While coming to the end of Last of The Mohicans, we see a continuous idea of emotional provoking Romanticism which leads in to consensual romanticism. This idea is based upon events that cause emotions through the characters that leads to a romantic relationship between two or more characters. We see this through the relationship of Nathaniel and Cora especially.

We see Cora as a frantic character that has her emotions twisted by every major event in the movie. Just as we see her reach her most hectic point when the war is happening at the fort, Nathaniel is recognized by Cora as a calm, composed person that is casual about such events. Of course, this sparks a relationship between them and from then on, we see Nathaniel guide her though most of the challenges ahead.

I realize that drama catches the eyes of the audience but it just seems two perfect. The romantic themes throughout the movie are all very cliche but I guess that is understandable in the movie industry.Overall, I am enjoying the movie so far but would like to see a bit more independence with Cora as a character. And now that her father is dead, she may have some motive to do exactly that.

The Innocent Protagonists

As we finish reading The Scartlett Letter, we realize that Hester Prynne is not the sinner everyone in Salem claims her to be. She made one mistake, and because tradition and the biblical sense she was also viewed as an unfit mother. Hester Prynne may be labeled as a bad person, her ambitions and intentions say otherwise. Her innocence shows frequentley throughout the book -- claiming that she is not the antagonist; she is indeed the innocent protagonist.

In The Last of the Mohicans, Daniel Day Lewis plays Nathaniel Poe, a Native American who has superiority in his community and uses his power to save his people. During their soccer games, Nathaniel Poe shows that he is a family man and puts his people first. When people outside of the community came and started shooting, Nathaniel put his people first and fought for them. He meant no harm in the first place, which also makes him an innocent protagonist.

Nathaniel and Hester are very similar. They both have reason for all of their intentions, and all of their intentions come with no harm. Though many in their stories may view them as a threat. they are all accompanied with a good heart.

The Last of the Transcendentalists

As far as we've watched The Last of the Mohicans in class, there are two things that can be drawn: 1) The Mohicans with whom Nathaniel Poe makes company represent transcendentalists and 2) the British represent the very opposite. Simply the way Poe moves through the forest with his group is so smooth, and for a lack of better words, right with nature. It's almost as if they are a manifestation of the forest that is so often the setting. Even the clothes they wear seem to be natural and worn. On the complete other hand, the British are far from one with nature. They tromp through the forest so uniformly, plowing over everything that might even be considered nature. It does not seem that anything could be more out of place in the natural world than their bright red coats and tight formation.

As far as we've watched in class, there are still Mohicans (or Transcendentalists), no matter how few. However, by the sound of the title of the movie, it would be a safe guess to assume that they might not be around that much longer. So what is the author trying to say about the way things currently are in society? The very small amount of Romanticism that is left is dwindling, and at the same time being squeezed out and swallowed up by the gigantic monster that is uniformity and community over the individual.

Public Vs. Personal Guilt

Guilt seems to be a pestering theme that reoccurs in different forms throughout The Scarlet Letter. The novels displays the notion that public guilt is less tormenting toward the individual than private anguish with two characters, Hester and Dimmesdale.

The two individuals commited the same sin, but had to deal with different forms of guilt. Hester had to deal with the judgemental Puritan community which gave Hester a punishment for her sin. The Scarlet A made Hester an outsider, which forced her to deal with her sin publicly.

Dimmesdale however, since the community did not find out about his sin, had to luxury of keeping it private. Because of this, there were not consequences from the community for his sin, he had to deal with it on his own, often holding his hand over his heart.

I believe that Hester's public guilt helped her forgive herself, and live on with her life, unlike the tormented Dimmesdale, who had to deal with the guilt on his own, and ended up dying.  

Personifying the American Rugged Induvidualism

Throughout America's relatively brief history there have been a great number of traits we as a country developed. One of these traitsis our rugged individualism. Rugged individualism is our ability to be a nonconformist, a complex person made up of many ideals and moral standards which coincides with multiple cultures and or religions. One character who personifies America's rugged individualism is Nathaniall in "The Last of the Mohicans".

Nathanial is of a very different background than most colonial Americans. He was born to a white family but was raised by his adopted Native American. Later in life this gave him the ability to be a colonist and a frontiersman but also kept him connected with Native American methods of living and fighting.

