Arooba_Fatima

The  research  aimed  at  finding  out  the  Puritan  hypocrisy  depicted  in  Nathaniel  Hawthorne’s  “The Scarlet  Letter”  and  describes  its  impacts  on  the  individuals.  Hypocrisy  is  one  of  the  social  issues contained  within  the  literary  work.  The  final  project  by  using  library  research  the  researcher observed  a  novel  entitled  The  Scarlet  letter  by  Nathaniel  Hawthorne  and  used  some  books, articles,  and  other  writing  to  support  the  analysis.  By  using  descriptive  qualitative  method,  the researcher  used  The  scarlet  Letter  as  the  descriptive  data  and  to  discover  the  information  related to  the  subject  matter.  Under  the  use  of  sociological  approach  the  researcher  focused  on  analyzed the  social  contents  of  the  novel  by  comprehend  reading  and  deep  understanding,  and  as  a  result of  analysis,  the  data  were  interpreted  through  description  on  the  subject  matter.  From  the research,  it  is  found  that  Arthur  Dimmesdale,  Roger  Chillingworth,  Governor  Bellingham, Mistress  Hibbins  and  the  very  society,  in  which  they  lived,  are  the  victims  of  Puritan  hypocrisy. We begin  to  see  just  how  these  characters  deeply  immersed  in  hypocrisy  from  inside.  Hypocrisy is  evident  within  all  the  characters  because  they  all  say  some  things  but  do  not  hold  true  to  their belief.  There  is  puritan  clergyman  known  as  Arthur  Dimmesdale  who  commits  an  act  of fornicating  with  an  attractive  and  charming  woman,  Hester  Prynne.  Arthur  Dimmesdale’s hypocrisy  described  at  Puritan  settlement  in  Boston,  as  a  reverend  Church  Minister.  He  takes  his honored  seat  in  society  to  present  two  different  personalities  to  hide  his  sin.  However, Dimmesdale  as  a  hypocrite,  teach  the  people  attending  his  sermons  to  admit  their  crimes  to society  and  then  he  himself  denies  from  doing  the  same.  He  hides  his  sin  of  adultery  with  Hester and leaves her alone  to face  the hardships of the  penalty. Roger  Chillingworth  is  a  man  who,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  he  was  once  a  heartfelt,  intellectual man,  has  been  changed  in  the  name  of  revenge  into  an  evil,  a  malevolent  kind  of  human  being. Chillingworth’s  vengeful  and  evil  nature  revealed  in  his  harsh  manipulation  and  torture  of Dimmesdale.  Chillingworth;  is  the  cruelest  character  who  plotted  to  destroy  his  wife’s  heart  and her  secret  lover.  However,  due  to  cruel  hypocrisy  of  the  society,  Hester  and  her  daughter  suffer  a lot.  Hester  Prynne  the  main  character,  a  mother  of  an  illegal  child.  However,  Hester  commits  a sin  of  adultery,  but  she  is  not  the  worst  character  in  the  novel.  Indeed  her  husband  left  her  alone to  a  new  land,  she  then  committing  sins  out  of  true  love.  Therefore,  Hester  is  penalized  by wearing  the  letter  “A”  on  her  bosom  throughout  her  life,  a  penalty  meant  to  castaway  and  forever representing  as  an  adulterer.  Yet  all  of  Hester’s  deeds  are  done  out  of  love,  love  for  pearl  and love  for  Arthur  Dimmesdale  that  does  not  make  her  the  biggest  sinner.  In  this  novel,  Hawthorne heightens  the  hypocrisy  of  the  Puritans  in  order  to  describe  them  as  the  real  sinners.  However, the  society  criticizes  Hester  Prynne  for  her  sin,  those  who  blame  her  are  not  without  sins themselves.

Table of Elements of Hypocrisy in puritan society in The Scarlet Letter

Table of contents

Volume 1