Cecelia's Thoughts...

What is like to have a regret? I mean, how could you deal with the remorse of something that is gone, done, not possible anymore?
So here is the big deal: how could Huck turn Jim in and still the good kid, the smart and brave main character that we all like? In fact, even if Jim is just a slave, or worse, he is a fugitive who's (unjustly) blamed of murder, he is also a friend of Huck, and shares his secrets and his fears. Jim becomes more than a friend but the paternal figure which is missing in Huck's youth. A slave, rejected by the society and dehumanized as a beast becomes the kindest to a white kid which refuses to submit its life to his father's will (and to the society's typesetting, so he gets rid of his money, abandon the town and its people and hides on an uninhabited island). How could Huck sell this kind of relationship just because of a moural boundary (which belongs to the society that he regrets) when he has just showed what his heart is able to feel, trying to save the band of mourders on the boat?
I guess this is the reason why the author got stucked for a while in writing this book.

Huck

I am enjoying this book very much. It is much different just because of the audience i feel like is for younger boys. it always amazes me on how clever Huck can be. from the very beginning you can just tell he is smarter than others and his old man. when he is escaping from his dad he just continues to out think him. i love the humor that the author uses because it keeps me interested in the novel. i really dont think this book is too racist. there are parts that are questionable but i think that was just the time period. back then it was a common thing to call a black persona that. In this particular novel i do agree it is overly used, i think it is completely uneccesary to use the n-word on almost ever page but if thats how it was back then, than ok. Some will say that is still racism even though they didnt know it, and ya i guess thats true but because they didnt know it didnt exsist to them. By just reading how Huck's dad and Jim act you can obviously tell who is more intelligent. maybe not by language but by wit, how well they survive, and handle different obstacles. i personally do think this book should be taught in all schools because i dont think it is racist.

My thoughts on Huck Finn

I think that Huck Finn is a good book. Even though its an easier read and it is written for younger boys, i still really like it. I can always make connections to it through some of the things i would do when i was little like pull pranks, mine might not of been as "good" as there's though. Just the humor he throws in there is what i think pulls the whole story together and makes you want to keep reading. The one thing that it was hard to get use to was the N-word, there are times where its either unnecessary or just over used. I know that they used it a lot back then and it was just how things went but its just hard to get used to cause most people are taught today that we shouldn't refer to colored people as the N-word. Other than that the story isn't predictable at all but its an adventure story that shows different conflicts that they go through. It actually made me sad when Huck was going to go turn Jim in. I thought for sure he was more loyal than that, I'm glad he lied to the men and got money. The relationship between Huck and Jim are pretty equal. I don't think Huck looks down on Jim, I think he sees him pretty much as a friend. I thought this really stood out that night Jim came back from the town and he heard that the Older Man was coming out to look for Jim to kill him, And Huck made distractions, the fire in another place. Then when Huck told Jim the news he said come on WE have to get out of here. I thought this showed that they were together through all of this. Finally when they got to the fog and got separated and Huck played a prank on Jim, i thought that that he thought it was just going to be a funny laugh but when he realized that it actually hurt Jim he was sad. He just wanted to play a prank, but Jim didn't take it the way he thought he would, I think this kind of showed Huck and put him in his place that he needs to be nice to keep the only things he has around. From what i have read so far i really like this book and I'm sure there are going to be a lot more adventures and crazy things that happen!

huck Finn .. davis b

I really like this book because it is fun to read and easy to relate to my own childhood memories because I always remembered playing cops and robbers, running around similar to the main characters of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. I loved to play pranks on my older brother along with my twin brother. This book is written in a boys' perspective, therefore I have found it very easy to read as well as understand.

This book is, as you said in class, a product of its time. During the 1830s black people made up a huge percentage of the South, however were insulted, enslaved and treated horribly. It may come off as being prejudice, however it is truly how they spoke during this era. The use of the N word is a constant reminder of how derogatory this book is. But it is also simply how the kids and all white people were taught to speak. I do believe it should be taught because it is how our history truly played out. It was disgusting and awful, but today we need to learn from what the people of our past. The book, Huck Finn, Samuel Clemmings set back 50 years from when he was writing it, could have also been very important because in the 1880s was when racism was at a climatic point. It shows how little thing shad truly progressed, however by this time the civil war was already over and racism was already being solved. Who knows why he put these books in this time period, but it was evident it was to show some facts of our history as a well as reach out to many readers and remind them of their childhood.

I am confused of why he would stop on page 72. I understand what went on but I think it was probably just because he needed time to think of something super dramatic that he could through in there.

A key factor in this novel if how huck and jim are companions it shows how innocence has brough them together. This is fun, and the tricks are also funny as wellas meant in a harmless manner. The fact that Huck aplogizes really shows how they will not betray eachother and how honesty is a pounding theme. I really like this book.

Huck and Jim have become close. More like best friends trapped on an island together. But when Jim finds out that Huck pranked him, he went bolistic and compared Huck to trash. I feel like this reaction was appropriate because if you were to put yourself in Jim's shoes, you would feel betrayed and disrespected. His whole life, Jim was a slave and was dehumanized because of his race. His friendship with Huck finally made him feel like he was a human not a product. Huck made Jim like a total fool, and only dehumanize Jim a tad bit more.


This kind of shows that yes, this book can be written down as racist, but I also believe that it should be taught in a high school classroom. Racism is in our history, in our older generations and our responsibility to accept that as human being, we are never truly equal to each other.

I for one enjoy this book and like how it's easy and fun to read. it can get hard to understand at certain pints, but the adventurous plot and story line make it hard to really stop reading and put it down. There's suspense around every corner!

