Abstract

The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s representative work, is a classical novel in American literature in the 19th century. The novel displays Puritanism’s great impact on people's life and thought. This thesis will give a picture of puritans’ life and ideology through the analysis of the Puritan town Boston and some related characters, and introduce how the communities in the town are deeply influenced by Puritanism. Meanwhile, by analyzing the main character Hester, the thesis will present the harshness and the strict punishment in Puritan society. In Puritan communities, whoever commits a sin will be punished. The thesis also presents Hawthorne’s attitude towards Puritanism. On one hand, he appreciates the Puritan thought and value; on the other hand, he condemns the negative impact of Puritan society on people’s spirit.
 
Key Words:  Puritanism, Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter, Boston，Hester

 内容提要

霍桑的代表作〈〈红字〉〉是19世纪美国文学史上的一本古典小说。〈〈红字〉〉表现了清教主义传统在人们思想上和生活上的烙印，使人们对18世纪的美国社会有了一定的了解。在当时，一切都受到宗教的束缚，宗教有着神圣不可侵犯的权威。本论文通过对一些主要人物和波士顿小镇的分析向人们展示了清教徒的思想和他们的生活方式。交代了小镇上人们深受清教主义的影响。通过对主人公海丝特等人的分析揭示了清教社会的严酷以及严厉的刑罚制度。任何人无论谁犯了错都要受到惩罚。霍桑在一定程度上也受到清教主义的影响。一方面他肯定了宗教思想与价值，另一方面批判了清教社会对人的精神的负面影响。

关键词：清教主义；纳撒尼尔·霍桑；〈〈红字〉〉；波士顿；海斯特

Chapter1

Ⅰ.Introduction

A.    Puritans

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter was written in 18th century. The setting of The Scarlet Letter is in the 17th century in Boston, America. Before proceeding to the analysis of the Puritanism in the novel, some fundamental definitions need to be established. Who were the Puritans? When did they arrive in the New World—America? How about their ideology and lifestyle? How about the author?

Puritan is the name given in the 16th century to the more extreme Protestants within the Church of England. These Protestants thought the English Reformation had not gone far enough in reforming the doctrines and structure of the church. They wanted to purify their church. In the 17th century many Puritans immigrated to the New World, where they sought to found a holy Commonwealth in New England. “The Puritans did not allow religious dissent (holding different religious belief).They insisted that high position,and achievements were signs of ‘eternal grace’, that is, favour of God, and they wanted to force God’s will on the rest of mankind.Puritan tradition also involved a respect for learning which led to the estalishment of schools and the spread of literacy.”[1] (P238) Puritanism remaines the dominant cultural force in that area into the 19th century.

B.    New England

According to historical data, in 1620, the English Monarchy, as eager to be rid of the Puritans as the Puritans were to be rid of the King, granted a group of Puritans a charter to make a settlement in the English colonies that is now the New England of America. There were economic incentives for the Puritan to move to the New World, including economic upheaval in Europe and the prospect of making a profit in America, but their chief incentive was religious: they would be able to practice their religion freely. So in late fall some 103 settlers sailed on the Mayflower and arrived in New England. Then in 1628, provoked by King Charles I’s increasing intolerance, another group of Puritans formed a business corporation, the Massachusetts Bay Company, for settlement of the New World. They arrived on Cape Ann, just north and east of what is now called Boston. Thirteen years later, about 1,000 English settlers, largely the Puritans, had immigrated to the Boston area. By 1643, there were some 20,000 in the general area of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, making Boston the largest and the most prosperous Puritan town in America.

Considering the large number of all these Puritan settlers, their wide distribution and their strong faith, religious and daily life in the new American colonies, especially in Boston, was mainly of Puritan color. In addition, religious doctrine became civil law, and the rule of the leaders was absolute. While the whole of New England was largely Puritan, it is those who settled in and around Boston, who influenced American culture profoundly and of whom Nathanial Hawthorne wrote.

C.    Puritans ideology and lifestyle

On the other hand, Puritan ideology is very important for Puritans for they designed their lives after that. The puritans believed in the majes

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