Scarlet Letter Ch. 16-18 PDF

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Name_________

Period____5____

The Scarlet Letter Response Journal Chapter(s)___16,17,18____

Topic Title

Quotes/Evidence/Examples “A Forest Walk”

Reader’s Response/Commentary BEFORE READING: Hester and Pearl go to the forest to get away from the society for a day. AFTER READING: Hester and the minister meet in the forest and have a conversation about Chillingworth.

“The Pastor and His Parishioner”

BEFORE READING: The minister talks with his parishioner, Hester. AFTER READING: Hester and Minister Dimmesdale talk about their life and Chillingworth.

“A Flood of Sunshine”

Vocabulary

-“It may be, that his pathway through life was haunted thus, by a spectre that had stolen out from among his thoughts” (Hawthorne 171). -“The very contiguity of his enemy, beneath whatever mask the latter might conceal himself, was enough to

BEFORE READING: Hester and Minister Dimmesdale talk it out and decide that they are not going to let their mistake rule their lives anymore. AFTER READING: Hester and Minister Dimmesdale decide that they are going to run away together. -A ghost. Phantom or Apparition.

-The state of bordering or being in direct contact with something. Bound together.

Discussion Notes (in class)

disturb the magnetic sphere of a being so sensitive as Arthur Dimmesdale” (Hawthorne 174). -“the gloom of which they were now holding a colloquy that was to decide their fate” (Hawthorne 180). Supernatural -“scarlet letter was the Black Man’s mark on thee, and that it glows like a red flame when thou meetest him at midnight, here in the dark wood” (Hawthorne 167).

-“His spirit rose, as it were, with a bound, and attained a nearer prospect of the sky, than throughout all the misery which had kept him grovelling on the earth” (Hawthorne 182).

Character

Hester Prynne: “Such was the ruin to which she had brought the man, once,—nay, why should we not speak it?—still so passionately loved!” (Hawthorne 175).

Minister Dimmesdale: “The decision once made, a glow of strange enjoyment threw its flickering

-A formal conversation. Gathering/ Discussion. -The tale of the Black Man is a story that was heard by Pearl. However, she is lead to believe that he is real and casts marks on every one who passes through the forest at midnight. It is supernatural because a black man does not exist and is just a fictional story told to scare Pearl. -Hester and Minister Dimmesdale decide to run away together. On hearing this, the minister is enlightened with joy as if something heavy was just lifted off his chest. His spirit is free of the guilt and resentment and is happy. The spirit is supernatural because it is out of the natural spectrum. Hester had never admitted to loving Minister Dimmesdale and she finally confesses to it. This shows that she is finally willing to give herself a chance to be happy and accept her mistake and moreover, move on. It also explains her reluctance to betray their secret as their love prevented her from doing it. Once the minister and Hester decide that they are going to run away from the chains of this Puritan society, he is

Figurative Language

brightness over the trouble of his breast” (Hawthorne 182).

infinitely joyful. Not only does it offer some relief from the guilt, but it also allows him to speak up about his love for her. It is as if he did not have a care in the world and this shows the burden he was carrying for past seven years.

Pearl: “I have even been afraid of little Pearl!” (Hawthorne 184).

Pearl is ignorant of her parents’ decision to run away and her opinion is not yet portrayed. However, her own father admits to being afraid of her as Hester offers to call her and tell her the good news. This acceptance shows that Pearl is a peculiar child and even the pastor whom she has met only a few times knows.

-“ It shall not cumber thy steps, as thou treadest along the forest-path; neither shalt thou freight the ship with it, if thou prefer to cross the sea” (Hawthorne 179).

-Hester uses the metaphor to help the minister decide that running away will help him overcome his guilt. She convinces him that it will relieve him of his misery and also offer some happiness in his miserable life. She wants him to leave so they can start a family together.

-“ it should whisper tales out of the heart of the old forest whence it flowed” (Hawthorne 168).

-The brook is attested with human characteristics as Hester tries to explain why the brook look sad as it flows to Pearl. This implies that the brook carries the secrets of the forest, which causes it to be melancholy.

-“ Pearl resembled the brook, inasmuch as the current of her life gushed from a well-spring as mysterious, and had flowed through scenes shadowed as heavily with

-Pearl is being compared to a brook here. Her peculiar character is similar to the mysterious current of the brook as is her sorrow similar to the brook’s gloom. This comparison talks about

gloom” (Hawthorne 168).

Symbolism

Rhetoric

-“ Hester never thought of meeting him in any narrower privacy than beneath the open sky” (Hawthorne 164).

Pearl’s life, which is quite extraordinary as she is not treated as everyone else, which also resulted in some unnatural characteristics. -The open sky symbolizes Hester’s and minister Dimmesdale’s freedom. She is reluctant to speak with him anywhere else except the forest because it is out in the open where no one will catch them. They are not supposed to talk in the town because everyone will notice and figure out their secret. However, the open sky is a place where they can express their love and not get caught.

-“ As she attempted to do so, the sunshine vanished” (Hawthorne 166).

-The sunshine is a symbol of happiness. Hester, while entering the forest, was scared and unhappy, which is why the sunshine only shined on Pearl. However, after Hester and the minister confessed their love to each other and promised to run away together, the sun shines on them indicating that they are happy once again.

-“ Once in my life I met the Black Man!” (Hawthorne 167).

-The Black Man could symbolize her sin, which was the affair with the minister. They met and eventually it led to their sin. Here, Hester could be referring to her mistake of sleeping with the minister as the black man of her life. Hester inquires if the minister is as miserable as her. He tries to convince her that he truly is by using rhetorical questions and emotional appeal. The

“What else could I look for, being what I am, and leading such a life as mine?” (Hawthorne 172).

Purpose Questions Personal

question makes her think of his position in society and evoke empathy as she is forced to put herself in his shoes. He also says that his conscience does not let him sleep in peace because he knows his duties as God’s servant and has betrayed those responsibilities. The purpose of these chapters was to show the minister and Hester re-united and trying to pursue happiness. Do they really run away together? What will Pearl think of their decision and how will she react? I liked these chapters because I was not expecting them to get back together. From the beginning, Hawthorne led me to believe that this story did not have a happy ending. But now, I can hope there is, even if their plan does not work out....