About the Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter 英语专业毕业论文.docVIP

About the Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter 摘要 The various usage of symbolism in The Scarlet Letter makes the novel as a work of the world. The Scarlet Letter is a novel of plenty of symbols throughout the whole passage. Hawthorne uses symbolism so skillfully that it greatly enhances the artistic effects of his work. This paper researches into the techniques of symbolism and the different symbols used in the Scarlet Letter from the following aspects: the changing symbolic meaning of the scarlet letter A, the changing symbolic meanings of the major characters: Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, Roger Chillingworth and Pearl and many objects that are described in the novel，to make clear the function and the hinted meaning of symbolism, so it leads to a better understanding of the theme of the book. Key Words: the scarlet letter A；symbolism Content 摘要 ⅰ Abstract ⅱ Contents ⅲ 1 Introduction 4 2 Background Knowledge of The Scarlet Letter 5 2.1 Literature review 5 2.2 About the Symbolism 5 3 On the Symbolism in the Scarlet Letter 6 3.1 The Symbolism of the Letter A 6 3.1.1 A for Adultery 6 3.1.2 A for Alienation 7 3.1.3 A for Able, Admirable and Angel 7 3.2 The expressions of symbolism in major characters 8 3.2.1 Pearl: A living scarlet letter 8 3.2.2 Hester Prynne: A symbol of strength and independence 9 3.2.3 Roger Chillingworth：a symbol of revenge 10 3.2.4 Arthur Dimmesdale: A symbol of hypocrisy 11 3.3 The symbolism of the other objects which are described in the novel 13 3.3.1 The forest and the river 13 3.3.2 The Prison 14 3.3.3 Scaffold 14 4 The significance 14 5 Conclusion 16 References 17 Acknowledgements 18 Introduction Written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and published in 1850, the year in which the Clay Compromise postponed the American Civil War, The Scarlet Letter is a romance set in the years from 1642 to 1649, when Puritans were fighting the English civil war over the ultimate meaning of England, and Puritans in the Boston of Hawthornes sto