红字英文介绍The_Scarlet_Letter

NathanielHawthorne纳撒尼尔·霍桑(1804-1864)AnAmericannovelistandshortstorywriterinthe19thcentury.HisfictionworksareconsideredpartoftheRomanticmovementand,morespecifically,darkromanticism（黑色浪漫主义).Manyofhisworksfeaturingmoralallegories(寓言）withaPuritaninspiration.Amanofliterarycraftsmanship,extraordinaryintheuseofsymbol:★symbolsserveasaweapontoattackreality.Itcanbefoundeverywhereinhiswriting.Histhemesoftencenterontheinherentevilandsinofhumanity.Hisworksoftenhavemoralmessagesanddeeppsychologicalcomplexity.Novels:Fanshawe(1825，《范肖》）TheScarletLetter(1850,《红字》）HouseoftheSevenGables(1851,《七个尖角阁的房子》)TheBlithedaleRomance(1852,《福谷传奇》)TheMarbleFaun(1857,《玉石雕像》)Shortstories:Twice-ToldTales（1837，《故事重述》）MossesFromanOldManse(1846,《古屋青苔》)Background•17thCentury•Boston,Massachusetts,NewEnglandcolony•Puritan清教徒:PuritansbelievedGodandSatanwerepresentineveryone’ssoul.Theywereconstantlyfightingagainsteachother.Theybelievedthattherelationshipofanindividualtothecommunitywasanimportantconcern.•Antinomian唯信仰论者：主张基督徒可以废弃道德，依靠信仰来拯救灵魂。•Quaker教友派：靠内心意识指引的教派•Witch巫女TheScarletLetter:BackgroundThesettingofTheScarletLetterisBostoninthe1640s.PersecutedinEngland,thePuritanscametoNorthAmericatoformtheirowncommunities.LifeintheColonieswasharsh,butitgavethePuritanstheopportunitytoformasocietybasedontheirreligiousideals.Puritanssoughtthefreedomtolivebytheirbeliefs.However,thePuritanleadersdidnottoleratereligiousbeliefsthatdifferedfromtheirown.Introduction•TheScarletLettertoldastoryofapuritanwomanHesterPrynnewhowaspunishedtowearascarletAwhichstoodforthecrimeofadultery.TheprettyyoungladytriedtosettledowninBostonwithheroldanduglyhusbandChillinggworth,ascholar.Butthelatterdidnotappearforyears.Duringthistime,HestercommittedadulterywithalocalMinsterDimmesdale,andgavebirthtoagirlPearl.Facingtheterriblepunishment,Hesterrefusedtogiveherlover’snameawaytoprotecthim.Yearslater,thehusbandChillinggworthcametothetownandfoundoutthewholetruth,andheoperatedanhorrorrevengeonDimmesdale,withhidinghisowntruename.Yet,asthestorygoing,HesterandDimmesdalebecamesympatheticfigures,whileChillinggworthwasadevilatlast.•Justbecauseoftheending,TheScarletLetterwasdefinedasnothingbutacoarseandvulgarbookwithideasthatwouldpervertthemindsofreaders,whenitwaspublishedatfirst.Howeverpeoplerealizedthatitwasathoughtfulbookwithgreatvalueandworthytostudyagainandagain.Theachievementsofthenovel•⑴TheAnalysisofVariousSubjects•Onthethinkingside,thetopicsofthoseachievementsvariedaswidelyasfromfeminismtonineteenth-centurymaleidentities,fromPuritanismtoRaceandSlavery,fromTranscendentalismtoPolicy.Forinstance,fromthepointofreligion,FengGuolingsaidthereligiousethicsstoppedtheauthorfromunitingtheloverswithwedlock,•⑵TheStudyofWritingSkills•Itisthefirstpointthathewasgoodatputtingsymbolsintofullplay.Thesecondoneisthephantasmagoriathatwasimbeddedintohisnovel.•⑶TheUseofIntertextualReading•Thismodecoverstwopartsthatintertextualreadingofdifferentliteraryworksaswellasofliteraryworksandhistory.Incontrast,thestudiesofHawthorneinAmerica,putfocusontheconceptofromancewithdrawingontheachievementsofsciencecommunity,likeelectrictheory.Therearesomanygreatachievementsconcerningallkindsofideas,however,whenreadersthinkofHawthorne’sattitudetoreligion,theyarelimitedtotheideathatHawthornewasinadilemma:eitherbetrayhisreligionordepressthenature.ButinfactHawthornefoundthebalancebetweentheminTheScarletLetterwhenhetreatedreligionasatoolofregulationfunctionratherthanpurebelief.相比之下，中国的研究主要是文学研究，而美国则关注于作品中的科学原理。虽然研究众多，但是读者在思考霍桑的宗教态度时候总是认为霍桑处于两难境地，是背叛信仰还是抑制人性。但是在《红字》中，霍桑其实已经找到了两者之间的平衡点——他把宗教当成是一种具有调节社区的工具而不是纯粹的信仰MajorcharactersinTheScarletLetterHesterPrynneArthurDimmesdaleRogerChillingworthdaughterloverhusbandheroinePearl•HesterPrynne•Hesterisportrayedasanintelligent,capable,woman.Shespeculatesonhumannature,socialorganization,andlargermoralquestions.Hester’stribulationsalsoleadhertobestoicandafreethinker.•Shecaresforthepoorandbringsthemfoodandclothing.•ArthurDimmesdale•Dimmesdalewasascholar.ThefactthatHestertakesalloftheblamefortheirsharedsingoadshisconscience,andhisresultantmentalanguishandphysicalweaknessopenuphismindandallowhimtoempathizewithothers.•ThepersonalguiltdrivesDimmesdaletofurtherinternalizehisguiltandself-punishmentandleadstostillmoredeteriorationinhisphysicalandspiritualcondition.•RogerChillingworth•RogerChillingworthisamandeficientinhumanwarmth.Histwisted,stooped,deformedshouldersmirrorhisdistortedsoul.•Heisinterestedinrevenge,notjustice,andheseeksthedeliberatedestructionofothersratherthanaredressofwrongs.HisdesiretohurtothersstandsincontrasttoHesterandDimmesdale’ssin.•Pearl•Pearl，Hester’sdaughter，makesusconstantlyawareofhermother’sscarletletterandofthesocietythatproducedit.Pearl’sinnocent,orperhapsintuitive,commentsabouttheletterraisecrucialquestionsaboutitsmeaning.SymbolismintheNovel•★NathanielHawthorneisamasterofsymbolism•★TheScarletLetter:thefirstsymbolicnoveltobewrittenintheUnitedStates.TheSymbolicMeaningoftheFourMajorCharacters•Hester--beauty“Theyoungwomanwastall,withafigureofperfectelegance,…”--strongwil