Another way which makes Nathanial a rugged individual is the way in which he lives. He says he does not consider himself a British subject.He also lives on the frontire and he utilizes many different methods of survival from the British and the Native Americans. One way he shows this is the fact that he is well trained in hand to hand combat using blunt weapons while he is also a very good marksman. Nathanial personifies the American rugged individual.

 

Battle of the Sexes

Honesty and strength vs. dishonesty and weakness.

Who wins the battle of the sexes? Hester Pryne or Robert Chillingsworth? For certain, it wasn't the minister. 

Hester's actions can in no way be argued as right. However, she was able to be honest about her sin and suffer the consequences of embarrassment, harassment, and extreme isolation. Hester could have easily ratted out the other side of her affair and take some of the spotlight off of herself, but she decided to take the full blame herself to save someone else from the pain she had to go through. That's pure womanly strength. 

Did Roger have strength? Not so much. Not only did he hide in the shadows of his mistake by letting his only child's mother take his half of the blame for their sins but he didn't even show enough courage to at least let Hester and little Pearl have some kind of closure by standing with them in public almost able to be unnoticed by the public--to look somewhat of an act of penance.

I realize that it was harder for Hester to lie than for Roger because she had physical proof, Pearl, that she had committed adultery. But she could have easily taken half of the punishment off of herself by blaming the man who must have somewhat seduced her. She could have called rape or lied about the events that actually took place to make her look a little better and potentially have people pitty her. She had enough courage to blame herself instead of everyone else. 

And although it was easy for Roger to lie and not come out especially because he was the towns favorite minister, if he had enough courage like Hester or enough heart he would have saved her the pain he saw her suffer by making sure that everyone knew the truth. However he was way too selfish to let anyone who Pearls father actually was. 

On another note:

We didn't talk about morals of the Scarlet Letter in class because we were so focused on it's various themes. In fact, there may not be any kind of moral at all. However, in my opinion, there is a moral in the Scarlet Letter; an important one that almost every girls dad has shared with her at some point in her childhood or teenage years (in various wording): 

1. All boys want are to get in your pants. Once they get you pregnant, they will run and leave you with the burden of a child. 

In my opinion, this moral comes out in teenage language to come out somewhat along the lines of the following: A woman will always have more metaphorical balls than any man has physically. 

"Before the A" – A Prequel?

The Scarlet Letter begins at the prison door.  We see Hester emerging with a baby in her arms and an "A" on her heart.  The book then proceeds to follow her through her life and part of her daughter's life.  My question is what her life was before her emergence at the prison door.  I think the lead up to the story could be just as interesting as the famous novel.

It is never explained how Hester and Dimmesdale fall in love.  I'm not asking for a dramatic, Romantic romance  novel, but the two characters don't seem like the most obvious couple.  I would just love to understand how they got together.

I would also love to find out how people found out Hester cheated on her overseas husband.  Was it just because she got pregnant or did someone figure it out?  It doesn't come to mind immediately, but if Pearl never came to exist, there is a large possibility that The Scarlet Letter would be a very different story.

My final curiosity is about Hester's experience while she was pregnant.  Obviously everyone  knew about her sin while she was pregnant.  I wonder if she sat in jail for those nine months or if she went out in public at all.  It would also be interesting to know what her trial was like.  Not only Hester's physical experience, but her mental and emotional journey would be fascinating to read about too.  The realization that she was going to face disgrace for the rest of her life must have been difficult.  And the physical process of sewing the physical representation of her sin must have been traumatic as well.

I strongly suggest that some writer examine The Scarlet Letter thoroughly and write a great modern novel about Hester before the "A" (and answer all my questions!).

Hester, Dimmesdale and The Community

Throughout the novel there has been the question on what is true purity and how one regains it once they have lost it. The Puritan belief is that true purity is conformity to the community, and to sacrifice ones individuality for the community. Dimmsdale believed in the Puritanistic way of purity, therefore even though his punishment was private, he did this with the intention of benefiting the community over himself. Hester on the other hand experienced an extreme public punishment, and then decided that to punish herself was not necessary and she embraced her sin.

In the end of the novel Hester was then able to re-invent herself and regain her purity in her community, and even become someone people go to for help. Dimmsdale on the other hand died a regretful and unforgiving man. This shows that even though Hester went against her community in the sense of their beliefs, her individuals benefited her in the end giving her a sense of purity to herself, unlike Dimmsdale who will never have that peace with himself. 