Huckleberry Finn and Nigger Jim

For the third time in the novel, Huck Finn tricks nigger Jim. (pp. 63-65) After the huge incident on the river, separating Huck and Jim, Huck pretends it never happened. “You couldn’t a got drunk in that time, so of course you’ve been dreaming” (64). Clearly, the trauma was reality, yet Huck thinks it’s humorous to trick the runaway slave. In his eyes, it’s normal to poke fun at niggers because he has been raised with these ideas as norms. Huck was so convincing, Jim even believed him even though he knew it was not a dream. However, Huck is different than most white people. After tricking Jim, he felt guilty and wished he hadn’t done it. “It made me feel so mean I could almost kissed his foot to get him to take it back” (65). Huck’s mindset has been changed and he realizes that Jim, although black, is a human being and has the same feelings he does. Inches away from helping the slave find freedom, Huck begins to question why he should continue to aid Jim. He knows that what he is doing is illegal, yet he continues to put his life in danger for the better of someone else. Just as all the confusion was cycling through Huck’s mind, the slave hunters approach Huck, asking if he has seen any escaped slaves. Shocked and mentally torn, Huck hesitates before finally telling the men he was only with a white man. When they ask to see the man, Huck agrees because he knows better than to cause any suspicion. Being extremely clever and able to easily derive a lie, Huck begins talking about his father who is extremely sick with small pox. By playing innocent and concerned, the hunters feel more than sorry for him. Not only do they turn around, but two of the men give Huck twenty dollars, which he even splits with Jim. This shows how Huck is anything but racist. He risked his life for Jim and even gave Jim the money that was given to him. The chapter continues with Jim saying, “Huck, you’s de bes’ fren’ Jim’s ever had” (67). Although this is a cute moment in the novel, I believe it frightens Huck and he feels he is stuck with Jim, unable to get away or abandon him without feeling terribly bad. The chapter ends with Jim and Huck being separated because their boat was destroyed by another. I think Mark Twain stopped here because he struggled to decide whether they should find each other or Huck should run far away before Jim could find him. This is a turning point in the novel where the entire plot could shift to the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” versus the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Jim.” It’s understandable for Twain to be confused where to take his story next, so am I excited to find out what he decided.

Hucky

Overall, I like this book a lot. Its a quick good memorable read with so many small ideas placed in the middle to keep me thinking. I like it more than the Scarlet Letter for sure. Now onto the scenes. After Huck catches up with Jim on the raft, and plays this prank of lies, I start to get the feeling that Jim has become a very non racist character. What I mean by that is when he stands up to Huckleberry, he shows that the black slaves are more sypathetic and smart than the old south would have us believe. Its almost like the racism is reversed, since now the smart black Jim has seen through the white man's lies, showing the inferiority of the whites. Huck realizes his stupid prank realllly hurt Jim's idea of them being friends working towards the same cause. The other scene when the hunters show up; shows how Huck has evolved from this "smarter Tom Sawyer" to a sympathetic adult symbol. He does originally want to turn Jim in, with the lowering of himself we he says he was going to steal his children. Huck tells the slave hunters he is white in a split second decision which he didn't fully understand. Only after he gets back to the raft and has a revalation, he finally understands why he is helping Jim."Whats the use you learning to do right, when it's troublesome to do right and ain't no trouble to do wrong" He finally realizes why he has helped JIm get this far, being his murderer after all. After this point, a whole new realm of thoughts must have swarmed Clemmens and that must be the reason he stopped writing. There was just to many angles to go at from this point, do they get caught?, do they get away to the north?, do they die?, must of taken that time off to think about the best way to go and still keep the same kind of story.

Hummmmmmmmmm

Huck and Jim tie their raft to a small sapling tree and when the current gets strong it pulls the raft which pulls on the tree and the tree becomes loose. As the current continues to pull in eventually pulls the sapling completely out of the ground and the raft begins to float down the river... with Jim on it. The raft and Jim float through the fog down the river. Eventually Huck finds them. When he comes up to it he sees that Jim is asleep and he decides to climb aboard and play a prank on Jim. He tells Jim that the raft coming lose and floating through the fog was all a dream. soon Jim becomes convinced and believes Huck. Jim notices shrub and leaves all over the raft and realizes that Huck had played a trick on him. When he notices he had once again been tricked by a young man he feels sad. He thinks Huck is his best friend and is upset that Huck would do such a thing. This shows a new side of Jim from the first trick played on him at the beginning of the book. The first trick makes Jim look like a stupid person, uneducated, and believes in anything. This trick changes Jim a little bit. Jim is hurt by it and he reacts with sadness.
I think Twain stopped writing for a year and a half because we are at a point in the book where they have passed Cairo. Their plan was to stop there and move onto the Ohio River. Now they can't do that and if they continue down the river it will lead them further and further into Slave country. Twain is trying to write about Jim gaining freedom, but how will he do that if they keep going further and further into the South?

Huckleberry Finn

Huck Finn and Jim have become good friends over their time on the river. The third joke that Huck plays on Jim happens in the fog when they get separated. Both start whooping to each other to try and find their location, but they keep moving around. Eventually Finn finds the raft, and Jim is asleep. The fog is gone by now, and Huck decides to play a joke on Jim. He wakes Jim up and tells him that he fell asleep and Huck decided to let him sleep for ten minutes. But Jim is sure that they got separated and that there was fog and they couldn't find each other. Huck assures him it was just a very vivid dream, but Jim stands up and says "En all you wuz thinkin' 'bout wuz how you could make a fool uv ole Jim wid a lie. Dat truck dah is trash; en trash is what people is dat puts dirst on de head er dey fren's en makes 'em ashamed." This is a big step for Jim, because it is the first time that he stood up for himself. The first joke he thought that he was rode by the witches, the second he almost died, but blames it on superstition and tells Huck not to blame himself. This was the one time Jim actually stood up for himself to Huck. And Huck humbled himself to Jim, even if he is black. Huck, even though born to racists and raised by racists, is getting over that and is starting to see Jim more as a friend then a runaway slave. This is shown more when the slave catchers come. Jim is truly considering turning in Jim because he knows it is wrong to be helping a slave. But when the time comes to tell the slave catchers that Jim is a runaway, he can't do it. Huck did try to tell them that Jim was black, but he choked on his words and eventually gave up and said Jim was white. When the men asked to see him, Huck said sure, but then made up a disease so the men wouldn't want to go near him. Huck was smart about it though, he never said a name of any illness because he wanted the men's help. Huck sees that Jim is now a friend and he keeps by his word to not tell anyone he ran away. When Mark Twain put this aside, I really don't know why he did because I can't get into his mind. But I think it happened because after Jim and Huck become friends and are heading to Cairo it was hard to continue because Jim and Huck are getting closer to freedom, but what do you do next? You either let Jim and Huck get to the free states, or Jim gets captured. I think this took a long time to think about because Jim is a real character now, so do you really want to catch him? Or catch him and make a better story? It would have been a tough decision depending on how attached to the characters Mark Twain was.

HUCK FINN!!

