ENGL 3540 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Hester Prynne, Complete Control, Totalitarianism
19 Apr 2016
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About a woman (hester prynne) who has an adulterous affair but refuses to give up the name of the father so she"s forced to wear a scarlet letter on her chest. Instrument that outs her from the dominant social group (prostitute/adulterous/etc. ) Public and private spheres are separate, but also gendered. Public = masculine sphere / private = female sphere (but men were also supposed to find some sort of haven from the outside world in the private sphere) Thus it was dangerous allowing a female to invade the public sphere - disaster ensues once they make what is private into something that is public. Minister dimmesdale is an icon of patriarchy - despite the fact that he is in fact the father. The fact that the magistrates try to negotiate with hester prynne (she commits adultery which was an offense punishable by death) shows that they"re not necessarily cold-hearted but:
