Puritans Social Judgement METHODOLOGY

4.1 Puritans Social Judgement

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne expresses the aspects of relationships, religion, community, discipline and punishment in the puritan community of 17th century Boston. Relationships between men and women were very constrained and that is what made adultery such a bad sin in the eyes of everyone in the community. Religion seemed to govern over all, people would look up to reverends and the community believed that fate was their destiny. Public discipline and punishment were used to discourage everyone else from committing the same crime or sin as the offending criminal did. The community was to follow the beliefs of god and to do their duties the best they could, yet were there to criticize and punish all who disobeyed the religion or laws. In 17th century Boston everything was very strict and everyone was expected to follow the laws. This can be seen from this quotation, Amongst any other population, or at a later period in the history of New England, the grim rigidity that petrified the bearded physiognomies of these good people would have augured some awful business in hand. It could have betokened nothing short of the anticipated execution of some noted culprit, on whom the sentence of a legal tribunal had but confirmed the verdict of public sentiment Hawthorne, 2008: 51. In the beginning of chapter two, it is said that the townspeople are staring at the prison door, waiting for the criminal, in this case Hester Prynne, going outside the prison. They are very strict with their anticipation to Hester. They are gathered to observe Hester Prynne’s punishment. In either case, there was very much the same solemnity of demeanour on the part of the spectators; as befitted a people amongst whom religion and law were almost identical, and in whose character both were so thoroughly interfused, that the mildest and the severest acts of public discipline were alike made venerable and awful Hawthorne, 2008: 51-52. Universitas Sumatera Utara It is a description of the solemn way Puritans observe any act of punishment, from the execution of a hardened criminal to a child’s whipping. The quotation above gives more explanation about how strict the Puritans society in this novel. People are ruled by religion and law. Their behaviours must be carefully controlled under the norms of society. If someone breaks the law, people will judge and punish them so bad without considering the mistakes which have been done. This is felt by the main characters of this novel, Hester Prynne, and her daughter, Pearl. That is the example of doing the analyzing data. The other part of analysis will be done such way. And those will be the main process of the thesis. Universitas Sumatera Utara

CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS OF PURITANS SOCIAL JUDGEMENT AS PICTURED THROUGH