The prank Huck played on Jim was really mean and stupid. It was kind of confusing to read, but then I realized that Huck wanted Jim to look dumb. He told Jim that he was dreaming and none of that stuff happened. Huck thought it was okay to pull pranks on Jim... maybe because he is black or maybe because Huck wanted to be like Tom. At first, Jim did not really know what was going on and he was extremely confused. Then, he started to believe Huck. I think Mark Twain wanted Jim to be perceived as gullible and ignorant. Twain possibly wanted to get the idea out that if Jim was a white educated man, he would have known that Huck was lying to him. Later, Huck tells Jim what he had done, even though he felt like he couldn't confess to a black person. Huck was confronted by white men with guns hunting for runaway slaves. They questioned Huck about his raft and who was on it. Huck had to stop a second and think about if he should turn Jim in, because ultimatley, Huck was doing some very wrong too. He decided not to reveal the man's race who was accompanying him on the raft. I'm not sure if he did it for Jim or for himself. He hated being lonely and he was enjoying Jim's company. He tells the men that his father is on the raft, who would obviously be white. The men with guns wanted to make sure Huck was not lying, but Huck told the men his father had small pox. Jim told Huck that he was his best friend. At the end of page 72, Twain stopped writing the story for almost year. The chapter ends with Huck and Jim getting separated and Huck spotting a log cabin. He moved closer to the cabin only to hear frightening dogs barking. I could see how he got stuck because he probably wanted the book to continue on with excitement, but he he was unsure of how to do it. I also think he wanted it to be realistic, but he did not know what he wanted to do. I honestly do not know what to expect, but I am sure that it is going to be thrilling.

Huck and Jim

Huck and Jim have now been spending a lot of time together floating down the river and are becoming friends. Huck is Jim's only friend, and the only one he can trust.
After jim and Huck were separated in the fog Huck probably thought that he could make a fool out of Jim and it would still be funny. Huck told Jim that it was all a dream, but really Huck was there all along. yet he had no idea the trick really hurt Jim deeply. Huck says "it was fifteen minutes before i could work myself up to go and be humble to a nigger- but i done it , and i warn't ever sorry for it afterwards, neither." Huck was feeling sorry for Jim that he pulled that prank and was glad he apologized. Huck never had the intention to hurt Jim. After all Huck is just a little boy who admires Tom . Tom gave Huck the inspiration to pull pranks on less intelligent folks, especially blacks.
when Huck and tom began to come closer to freedom Huck had second thoughts about helping an escape slave to freedom. Huck was so close to turning Jim in, but lucky for Jim they ran into a couple of slave searchers. Huck came up with a story and ended up getting 40 bucks out of the deal. it ended up to be a good thing the he didn't turn in Jim. also had he turned in jim he would no longer have a buddy to go along with him in his adventure.
at the end of the scene was when Mark Twain had writers block. this may have been from having great ideas that led him up to this point. he also flew by the big scenes that were so great. if he hadn't this book wouldn't be half the book it is today. Mark needed time to come up with more great scenes. i think he wanted to continue to make the story kid friendly.

HUCK FINNNNNN

So, basically the book has had a complete transformation from the beginning. Racism seems to be less of a key role because Jim and Huck have a good relationship, mostly because they are by themselves. Tom hasn't been present lately, so racism has been downplayed. In the past couple sections Jim and Huck have become very good friends. When Huck plays a prank of Jim, Jim actually cares and his feelings get hurt. This displays how much Jim really depends on Huck to be his friend, because he is all that he currently has and because they have gone through a lot together lately. Then a little after that bit, Huck realizes how much he really cares about Jim. Huck, being the wierd, supersticious, need to do the right thing kid decided that society would expect him to turn in Jim for being a runaway. And he gets so close to really doing it when he runs into a few slave hunters, but right at the last second he makes up the huge excuse that the man in his raft is white. And he is actually his dad and he is very sick. The men assume he has small pox and make the decision to not go to the raft. This could also apply to the fact that racism isn't that important to kids. Huck is young, somewhere under twelve, and he never thought that it was ok to make fun of Jim, or avoid him, but he only came to be his friend. If anyone else knew of their friendship, like the widow or any adults, they would have Jim turned back in and would scold Huck for being associated with a black, and also the little secret about him faking his death would get out. So far, I don't think this novel is overly racist and I do think that there's not a problem for it to be taught in schools. Slavery and racism was a big part of the United State's history and kids need to be educated about it so they know it's wrong and something to that extent cannot happen again. Some parts might be rough, but it's the only way for kids to learn.

Huck Finn. Sonja

"So Jim went to work and told me the whole thing right through, just as it happened" (64). Huck's trick on Jim is that after they got separated in a huge fog and had a time finding each other, he told Jim everything he was saying was a dream and that it didn't happen. Jim was confused because Huck went on saying that they never got separated and there never was a fog, they never had to call for each other and that Huck was there all the time. Huck did this mean trick because he thought he was supposed to. All through his life he was showed and taught to play tricks on African Americans, especially from the infamous Tom Sawyer. After He saw how confused Jim was Huck started to feel bad about his mean trick, Jim had no idea what was going on and probably thought he must be crazy, he felt stupid and demeaned.
After Huck saw Jim walk away to his wigwam without saying anything he felt completely awful about what he did. "It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself to go and humble myself to a nigger, but I done it, and I warn't ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didn't do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldn't done that one if I'd knowed it would make him feel that way" (65).

Later on, Jim starts to talk about how excited he is to be free and all the plans he had once he was. This makes Huck very uncomfortable because he feels as if he's doing something awful by letting Jim run away. Society has pounded into his head since birth that people should own Jim just because of the color of his skin. Huck decides to turn Jim in and conveniently slave hunters show up. But at the last second he tells the men that the other person on his raft is white and gets them away with a cool lie about it being his father with smallpox. Huck obviously really does care about Jim and this is another way we can see their relationship growing.

I think Twain suddenly suffered from writers block after page 72 because of how the chapter ended. Huck and Jim had gotten separated again and I think Twain was letting the book write itself and didn't know what other adventure to bring them on. He purposed this book to make money and probably couldn't think of another problem to get Huck and Jim into.

Huck Finn thoughts

The majority of Huck Finn is written as a boy's book. Really it's called The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and that's what it is. The book is full of adventures that Huck goes on, like the scene on the boat. While the fog part is much more intense than anything that has occurred before, it is still something that a kid could be very interested in because it is exciting. Not everything in Huck Finn is geared towards boys, however. Some of the ideas about racism could not be understood by small children. That's probably a good thing because if they did understand it that could have a bad effect on them. But even if the children don't understand the themes, Huck still says "nigger" quite often, and even if a child wouldn't understand it they might use the word. So it's mostly a kids book but not entirely. Huck and Jim's relationship fluctuates at various times in the novel. They have a very good relationship while on Jackson island as shown by Huck immediately running to tell Jim "They're after us." It shows that they have a good relationship. After the fog incident they are not doing as well because of what happened and the stupid trick that Huck played on Jim. Huck always thought that not turning Jim in was bad and with their relationship in turmoil he gives it even more thought. Huck almost turns Jim in because their relationship is not doing so well. He decides not too because he knows Jim is all he has, and is his best friend. I think that after this Twain suffers from writers block because he doesn't know what should happen next. I think that he had to make a big decision about the direction to take the novel in. There are so many things that could have happened that he didn't know what would have made the most money.

huck fin

Although Huck Finn isn't the kind of book that i would normally pick up to read, I am having fun reading it. I think that this book definitely has a racist point of view but i think that it is relevant to the time period that the book was written and it wasn't supposed to be a book against blacks. Mark Twain is product to his time period and reading this gives a good sense of how things were when slavery was real and what the people and especially the kids of this time were like. I think Huck Finn was written for little boys but it is also a fun book for adults to read. There are some events in the book that seem a little more extreme and not for kids but i think that when kids read this book they probably wouldn't pick up on those events. This book does a good job of showing character and hooking the reader in to the story. Reading this book reminds me of most little kid adventures and it is a fun book to read.

