The Novel The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, initially struck me as boring and uninteresting. Honestly, I did not want to do any work that related to this novel because it just didn’t appeal to me. I remember sitting in class with everyone and hearing a bunch of questions about what we read. As the questions were being answered, I felt some kind of spark of interest. Something about how Ms. Powell described the characters drew my attention. So I began to read it.
Character: As I was reading, I started to grow attached to the characters. I went through all the ups and downs that they experienced and I felt the emotional distress that they’ve gone through. One character that stood out to me was Hester. To me, she was a symbol of love and compassion. Her feelings toward Pearl and Dimmesdale showed that she was a caring and understanding person. It indicated that she honored the decisions of others and respected them. For example, though she was on trial for committing adultery, she respected Dimmesdale and did not “burn him at the stake.” This shows her compassion to those who’s around her. I think it’s safe to say that Hester has a love like no one else has. Her love overflows and pours out to everyone. Even though they judge and ridicule her.
Storyline: Reading the novel is similar to watching some kind of drama or anime. It’s just like a series that you can’t let go of. It pulls you in then slowly kills you because of everything that is happening in the story; especially if something happens that was unexpected. I think we all get attracted to the storyline when it’s something we can relate to. Though we can’t directly relate to committing adultery or being a social outcast, we can relate to taking the blame. We can relate to feeling sadness and betrayal. We can relate to making mistakes and regretting them. Lastly, we can relate to giving and receiving love and compassion. Though Hawthorne uses language that is not understandable by the audience of today’s generation, he uses relatable situations that we can experience every day.
Overall: In my opinion I think that the book was well written and had a nice storyline. Hawthorne was able to pull me in and was able to “hold me” in place as we rode the eventful roller coaster. I felt that he knew how to connect his words that created this wonderful story. I give this novel an 8/10 rating.
~Clarence Parcasio
Character: As I was reading, I started to grow attached to the characters. I went through all the ups and downs that they experienced and I felt the emotional distress that they’ve gone through. One character that stood out to me was Hester. To me, she was a symbol of love and compassion. Her feelings toward Pearl and Dimmesdale showed that she was a caring and understanding person. It indicated that she honored the decisions of others and respected them. For example, though she was on trial for committing adultery, she respected Dimmesdale and did not “burn him at the stake.” This shows her compassion to those who’s around her. I think it’s safe to say that Hester has a love like no one else has. Her love overflows and pours out to everyone. Even though they judge and ridicule her.
Storyline: Reading the novel is similar to watching some kind of drama or anime. It’s just like a series that you can’t let go of. It pulls you in then slowly kills you because of everything that is happening in the story; especially if something happens that was unexpected. I think we all get attracted to the storyline when it’s something we can relate to. Though we can’t directly relate to committing adultery or being a social outcast, we can relate to taking the blame. We can relate to feeling sadness and betrayal. We can relate to making mistakes and regretting them. Lastly, we can relate to giving and receiving love and compassion. Though Hawthorne uses language that is not understandable by the audience of today’s generation, he uses relatable situations that we can experience every day.
Overall: In my opinion I think that the book was well written and had a nice storyline. Hawthorne was able to pull me in and was able to “hold me” in place as we rode the eventful roller coaster. I felt that he knew how to connect his words that created this wonderful story. I give this novel an 8/10 rating.
~Clarence Parcasio