The Scarlet Letter :: essays research papers

The Scarlet Letter- In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, the letter "A" changes it's meaning many different times. This change is significant. It shows growth in the characters, and the community in which they live. The letter "A" begins as a symbol of sin. It then becomes a symbol of her ability to do and help things, and finally it becomes a symbol of her respect for herself. The letter "A," worn on Hester's bodice, is a symbol of her adultery against Roger Chillingworth. This letter is meant to be worn in shame, and to make Hester feel unwanted. "Here, she said to herself, had been the scene of her guilt, and here should be the scene of her earthly punishment . . ." (84) Hester is ashamed of her sin, but she chooses not to show it. She committed this sin in the heat of passion, and fully admits it because, though she is ashamed, she also received her greatest treasure, Pearl, out of it. She is a very strong woman to be able to hold up so well against what she must face. Many would have fled Boston, and sought a place where no one knew of her great sin. Hester chose to stay though, which showed a lot of strength and integrity. Any woman with enough nerve to hold up against a town which despised her very existence, and to stay in a place where her daughter is referred to as a "devil child," either has some sort of psychological problem, or is a very tough woman. The second meaning that the letter "A" took was "able." The townspeople who once condemned her now believed her scarlet "A" to stand for her ability to create her beautiful needlework and for her unselfish assistance to the poor and sick. "The letter was the symbol of her calling. Such helpfulness was found in her- so much power to do and power to sympathize- that many people refused to interpret the scarlet 'A' by its original signification." (156) At this point, a lot of the townspeople realized what a high quality character Hester possessed. "Do you see that woman with the embroidered badge? It is our Hester- the town's own Hester- who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comforting to the afflicted!" (157) The townspeople soon began to believe that the badge served to ward off

My Favorite Place Essay

Through my life, I have had a few favorite places, but my overall favorite place is sitting in my front yard. A favorite place to me one that you can enjoy and relax, where you are at peace. This essay is about my favorite place, as I will tell you why it is. Sitting in my front yard, I watched my kids and grandkids play running around, swimming in the pool, and riding their bikes. My front yard has seen a lot through the years. I have a lot of great memories, and plan to make a lot more in the future. It is a place we had barbeques, parties, and other events. My front yard I can sit and enjoy the smell of fresh cut grass, kids playing and just relax. Our kids and grandkids all have played and left their mark in it, we all have. It was the place my kids and grandkids had their first skinned knees, they learned to ride a bike had their first cookout. Some of the memories I have of sitting in my front yard are birthday parties, my youngest daughter’s wedding, and the Fourth of July fireworks. All my kids and grandkids love to come to our house and play in the yard. We love to have them over; they are there about every weekend and more during the summer. Every Fourth of July when I am home, I set of firework for the family. I try to make it a big event we cook out, swim, and enjoy each other’s company. The kids and grandkids have a blast; we try to plan many things for them to do for the whole weekend. Most of the things have to deal with being outside in the yard. We had our daughter’s wedding in our front yard. It was a beautiful ceremony; we had what you would call a garden wedding. The weather was great, sunny skies and in the 70’s, a great day for a wedding. We had the chairs setup for the guests and the flowers arranged nicely. With everything setup I met my daughter at my front door and walked her down the isle to the alter to give her away. The ceremony was great everything went off without a hitch. In conclusion, my favorite place is a place is my front yard where I can relax and enjoy life with my wife, kids, and grandkids. It has great memories for me my wife and kids. Its where we all get together to talk, and enjoy each other’s company.

Literature Review on Why a Single Book of The Odyssey Was My Favorite

The Odyssey the Greek hero and his return journey after the Trojan War. Odysseus’s Voyage covers extensively the Greek world. All the way through the adventures of Odyssey, gods play an immensely significant role, with many of the gods liking him. His whole journey filled with arguments amongst gods. This story is said to be historically accurate and exceptionally significant to the ancient Greeks. Ulysses is illustrated to be a skilled warrior, athlete, masterful, articulate and courageous. In his trial to return home, he meets numerous adventures like the one-eyed Cyclops and the furious; god Poseidon who try to destroy him. He also meets the seduced sirens who lure him to distract from his mission through their seductive songs. The intoxication with Circe captures him with her mysterious magic. This story appears to be hard to believe in the present epoch, with great advancement in scientific knowledge. The Greeks believed firmly that the gods were accountable for every for daily occurrences. In his absence, Penelope, Ulysses’ wife remains faithful to him. The suitors who wanted to marry Penelope. They do not recognize that Odysseus is alive but being held hostage by Calypso in her island. Telemachus, Ulysses’ son tries to protect his mother from forced marriage by throwing the suitors away even though he is too young. Zeus daughter, attempt to assist Telemachus by masquerading herself as an adviser and a friend of Ulysses; she tells Telemachus to hold a meeting and get the suitors to abscond but it fails. On a second attempt, Pallas advises Telemachus to set sail to meet Menelaus the King of Sparta and Nestor the King of Pylos. King Nester never had much to say concerning Ulysses. He just mentioned that he saw Ulysses later after the war. Nester advises them to sail with his son Pisistratus to Sparta and talk with Menelaus, the King of Sparta and friend Ulysses. When they arrived at Sparta, Menelaus informs Telemachaus that Ulysses was alive but was being h eld by Calypso. In his absence, the suitors plan to kill Teremachus. Zeus makes a decision send Hermes to save Odysseus from Calypso. After a successful conviction by Hermes, calypso set Odysseus free to sail. On the sea, he meets Poseidon, the god of the sea. Poseidon sends brutal storms to wreck the Odysseus’s ship; he had been holding a grudge against him for blinding his son. Odysseus is saved by Athena and goddess Ino and lands at scheria. Here, he is invited to the palace by the Phaeancian princess. He is promised a save passage to Ithaca and requested to give a story on his adventure up to the arrival on Calypso. Upon his arrival Odysseus is still disguised like as a beggar man, he receives many abuses and insults from the suitors. Odysseus old nurse is the only person who recognized him, but promised not to reveal to anyone. Penelope likes the ‘beggar’ and suspects him to be Odysseus. She organizes an archery competition and promises to marry the man who can shoot an arrow through a line of twelve axes and can string Odysseus’s bow. On the competition, all suitors could make it to string the bow but could not fire the arrow through the axes. Odysseus decided to take on the suitors. He alone possessed the knowledge and intelligence of the string bow. The failure of his suitors marked his acceptance back to Ithaca. Odysseus later discloses himself to the whole palace. They later travel to the outskirts of the Ithaca to meet his father, Laertes. Relatives of the dead suitors attacked Odysseus and his family, at this moment his father Laertes filled with energy by sons arrival kills Antinous’ father. The whole assault is put to and end. Zeus later sends Athens to restore peace, his land and re-uniting with the family. The long journey by Odysseus reaches its last part. Work cited Alexander, Pope. The Odyssey of Homer. London: Ingram, Cooke, and Co.,227 Stranded, 1853. 11 Nov. 2010. http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=0Y5LAAAAMAAJprintsec=frontcoverdq=The+Odysseyhl=enei=-bvbTOCTIIqZOouWveEIsa=Xoi=book_resultct=book-thumbnailresnum=3ved=0CDkQ6wEwAg#v=onepageqf=false