I enjoyed this last reading. The part with the incident in the fog really shows a new side to Jim and the foolishness of Huck. Huck decides to play another prank on Jim after they get separated . Jim falls for the prank at first but then he comes around and realizes that it was just a prank that Huck was playing on him. When he finds this out his feelings are really hurt. I think that this part humanizes Jim a little more. I was able to sympathize with Jim and experience his character in a more compassionate way. Earlier in the book i feel like the like Jim was always portrayed at sub human (result of the time period) but now i care more about his character. After this happens I am surprised that Huck still feels compelled to turn Huck in. I realize that during this time period a runaway slave is a bad thing but I kinda felt like Huck's opinion had changed. It was most shocking because it was after Jim tells Huck that Huck is his best friend. I got worried when the slave hunters conveniently show up but soon i was relived because Huck still decides to save Jim. I think these events are making the book less racist. Jim is getting to be an actual character in the book instead of a random bystander. And the "white" character and the "black" character are becoming friends. :)))))))

Huck Finn

Pages 57-72, to me, are the most interesting of the book so far. I really love the changes in Jim and how the relationship between Huck and Jim sort of alters into something different. The pages of 63-65 are very interesting. During these pages, Huck tries to fool Jim into thinking that the fog never really happened. Here, you see a lot of Jim's humanity shine forth. As Huck continues to go along with his plot to fool Jim, Jim begins to "'terpret" his "dream" and later tells Huck that the leaves, rubbish, and smashed oar mean that, "What do dey stan' for? I's gwyne to tell you. When I got all wore out wid work, en wid de callin' for you, en went to sleep, my heart wuz mos' broke bekase you wuz los', en I didn' k'yer no mo' what become er me en de raf. En when I wake up en fine you back agin', all safe and soun', de tears come en I could a got down on my knees en kiss' yo' foot I's so thankful. En all you wuz thinkin' 'bout wuz how you could make a fool uv ole Jim wid a lie." This quote shows that Jim is not the dumb black man that he was made out to be before. He is now transforming into a human with real emotions and real ideas. He knows what is going on and feels mad that Huck tried to make a fool out of him. Huck later apologizes to Jim and says that it took him fifteen minutes, "before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger-but I done it, and I warn't every sorry for it afterwards, neither." This quote really struck me because Huck is realizing that Jim isn't just a dumb slave and that no matter how much slavery makes black out to be in-human, they really are just like white people. Another part of this reading was very suspenseful when Huck thinks about how what he is doing is so wrong. Jim keeps saying how thankful he is to Huck and how it is all because of Huck that he will gain his freedom. This makes Huck feel AWFUL because all the while that Jim is saying this, Huck is debating whether or not to turn him in. Even when the slave capturers come up to Huck, he must make a decision of whether or not he wants to turn Jim in. In the end, Huck ends up lying and saying he is with his sick white father. Huck later ends up deciding that he'll do whatever is most convenient for him from now on, because it seems that either way Huck goes (turning Jim in or not) is terrible. In addition to these two parts of the book, there was the part where Jim and Huck argue over whether King Solomon was correct or not in threatening to chop a baby in half. Huck says that King Solomon is wise, but Jim believes that Solomon is stupid and wonders why the hell he would waste a child by chopping it in half. This is establishing (further) the idea that Jim is smart and has opinions and knows what is going on. Jim ends up winning the argument because Huck has nothing else to rebuttal with, even though he says it's because Jim is stubborn, but truly this shows Jim becoming worth so much and meaning a lot.

Huck Finn

While I was reading and Huck started talking about how Jim had been dreaming about the whole incident that had just happened minutes before, even confused me. Twain made the writing of the fog and how Jim and Huck got lost seem so vivid and the details were very good. Then once Huck tried to convince Jim it hadn't happened it made me really angry and even confused me to what Huck was saying. Poor Jim must of felt so stupid and I felt so bad for him. He thought that Huck was his friend. It was like when Tom Sawyer tricked Jim before with the hat and he started talking about the witches. That happened because Tom thought it would be funny and felt it was okay. Jim didn't know but when a boy he thought was his best friend tried to humiliate Jim and make him feel stupid so Jim was sad. Afterwards, Huck did feel bad for what he had done so he ended up telling Jim what he had done. It was good to see that Huck realized how bad it was to trick Jim and he actually realized that he shouldn't ever do it again. I think that Huck plays these tricks on Jim even though they are good friends because it's what he has known and seen done before. Also I couldn't believe that Huck considered turning Jim in. Huck thinks about this when Jim is talking about how he is so close to freedom and it's all because of Huck his best friend. It was at that moment that Huck's conscience started telling him that he had the chance to do what society believed was right which is to turn in the escaping slave. Huck had never heard Jim talk of such freedom before and it angered him. He thought, "He wouldn't dare to talk such talk in his life before." Jim was talking about saving up money and stealing his children away from slavery. I think this really scared Huck because he was the cause of this escape and he had helped Jim and by helping Jim that meant he was also helping other slaves escape and Huck wasn't used to that thought. He had grown up thinking that slaves were not allowed to escape and that they must have a master and must follow their master's rule. That's why it was so hard for him to accept at first, it was so against society. After Huck had thought about giving Jim away, he thought some m0ore and decided not give Jim away after all Huck would end up being lonely and he had become such a good friend with Jim, why give it all away just because society believed it to be that way. Also I think that Twain had writers block on page 72 because when he was writing he just went off and by the time he realized that Jim and Huck had seperated he wasn't quite sure where he could go next based off of what he knows. So it's interesting to see where he will take it considering he could do whatever he would like.