Letters From Iwo Jima

Letters From Iwo Jima is a movie set during world war 2, on an island called Iwo Jima which the Japanese feel is a sacred island and must protect at all costs. It is shown from the perspective of a Japanese soldier in the Japanese vs. American conflict over Iwo Jima. Before being pulled into the war, he is living with his pregnant wife, looking forward to a safe future with his kid. The idea in Japan during this time is that everyone has to sacrifice themselves for their country if asked to, and so when the military comes to his home telling him, "Congratulations, you're going to war!" he is required to say yes and that he would be honored to go, even though he is deeply opposed to war.

The first part of the movie is told from the letters that he sends home to his wife, and other letters sent from the general . His (the soldier's) letters describe the island, the preparations for war, and his thoughts on the war. He mentions in the letters that he is somewhat honored to serve his country, but does not wish to die for seemingly no reason. Unfortunately he must because it is expected of every Japanese man that they will die for their honor, instead of surrendering and becoming a coward.

It becomes increasingly apparent as the movie goes on that this is an un winnable battle for the Japanese. They find out they are out manned, out armed, and the back up they expected from the mainland will not be coming. He knows he is going to die, but he refuses to accept his fate, looking for any possible way out of it as the fight starts.

When the fight ensues, the Japanese quickly realize the battle is not to be won. The general tells them that they are to die for their country, and that they should either fight till death, or kill themselves. In a particularly gruesome scene, a hopeless group of survivors gathers in a circle to kill themselves with grenades instead of being captured by Americans. The soldier is stuck in the group unfortunately, and watches as his comrades blow themselves up one by one. When his turn comes around, he is terrified, and left with his friend who shares his views, and another soldier who is dedicated to his country and demands the two kill themselves. His friend runs away and is shot by the other soldier, and the main character is left to argue whether or not they should kill themselves or die fighting, even though he intends to surrender if possible. When he persuades the other soldier to let him go, he eventually finds his way to freedom as the last survivor that we see from the Japanese, although there are a few others on hospital beds at the end.

This movie is a great example of many ideas we have discussed in class. It shows transcendentalism through the main character's appreciation for nature throughout the movie, his individualistic thoughts, and the fact that the entire movie is about his personal experiences, with a little bit of it being the general's perspective.

It also discusses the idea of Individual vs Community. Japan's standard of fighting til death is an unarguable idea that has existed throughout Japan's history, and it makes no exception for the main character. His struggle to seperate himself from the community is what the movie is all about. Although he never truly changes the community's ideals, he does free himself from them by surviving the battle.  

Was Justice Served in The Scarlet Letter?

I found The Scarlet Letter's ending to be extremely satisfying- especially when I read about the deaths of Dimmesdale and Chillingworth. I was not a fan of either of them, so it seemed right for them to die in the end while Hester and Pearl went on to live. After thinking about it a little, though, I began to wonder: Was it 'fair' or 'right' for them both to die? 

Chillingworth: Chillingworth showed very few redeeming qualities throughout the novel. In the beginning, we heard a little bit of his former self: the quiet scholar. Other than that, though, Chillingworth has been nothing but mean, vengeful, and cold-hearted. He lived in a lie and allowed his anger to consume him. That being said, his wife did cheat on him. So, did Chillingworth deserve to die while Hester lived? My verdict: yes. While Hester shouldn't have cheated on him, Chillingworth did not need to let his rage take over his life. In the end, it was his own hatred that killed him.

Dimmesdale: I disliked Dimmesdale for most of the book; he seemed cowardly and weak. He let Hester and Pearl suffer by themselves for so long. However, he did end up confessing in the end-- but was that enough? Did he deserve to die? My verdict: yes. Again, I think he killed himself. Instead of confessing earlier, he allowed his guilt to eat him up to point where he was physically affected by it. If he had just done the right thing to begin with, maybe he could have lived a nice(ish) life with Hester and Pearl.

Final Thoughts On TSL (week of November 7th blog)

So the ending to the Scarlett Letter was not terrible, it could have been worse. Basically...

Dimmesdale gives his best serman yet, the people love it. He later confesses his sin to the crowd. He then collapses dead (I thought that was odd). Chillingworth gets mad saying that the minister has escaped his revenge. Then Hester and Pearl move away and become a legend before Hester returns and eventually dies. Chillingworth dies too.

