Tiffany Ruvalcaba February 3, 2013 Period 2 Hawthornes View on Women Although the scarlet letter symbolizes Hesters sin,

she knows who she is and does not let the negative criticism affect her character. Hawthornes tone towards women is presented in the central argument of his passage. With the specific choice of words and syntax found in the passage, the reader is able to see Hawthornes perspective on women. Hawthorne is aware of the difficult obstacles women face and he commends Hester for making the right choices and not following in the wrong footsteps of other women in the village. Hawthorne reveals his attitude towards women by carefully choosing words that relate to his central argument. He uses the phrase reverence in the middle of the first paragraph to describe the transition of affect the scarlet letter has on the townspeople. Hawthorne states that the scarlet letter no longer was a symbol of sin, but something to be looked upon with respect. His choice of diction in that paragraph helps the reader understand that Hester no longer was the women who committed adultery, but a woman who had gone through it all, and did not let that affect how she was with others. Therefore, she used her personal experience to help other women in the town with similar struggles that came to her for help, rather than turning away. Hawthorne is also very symbolic with the diction found throughout the book, the scarlet letter ceased to be a stigma which attracted the worlds scorn and bitterness. Hawthorne describes the scarlet letter on Hesters chest as a badge of shame in which shows the town her sin. Hawthornes syntax found in the passage can be a bit confusing for the modern reader. The usage of commas, hyphens, and rhetorical devices found throughout the book can be misunderstood, but if carefully read, the reader learns that the structure of the paragraphs truly help support his view

on women. In the beginning of the passage, Hawthorne uses anaphora to describe how the scarlet letter played a role in her life before things started turning around for Hester. Here had been her sin; here, her sorrow; and here was yet to be her penitence. The usage of anaphora in this phrase, right before Hawthorne discusses the change in which the townspeople observed Hester, gives the reader a sense of how bad things were for her and how much damage the scarlet letter had caused. Throughout his book, Hawthorne uses many more rhetorical devices to help the reader infer his view on women. Not only does he use words or sentence structure to support his claim, but he also uses symbolism to get the reader to think about the different way Hawthorne succeeds in making a connection between two different ideas. Hawthorne uses Hesters sin as an example to portray the idea of the right path opposed to the wrong path other women in the village followed. Because of all her troubles, Hawthorne is able to commend those women who have done well with their lives despite the difficult obstacles we face.