I find, Adventures of Huckelberry Finn a much more laid back and easy to read book. It was meant to be for young readers and for the dual of the Tom Sawyer book which was also set in the early 1830s. It is for men or young boys and how they are intrigued to explore, play practical tricks on other people and develop their own sense of adventure as well. Huck is a boy between the age of a child and a teenager and is finding himself. He already has many set opinions but beats to his own drum and does not want to create a problem or interfere with other people's lives. He simply wants to runaway from his drunken father, and on the same not help his father by not giving his dad the money to drink. his dad controls him and unlike most parents does not want the better being of his descendent but merely wants to drink himself "the forty yards away." Huck runs away to define himself and a better life for himself as well. On the way his companion, adult companion becomes Jim, an older black man who has been accused of killing Huck who previously facked his death. A theme already is the conflict between nature. And how everyone can once again be themselves. Also it is how honor is portrayed and how Huck makes this decision to go and live on with Jim at his side. They become a team an avid adventureres that will probably constantly be running away from society and the thoughts. When reading to page 72, it comes across as if he has stopped writing because this is a pivitol moment where Jim is taken from the boys. I don't know if he wanted to keep going. But he was publically known in the late 1870s that he needed to get this book out . Him stopping probably caused some financial problems. however the book is both a kids book and shows the time period in the 1830s..... It is a big thing that he wrote it so much early in date then when he was writing. I still do not grasp this? Thanks.

The Social Disintegration of Morality

The foundation of my essay was birthed through an idea written on the prompt, to question whether or not Theology was too Strict a basis for Governing. In my essay, I am going to focus on the Evolution (or De-evolution) of morality and a need for God in Society. Based on how people are judged and the social ladder in a God-Fearing community such as the one featured in The Scarlet Letter, and how the same things are determined in a society such as modern day, middle-class America, I will examine why Theology wanes from public importance. Today, the national anthem is banned from schools because God is mentioned, where as in a Puritan Boston, everyone believes in God and small steps from the Straight and Narrow are scorned upon. Is it the better living condition and comfortability that slowly Graduated the masses against religion? Is it that science now can explain almost all natural phenomena, whereas in the past, anything not understood would be contributed to an act of God? If I have completely missed the point of the essay (which I have a nagging feeling that I did), please tell me.

Public vs. Private Shame

I wanted to explore the idea of public shame, such as Hester’s, versus private shame, such as Dimmesdale’s. Which is worse? Hester’s sin is open to the public, and therefore she has to face it head on. She is forced to be reclusive and an outcast for her entire life. Hester is the “bad example,” the person who everyone does not want to be. People are unable to look past her sin of adultery and constantly judge her for it. She is forced to stand up on the scaffold for the mere purpose of ridicule. The ironic part is that Hester is not sure what she did was so wrong. She didn’t love Chillingworth, she loved Dimmesdale. She still thinks “sinful” thoughts and agrees with her punishment.
Dimmesdale, on the other hand, lives with the burden of hidden guilt. His sin was just as bad as Hester’s, yet now it has become worse because he is lying to the public. As an eloquent minister, Dimmesdale is admired by the community as a saint-like figure. If they had known he should have been on a scale with Hester, they would have viewed him completely opposite. Dimmesdale knows this, which is why he is too much of a coward to admit his sins. He is scared of losing everything he has worked for, yet with each passing day the internal pain increases, killing him. The fact that Dimmesdale has to live as if he was not the father of Pearl means he has to lie to himself and everyone else, always. However, because Dimmesdale’s guilty secret is inside, he is treated as if it weren’t present and has to act accordingly. Dimmesdale is therefore the biggest hypocrite of the novel as well. He knows all this, yet refuses to change anything.
Dimmesdale’s private shame means he suffers alone whereas honest Hester, although an outcast, has a few supporters. She is also a trustworthy idol for women who have done, or thought about doing, the same type of thing. They feel comfortable around her and can even seek advice. Hester has Pearl, the blessing that came from the situation, while Dimmesdale is forced to abandon his daughter. His emotional pain is so much that he even whips himself until the physical pain covers up his aching heart.
For them to feel any kid of shame, they must have a conscience sense of right and wrong. Right and wrong is generally decided by the majority. Hester feels her actions weren’t completely unreasonable, while the majority looks to her as the worst possible sinner. Therefore, Hester is forced to be shameful and believe her actions were that of Satan. Dimmesdale, being a minister, knows the Bible front and back. He knows how important his honesty is, yet he is the biggest liar of them all. Because Dimmesdale knows what is right, he understands how wrong his actions are.

Essay Topic

I am going to talk about the main influences of Hester in her transformation from the ashamed mother to the able mother in the end. I'm going to show how each of the influences(there are a lot to choose from, Pearl, Dimmesdale, Nature, Love) affect Hester in their own way, coming to a conclusion of the one that had to most affect. Each thing has its own effect on Hester(Pearl's influence keeps Hester on the bright side of life) and changes what happens in the seven years of shame. I will explain a lot of influences in some detail, but only the obvious ones in the extreme. In the intro, I will state what I think is the main influence, and tell of others and their importance. My bodies will explain each influnce, with the "main" one last and to sum up the others. The conclusion is a conclusion, its is a repeat pretty much

In my essay topic I am going to write about how Pearl is Hester, only Pearl holds no bound. She does what she wants. In the part where they are walking to the Governor's Mansion and the kids start throwing mud at them. Hester just tries to shake it off and keep going like nothing happened, while Pearl tries to scare off, and successfully makes them go away. I want to use that one, I think when Hester takes off the scarlet letter secretly Hester wants the letter back on. She says that she feels naked and Pearl asks her to put it back on.

Davis has an idea!

Hawthorne sparked my interest yet again, with the theme of transcendentalism. Because I am a strong believer of this philosophy, as I wrote about in my last essay, I am going to explain how it is such a powerful theme in this novel. Although I will share how this general theme influences Hawthorne's novel, I will also break down all of the specific transcendental values that are hidden in the book, such as nature's influence on Hester as an individual, the difference between the connection of the puritan community with Hester and her connection with nature. I may also talk about the transcendentalist theme of "nature in the individual". For this I will talk about how Hawthorne created each character with a distinct personality to help convey his transcendentalist beliefs. I will conclude my essay in an explanation that Hawthorne surpasses all of his counterparts by going farther than the usual transcendentalist values, and actually throwing feminism into the book to add another level of thought for the reader.

Davis has an idea

religion versus love

Why does religion exist?
What is its purpose?
And then, do we really need it?

The etimology of Religion itself explain the contraddiction that hides behind the common view that people has of it : in fact its origin may come from the verb to tie, to constrain men to the divine or to the community (because of the shared beliefs) or to separate, to move them away from the earthbound profane and reach the sacred.
Now, what Religion does is to move away the human part of our beings but what we really think about it is that it should free us, direct us to those which are the best choices for ourselfs and for the others too, but then how could it do this if its separating us from our main features? how could it help us growing as individuals if it tie us to the community or to a divinity?

Did Hester do a really bad thing having sex with a man that she loved?
Was it a sin to have a baby who was just the consequence of their love?
Is love natural or a sin?
Does love drive us away from god, or does it drive us cloeser?
Is god love, isn't he?


