The Hypocrisy View in Puritan Society and Its Relationship with Adultery Punishment in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Abstract

The Scarlet Letter, published in (1850) by Nathaniel Hawthorne, represents a harsh criticism of the Puritan society in the seventeenth century. It does so by unveiling the hypocrisy hidden beneath strict religious moral standards. Hawthorne discloses the paradox between people’s appearance of possessing moral and religious values, and their inner moral corruption. This contradiction becomes evident in public condemnation towards Hester, and the guilt concealed by Dimmesdale. In this study, the researcher attempts to explore the way Puritan authority maintains over people through the use of accusations and punishments of adultery. The study focuses on the analysis of symbolism, characterization, public punishment, and narrative irony, arguing that Hawthorne presents moral punishment as a social performance, rather than a genuine spiritual redemption. In the end, the novel depicts Puritan social judgement as hypocritical, gendered, ultimately aimed at social control not pursuing true ethics.