Before I read the ending (don't worry I finished the book on time) I heard that the author just kills off all the characters and that it was a dumb "Hamlet type" ending. This statement is false because the characters eventually die but that's because their lives have ended. The author tells you the rest of their lives and then they die, they don't all just die in one scene.

I think that the thing on Dimmesdale's chest was obviously an "A". I meen, what else, right?

I do think that Dimmesdale's death was kind of uncreative though because the chances of him just dropping dead made the strory seem unrealistic and dissapointing.

A lot of people may disagree but I actually like the way that they leave Pearl's story hanging and don't say too much about it, it leaves the reader guessing about it but not dissapointed by not knowing.

Lastly, I think it odd that Chillingworth gave a lot to Pearl after his death. I know his revenge was gone but this doens't mean he still wasn't bitter. It's not like he all of a sudden loved Pearl as if she was his own.

I'm not saying this to be yet another school child that dislikes these old books, but I really didn't like this book. It was uneventful and had premature ideas that could have been expressed in not such a long dissapointing novel. Nothing special or cool happend and the book didn't really make me think at all. But that's just my opinion.

Lets move to Europe

What would of happened if Hester and Dimmesdale went through with it and moved to Europe? I know their plans were cut short when Dimmesdale dropped dead, but would it of been a good thing for them to move? Their community would wonder where they both went. They might of put the pieces together that they ran away with each other. If they did, they would most likely be shunned from the community if they decided to ever come back. Also, Dimmesdale's good reputation of being a minister would most likely be stripped from him. 

Maybe it would be a good thing, because the two of them would forget about their lives and start a new one. They would put their past behind them and start over as a new family in Europe. I think Hester could of done that, because when she took off the A, she psychologically removed her sin from her. But I don't think Dimmesdale could of done that because he had too much guilt. Say he didn't die right before they left, I think going to Europe would of drove him crazy and would make him even more guilty. All in all, I think it was for the best of both of them to not go, especially Hester because she lived a pretty good life after that moment.

Chillingsworth's Revenge

In the Scarlett Letter you know that Chillingsworth is getting revenge for what has happened, but who is he getting revenge on? At first you get the feeling that he is getting revenge on Dimmsdale for having an affair with his wife, but as the novel goes on you see that he may be doing this to Hester for cheating on him.

Chillingsworth first talks to Hester about not wanting her to tell anyone anything about who he is because he wants to find out who committed adultry with his wife. He makes Dimmsdale trust him and he ends up giving Dimmsdale "medicine" and is trying to help him with his illness by finding out if he is Pearl's father.

Then towards the end of the book, you see that he is maybe making Dimmsdale suffer to hurt Hester in some way. Also, he does everything he can to make sure Hester always knows he is around and that he is not leaving. So my question is that who is Chillingsworth more upset with? Hester, Dimmdale, or both?

Sin And Punishment vs. Order And Freedom

The theme of sin and punishment is a constant recurrence in which an individual commits an atrocity and it causes an unstable balance in the community. Committing a sin would  shift the power of the community to the authorities, causing the specific individuals in power to create the destiny of the sinner by following a specific code of conduct. I thought that this theme shows parallel to Hester's community and the society we live in today. When she sinned it gave the individuals in power to create her punishment. It enabled the officials in power to recreate her future in the town. When we commit a crime or wrong doing, it gives the elected officials in power to change our lives for  better or worse.

Freedom mirrors Order by enabling an individual to create a utopian society where the belief's and actions of that person could be followed without fear of uprising. Order is a defensive mechanism in which the community controls the behavior of a person by following a law or religious code(in some communities). In the world that we live in today order is a necessary evil because it regulates the actions of the community and hopefully matriculates it in a positive direction. If Hester wouldn't have punished for her sin, she wouldn't have been effected and her transfiguration wouldn't have occurred.

Punishments For Sin

Sinning in the Scarlet Letter is frowned upon tremendously. The question is what is the most affective punishment to rid individuals of their uncivilized behavior. After reading the Scarlet Letter, punishing someone without physically harming them is the most efficient way because Hester was looked at as an outsider because of the letter A that had to be pinned on all her clothing to let the community know she was an adultress.

Puritans complained about how the magistrate let Hester off easy because she was not physically harmed by punishment. Some people wanted the A branded on her forhead. This method of inflicting physical pain to get rid of sin is absurd because if pain is inflicted, the punishment will only last until the wound is healed.