Then why Religion has to condemn love?

That's my question, and my topic too.

essay topic.

The Scarlet Letter has a strong relationship between the events that happen and the time or place where they happen. The setting of the book is really important to some of the books themes. the things that take place in the woods or in nature are more private, true and pure than the things that take place in society. Hester and Dimsdale are able to meet and truly be their selves in nature. they cant even be seen together in public. in society they dont have any connection with each other. the only relationship they are able to have in society is minister and diciple. there is also a difference between the things that happen between day and night. during the day hester and dimsdale struggle to even make eye contact with eachother but at night they can stand upon the scaffold together with no consequence.

quote

“Mother,” said [Pearl], “was that the same minister that kissed me by the brook?”
“Hold thy peace, dear little Pearl!” whispered her mother. “We must not always talk in the market-place of what happens to us in the forest.”

Nature vs. Society

My essay's topic is Nature vs. Society. I will be talking about the significance of the sunshine, the roses, why she lets her hair down, the "devils playground" and how nature loves Pearl (the wolf). Heaster feels more confertable and free while in nature, Pearl is more accepted, ETC.

Emilys Idea

I was thinking about writing my paper on the 4 main characters: Hester, Dimmsdale, Pearl and Chillingworth and how we can look at there actions in the book to improve society today. One example would be how Dimmsdale deals with hiding his sin, confessing and holding back his emotions. Another would be how Chillingworth uses Dimmsdale for revenge, and how in the end revenge ends up killing himself. Lastly I can use Hester and what she symbols as a women and how she wants to improve the gender role. Then i will talk about how Pearl overcomes her devilish self to grow up and be a well of mom.
One passage i was going to use is on page 44. "The very nature of the opposite sex.. which has become nature, is to be essential modified, before women can assume a fair and suitable position."
I would like some other ideas if you guys have some too?

My Paper

My paper is going to be about who is the true sinner. Yes it's abivious that Hester wears the answer to this on her chest, but the true sinner might not be so public about their sins. As arthur hides his secrets behind a mask, his guilt builds. Chillingworth also has his sins and guilt throughout the book. So who is the true sinner?

Scarlet Letter Essay- Love/Hate

For my essay, I would like to elaborate and further explore the idea of love and hate in the novel. To kick it off, I want to use the quote, "It is a curious subject of observation and inquiry, whether hatred and love be not the same thing at the bottom. Each, in its utmost development, supposes a high degree of intimacy and heart-knowledge; each renders one individual dependent for the food of his affections and spiritual life upon another; each leaves the passionate lover, or the no less passitonate hater, forlorn and desolate by the withdrawal of his object." When I was reading this, I was struck by the intellectual power of this statement. I feel like anyone can relate to this. There are always going to people you like and dislike, but to love and hate are such powerful emotions that truly do require dependence on the other loved/hated subject. I want to go into depth with the relationship between Dimmesdale and Chillingworth, mainly Chillingworth's hate towards Dimmesdale. I also want to delve into the bonds between Hester and Dimmesdale and how their love towards each other was/affected the plot. This quote was very inspirational and the minute I read it I knew I wanted to look further into the relationships in the book.

Pre-Pearl vs Post Pearl

I am thinking of writing about Pearl and her additude before Dimmsdale's death and after. Before she was a wiley elf child who was an outcast of society and had to be her own best friend, and she was always faifull to her mother. When she first met Dimmsdale out of soiciety and he kissed her on the head she ran to the brook so she could scrub it clean. But when he was dying on the scaffold and finally admitted his crimes Preal kissed him on the lips and even started to cry. This also goes with before, it seemed like she didn't care for other human's, but things that were free and wild she didn't want to hurt. In the future she knows human happiness and love and not being ashamed or an outcast all the time. As Hawthorne says on page 155, "the naughty child picked up her apron full of pebbles, and, crepping from rock to rock after these small seafowl, displayed remarkable dexterity in pelting them. One little gray bird, with a white breast, Pearl was almost sure, had been hit by a pebble, and fluttered away with a broken wing. But then the elf chilf sighed , and gave up her sport; because it grieved her to have done harm to a little being that was as wild as the sea breeze, or as wild as Pearl." Pearl has a true compation for nature before, and also a hatred for society. She liked to pick fights with children and would make an A for herself out of seaweed, the very thing nobody wants. But after Dimmsdale's death, after the promise, she got married and had children, with (for what we know) no adultry. This shows she had to conform to society a little bit, even if she was still attached to nature.

Shame

I was thinking of writing about if shame is a good punishment. In some ways it is a good punishment because everybody knows what you did and its embarrassing. On the other hand if the person doesn't care what people think then the punishment isn't affective. Shame is a feeling, and feelings come from ones self. Different people have different feelings, so the punishment of shame will effect people differently. Also you can feel shame because every one found out or because you let your self down. So shame as a punishment really depends on the person.

Scarlet Letter Essay Topic

For the essay i was thinking about writing on Pearl. She was my favorite character in the book, and Hawthorn explains her actions and thoughts with a lot of thought and detail. I'm going to start off with how Pearl is the living proof of the sin that Hester created and when they are on the scaffold she tries to hide the "A" but when she realizes that she is hiding the "A" With the living proof of the sin. Then how the town Magistrates want to take her away from Hester, but Hester refuses. Then Someone asked Pearl where she came from and being he smart ass self she says " I was plucked from the rose bush." which was located outside of the prison door. Then the Black man comes up to Hester and tells her to come into the forest and she said " she would if they took Pearl away from her. " Pearl has no real friends, she plays with imaginary people. The other kids and Adults in the community think that she is a devil child. When they are walking through town and they throw mud at them so Pearl yells at them and chases them. When they are in the forest talking to Dimmsdale Pearl asked Hester if she had any sunlight for her... this happens quite a few times in the book which I'm going to cover... I'm also going to talk about that Pearl No's more than everyone thinks she does, she is a smart girl and notices things like when Dimmsdale puts his hand on his heart, she wonders if its for the same reason that Hester has the "A"... She is one Smart, Mischievous girl that is very entertaining!

Revenge

I am thinking about writing my essay about revenge in the novel. I am thinking about including how even though revenge is supposed to end up biting the person seeking revenge in the end, this doesn't really apply to Roger Chillingworth. His revenge was really far worse for Dimsdale than Chillingworth in the end. Dimsdale had to suffer from Roger Chillingworth for seven years, during which Roger was feeding off of this pain. During this time life was perfect for Chillingworth. Chillingworth died soon after Dimsdale confessed. It cannot be said that this was punishment for Chillingworth's revenge because he was going to die soon anyway. He was an old man and the life expectancy wasn't too long in colonial boston. some other things I am thinking about including are the scenes on page 121 and on 136-138. 121 shows how excited Chillingworth is when he rips off Dimsdale's shirt and reveals the Scarlet Letter or whatever to himself. This shows how excited Chillingworth is to be able to feed off of Dimsdale's suffering. 136-138 shows how Dimsdale is suffering because of Chillingworth and how Dimsdale can't escape. Something else I am thinking about including is explaining hwo chillingworth gets revenge by showing how he tells Hester that it is better for him if they continue on suffering. by showing these examples it will show how Chillingworth is able to get a very good revenge. then I will explain how it never really comes back to hurt him because he was going to die anyway.

