LITERARY TECHNIQUES

USED IN THE SCARLET LETTER

 

Hawthorne used many literary techniques in his novel, in particular:

  1. the Gothic novel of terror and wonder => fascinated by the many devices of the Gothic novel, he used them immediately in the initial chapter ("The manuscript"), when describing the scarlet "A" and the effect it provokes on him; later with the description of Hester’s dark prison, Governor Bellingham’s elaborately decorated mansion and with the sinister descriptions of the Puritan ministers. Besides we find some Gothic elements with the description of Chillingworth’s appearance and with the "diabolic shapes" Dimmesdale sees in the looking-glass. Of course also Mistress Hibbins presents elements of Gothic and, as a matter of fact, she will be executed as a witch. Also Nature is sometimes described as if it had some magic: the red letter in the sky is the most evident example.

  2. Psychological conflict => Hawthorne analyses the inward tension of his characters. Dimmesdale as a representative of the hypocrite, Chillingworth of the fiend and Hester is the opportunity to speculate on the place of women in the world.

  3. An abstract moral idea supported by specific details => the characters often speak making reference to concrete details which recall general moral ideas. For example Dimmesdale, in reference to Chillingworth’s behaviour towards him, says: "That old man’s revenge has been blacker than my sin." This type of language adds mystery to the novel and opens wider spaces of interpretation.

  4. Romance => Hawthorne hugely uses some of the typical ideas of Romanticism, e.g. adventurous action, unusual settings and characters, heroic characters, mysterious events but he also adds his sincere interest in the "truth of the human heart". So he needs "romance" to put his characters and their actions out of a natural or realistic setting so that the reader’s attention is concentrated on them without comparing those characters and actions to trivial lives. Besides he mixes historical characters with fictional ones in order to give a continuous effect of real in contrast with unreal, of light in contrast with shadow. This "chiaroscuro" technique – so widely used in horror movies nowadays – helps the reader to perceive the undefinedness of our real life and to understand how difficult – if not impossible – is to give a judgement. And, as a matter of fact, Hawthorne himself does not give a definite judgement on his main characters’ behaviour leaving that to one’s own conscience, as if – on the basis of his ancestors’ mistakes during the Salem trials – he warned his reader off the temptation to label people’s habits and behaviours beyond any appearance. Of course the "chiaroscuro" technique is also useful to excite the reader’s imagination.

  5. Associational psychology => Hawthorne seems to guide the reader by giving some hints with the connections between specific places (and their symbolic meaning) and emotions. As those places actually existed and have assumed a fatal meaning, the reader is rightly guided in his route through the novel even without knowing all the historical details

  6. The indirect method => Hawthorne never tells the reader what the possible answer to a problem is. The most meaningful example of that may be the "various explanations" of the "red stigma" on minister Dimmesdale’s breast.

  7. Symbolism => the novel is full of examples of physical objects meaning moral qualities or abstract ideas. The highest example is the same scarlet letter, whose initial meaning shifts to other ones, even to its contrary: from "adultress" to "able". However no important symbol is never fixed.

  8. Mirrors => the novel makes several references to mirrors, from the very beginning to the end. Generally speaking all the references seem to indicate a never defined aspect of reality, that reality – what one actually sees – is never sure as a mirror reflects it giving another interpretation. Mirrors may also mean that reflection is the inner aspect of some reality, or of some personality, maybe the truer one.

  9. Specialized techniques borrowed from Walter Scott => W. Scott, the most important writer of the English historical novel, in his novels uses the following devices that Hawthorne borrows:

    1. an unknown, mysterious character, or a "stranger" character whose main function is to add mystery and complicate the plot (Chillingworth in The Scarlet Letter);

    2. the caricature of minor characters, somebody exaggerated, absurd or distorted (Mistress Hibbins in The Scarlet Letter);

    3. the use of elaborately detailed scenes planned on a huge scale: the initial scene of the scaffold – so richly described – and the third scaffold scene where Dimmesdale confesses.

  10. Techniques of the theatre => the action is seen as if it were performed on a stage, with an external – the audience’s point of view – perspective. Also the reflections of some characters are perceived as asides.

(Isabella Marinaro)

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