Punishing  a sinner with mental tactics is more of an efficient way to get rid of corruption than physical tactics because if you punish someone by making them look bad to society, then they will not be accepted. They will be alone and peace will elude them until they repent and god has forgiven them. When the magistration orders Hester to wear the A, she tries to hide the fact that she does feel like an outsider. This is later revealed when she wants get away from town. If she didnt feel like an outsider she wouldnt have left. Therefore the punishment was affective.

 

 

How Ariel Faces Society

 

So I really think that this song in the Little Mermaid adresses individual vs.community. Segbastian is trying to convinvce Ariel not to got the land whose customs are different from the under water life. He tries to show her the good things about the sea. This also reminds me of some transcendentalist values such as an appreciation for common everyday life and it (indirectly) emphasized breakling from traditional society. This is because Ariel is trying to leave the ocean and experience life first hand(individual experience) on solid land ( ryhme not intended). This conflict of individual vs. community is further highlighted in the song, Part of your World

 

This illustrates how Ariel is the individual that is different from the rest of the mermaid society. She doesn't see things the way that the rest of the merpeople do. There is also a part of the movie where Ariel's sisters, Sebastian, and even  KingTriton comment on how she is different and doesn't follow the rules.

Most of the movie is about how Ariel resolves to follow her own instincts and how this path changes her life and the people around her.

 

The Ability to Control Your Own Punishment

Throughout the Scarlet Letter Hester struggles with her punishment for adultery by being publicly humiliated, but the pain that she endures is eventually released from her heart when she becomes pure again by forgiving herself for the sin she committed. Dimmsdale on the other hand handles the guilt of the sin in a completely different way. 

Reverend Dimmsdale confuses me in the way that he feels due to sleeping with Hester. He ends up dying form potentially the built up weight on his soul of the sin and lies that he had to tell to cover up the fact of the matter, but before he dies the novel reveals that he feels a lot more happy and free with the idea of moving to Europe, as does Hester, but, she truly releases her sin by removing her A and is physically transformed into a beautiful woman again. Although, Pearl does make her put back on the A I believe that, that moment symbolizes Hester freeing herself form her past sin. And Dimmsdale is happier with intent of moving to Europe with Hester and Pearl but it never states that he feels relieved of his sin.

The different ways that Hester and Dimmsdale deal with, for Hester, public punishment, and for Dimmsdale, private punishment make me think that a person has the ability to control their own punishment. Although Hester's punishment could have been taken as a lifetime of agony, because of her life experiences with the A and her own personality, she is able to come to terms and forgive herself. Hester comes off as a very "do what you want when you want to" type of girl and because of that she morphs her punishment into her own... for instance when she is publicly observed by spectators looking at her A, she thinks of all of their sins, and with this mindset Hester is able to release her sin.

Because of Dimmsdale's personality seeming to be damaged by the sin that he committed, making him very reserved and remorseful, he deals with his punishment in a different way. He is unable to live a second without thinking of his sin so he cannot picture forgiving himself at all. And because of this I do not believe he even realized that he could of made the situation better. He could have taken it on himself to think of different perspectives to make his inward punishment not eat away at him so much.

Hester and Dimmsdale are two very different characters and people which made Hester able to live with the act she committed and realize that she could forgive herself for it, and made him die because of the constant reminder that he was a mortal sinner.

Chillingworth as the Enlightenment

The romantic period was a reaction the enlightenment preceding it; within the scarlet letter Nathanial Hawthorne uses Roger Chillingworth in order to show his views on the enlightenment in relation to romanticism.

Roger Chillingworth is a man of knowledge and reason who does not have intense passion like Hester or Dimmesdale. He serves within the novel to represent the enlightenment as a cold and calculating character who is juxtaposed (extra credit on vocab?) to the emotion of Hester and Dimmesdale.

 In the end Hawthorne makes a point to say that the crime Hester and Dimmesdale commited did not serve to harm anyone whereas Chillingworth’s actions in tormenting Dimmesdale for seven years were the real crime committed. This may serve as a criticism of the enlightenment in that when cold intellectualism pervades and passions are not taken into account there may be harm to those who are passionate.

After Dimmesdale dies Chillingworth dies soon after showing that he only existed in order to torment dimmesdale. If taken in the view that Chillingworth represents the enlightenment, this would mean that the enlightenment only exists to thwart passion within societies.