Scarlet Letter Essay Topic

So, right now I am still all over the place with what exactly I'm going to talk about. But I am pretty sure that my basic, overall topic will be about the symbolic representation of the "A". As I go through my paper, I can talk about how the role of the scarlet letter and the "A" has changed. First the "A" was supposed to stand for adulterer and bring shame to Hester. Hester first thinks about trying to hide the letter the first time she is on the scaffold. She strives to cover it with Pearl, until she realizes Pearl bascially is the living reason for the letter. There is no way she can hide it. Throughout the book though, Hester changes internally, but in a different way than society expects. Instead of wanting to remove the letter and be accepted again, she learns that her society is not worth joining again. She decides when she will take the letter off. She believes she will never be able to truely be herself in society with other people around. She can only be herself in the forest. There is also a giant change that happens throughout Pearl in the book. At first when she is young, many people in the society dislike her. They believe she is a demon child. Parents don't want their kids to hang out with her, because she is strange. They don't like that she doesn't have a father. She also tends to throw tantrums, and even reaches the point to where she is almost taken away from Hester by the town magistrates. But as she gets older, she tames down. In the end, she ends up married to a good, wealthy man. Also, the "A" seems to transform to able. This is more of society's views on her. She is able to gain respect, support her and Pearl, have a skill, and be a stable mother. In the eyes of the town magistrates, who sentenced Hester to wear the letter for the remainder of her lifetime, watch Hester over the years. They believe they see personal growth and allow her to take the letter off, but Hester refuses. It is like the town magistrates are rewarding her for her good behavior, but she has no desire for society's approval. The Puritan Boston society she lives in is hallow and unaccepting. The night when Dimmesdale first stands on the scaffold with Hester and Pearl, a specific scene takes part in the sky. The night Governor Winthrop passed away, a meteor went through the sky and appeared to be an "A" that stood for angel. The people who saw the meteor believed that it was a sign that the governor went to heaven. This gradual change for what the three words the "A" stood for, adulterer, able, and angel, also show a change of how the book started from a negative scene to a postive scene. Adulterer was a sin, very bad. Then it improved a little to able. Then it improved to being angel. The book really turns around from a down beginning to a happy positve ending. Kinda. Except for all the deaths.

Who is the worst sinner?

I think I may write about how Chillingworth is the worst sinner in the Scarlet Letter. I understand that he was angry regarding Hester and Dimmesdale, but he had no right to do anything he did. Hester and Dimmesdale sinned out of love, rather than Chillingworth's intentions of revenge. He kept it a secret for almost seven years, pretending to be Dimmesdale's friend and doctor. Hawthorne said, "The clergyman's shy and sensitive reserve had balked this scheme." (p. 122) Because of Dimmesdale's happy and accepting nature, Chillingworth knew he could pull this off. Obviously, Dimmesdale agrees with me and says, "We are not, Hester, the worst sinners in the world... That old man's revenge has been blacker than my sin." (p.170) I guess my main argument is that Chillingworth sinned out of revenge, in comparison with Hester's sin of love. This paper willl be interesting.

Nature Verse Society

For my Scarlet Letter writing promt I want to write about Nature Verse Society in Nathaniel Hawthorne. I am planning on taking three different aspects from nature and then expanding on them and talking about what I think the author thought they portrayed. I am going to look at the rose bush, the sunshine, and the forest. I also want to take the meaning of his nature and compare it with the meaning of his society. I want to expand on the clashes and things that nature and society disagree on and maybe even some of the things they have in familiar. Then by comparing and contrasting I will decide whether Hawthorne thinks society or nature are better and why. I'm going to take passages from the forest as well as the rose bush passages and sunshine passages and compare them with each other and with passages talking about society. I want to broaden the readers view on nature on how it affects people such as Pearl, Hester, and Dimmesdale. I also want to discuss what nature means to these specific characters by taking the forest context.

3 scaffold scenes-sonja

I'm thinking about comparing and contrasting the three scaffold scenes in my paper. I could write about how different each of the scenes are, like how they each mean very different things. The first scene Hester stands with Pearl on the scaffold with the Scarlet Letter on her chest while the town stands and look at her, talking with each other and giving her shame. The second scene is of dimmesdale in his despair pretending he's telling everyone his secret. I could explain how different the two felt as they stood there. How Hester was calm and collected on the outside but really dying on the inside. Dimmesdale was letting out his despair and felt a new light inside of him even though it didn't change anything for him, his suffering still had to stay. Then the last scaffold scene, dimmesdale lets it all out. He stands with his lover and they're daughter and announces to everyone that he is the biggest sinner of all. His dark secret is finally out and he reveals his chets and whatever on it. after, he dies right there on the scaffold. He couldn't handle what had happened. All three of these scenes are very different, yet they all have huge meaning and all happen at the same place. I need to tie them together by how big of scenes they are, yet contrast them by how different the characters felt each time.

My topic

For the Scarlet Letter essay my topic is love. how there wasnt really love between chillingworth and hester and why it didnt work out because there was no love. the love between hester and dimmesdale and how that could have been taken as lust for a little but then they had a child and it could have turned into real love. and the love between hester and pearl and that there will always be love there because it is a different kind of love.

public v. private

We as readers see or understand Hester Prynn in two different ways. Her inward character is the opposite of what she acts like in public. Hester's outward character in the begging is more scared and she fears the worst. She is embarrassed and the shame brought upon her is killing her from the inside. but toward the middle and end she doesn't really mind the letter, she is so used to everyone pointing fingers at her. She is really the nicest lady in the Town. she sews stuff for the village, helps out the poor and is nice to everyone. But as the narrator tells us, she would be shamed twice as harshly if they really knew who she was. Hester talks bad about others and said that she would kill Pearl and then kill herself, because of all that she has gone through, her life sucks.
If only Hester was who she seems to be.

topic..

I will write on how vital the story is with pearl and how pearl is a symbol in every mean. Pearl is the most complex character in the story and the largest symbol. She is a living version of the Scarlet letter and without pearl no one would have known HEster had commited this crime. She is the physical consewuence to this sexual sin and even an indicator of transgression. However she is also a blessing and everyday gives Hester a reason to live and thrive. She shows Hester everyday and reminds her of the passion and the love that was used and put forth into creating the beuatiful creature of pearl herself. Pearl, is a weird child and her life really begins when she finds out who her father is. she goes on to understand the world and live a joyous life with an artistocrat still caring deeply for her mother. There are constant reminders through out the book of how she is the symbol. first on the staffol when she will hide the letter with the baby, but that defeats the purpose in itself. This symbolism carries on the entire book also when the town wishes to send pearl away from her mother, but why would they do that, pearl must remind hester everyday of this horrible sin. I think i can capture a lot through purl an indirect object which is also the very meaning of the book itself.

Hester

This is kind of all over the place. 

Hester accepted the aftermath of what she had done because she had no choice, but she accepted it grace and strength. I think she did this, not to preserve her pride, but because she had the choice between fighting it until it wore her out, or taking it as something to build her up, if anything. In letting society force her momentarily out of their bubble she was no longer constrained to their ideas of what needs to be fixed. When they are ready to accept her back into society she refuses, because she seems to have accepted it into herself, she said that if it were the letter's time to be taken off it would fall away of it's own accord. Even though Hester seems to have given up her womanhood and given into her sin. I think the loss of light Hester seems to have experienced doesn't come from the scrutiny of society or weight of the guilt. Instead I think it comes from her unrequited love for Dimmsdale, being so close but unreachable. When Hester and Dimmsdale meet in the forest and he asks to let him love her and Pearl, this is  proved because it wasn't making up her sin to society that brought her back, instead what she had done simply needed to be justified. It wasn't the forgiveness of society that let her take away the A and be ready to leave Boston. It was the love of Dimmsdale, and the promise that he would come with her.

Dimmsdale, by not accepting the punishment that would have been given by society, was constantly tortured by it. Staying immersed in society he was not able to reflect on what he had done and it, in turn, tore at him daily. This is where Hesters strength saved her, by letting society force her out of their bubble she was no longer constrained to their idea of what needed to be fixed. She was able suffer for her own belief of what she had done wrong, instead of carrying the guilt society had pushed upon her. 

I don't think it was the guilt of her sin that weighed Hester down, causing her to sacrifice her womanhood and put up her hair, or that drove her to help those in need and work tirelessly.  I think it was the unsatisfied love that remained  from her affair with Dimmsdale, and helplessness from being so close and yet unreachable to the one person who really understood her that drained her life and cast away the sunshine. I don't think it was her pride that kept her head high through it all, or that inspired her to dress Pearl lavishly like she had sewn the A she wore.

pride or fear?

"Meeting them in the street, she never raised her head to receive their greeting. If they were resolute to accost her, she laid her finger on the scarlet letter, and passed on. This might be pride, but was so like humility, that it produced all the softening influence of the latter quality on the public mind." (page 141) Is she shutting people out because she wants to grasp her pride or is she afraid or embarrassed of her past? I believe it's a mizture of both. She has been pushed away and stood out from the croud for so long that she does not want to fit in. She of corse is upset about her past but imagain being shunned by society for so long then instently being invited back as if nothing ever happened?

Davis' Mind

Although this book is a tough read and it was quite boring in the beginning, it grew on me. I constantly catch myself spacing out or not understanding what I read, so I tend to re-read many pages. As I read past the early chapters the characters seemed to interest me more and I was left at the end of each chapter wondering what would happen next, either emotions flowing between Dimmesdale and Hester and their future plans, or Chillingworth's inner feelings for Hester's mistake and his growing plans on avenging Hester's lover.

Pearl

At the beginning of chapter 14, page 147, the narrator tells the world hoe Pearl plays, "Forth peeped at her, out of th epool, with dark, glistening curlsaround her head, and an elf-smile in her eyes, the image of a little maid, whom Pearl, having no other playmate, invited to take her hand and run a race with her." I feel really bad for Pearl. She was born an unpure child, the offspring of one of the most outcast woman in the town and to a father unknown to the town. Pearl was an outcast from the start because of her mother and the fact she was a fatherless child, so she had no chance of making friends in the start. She had to be her own best friend, and I feel bad for her because no child should grow up with no friends. If you have a bad social life as a child, then the chances of you growing up to become alone are so much more likely. Also, many people think she is evil, with the looks of an angel. But I don't think that she is extremley evil, only to people who have wronged her. On page 155 the narrator says what Pearl has been doing while Hester was arguing with Roger, "the naughty child picked up her apron full of pebles, and, creeping from rock to rock after these small birds, displayed remarkable dixterity in pelting them. One little gray bird, Pearl was almost sure, had been hit by a pebble, and fluttered away with a broken wing. But then the elf-child sighed, and gave up her sport;because it grieved her to have done harm to a little being that was as wild as the sea-breeze, or as wild as Pearl herself." This proves that Pearl does have a good side to her.

scarlet letter thingy do

Scarlet Letter is a good book, but most of the time, its hard to understand. Re-reading is a must if you want to understand. The effect of the Scarlet Letter on Hester makes it fun to read, seeing her transform from an abashed widow to a brazen mother. It almost seems as if the book was meant to show people that happiness in life can come from any situation. The evil shown from Pearl kind of shows the overview of whats happen with Hester. Pearl starts off like a normal child being held and nurtured, representing Hester before the sex. Then Pearl became a soft playful joy, with a harder evil like core. This small representation of Hester adds a twist as the two characters develop separately

Dumb-de-dumb-de-da.

Hummmmm.... The Scarlet Letter is a great book about the conflicts that life sometimes faces us with. I don't understand why Hester didn't admit to Dimsedale being her lover from the beginning. It would have probably made everything better for her if she had some one to share the blame with. I also don't get why Pearl hasn't said anything if she knew who her father was. The way the book is written just messes with me. I'll be into it for about a paragraph and then although I continue to read i loos motivation to pay attention and beginning to let my mind wander. I'll turn the page an then look up from the text and wonder to myself what the hell I just read. honestly if someone went it and decided to re-write this book into simple English I would certainly be more into it.

ScArLeT LeTtER

Hester’s life in the Scarlet Letter is the worst of anyone’s. She had not sinned alone, yet she faced the public blame without support from her paramour or fellow sinners. Her husband, Chillingworth, is the one who put Hester through the pain of an unhappy marriage in the first place, and now he condemns her for abandoning him. At the time of Hester’s adultery, she is in love with Dimmesdale. Yet after she is impregnated and forced to show society her disloyal actions, Dimmesdale leaves Hester alone and joins the rest. I have sympathy for Hester. She was forced to marry a man she did not love and when he left her, she couldn’t help falling for another man. In today’s society, although it is still looked at as a sin, adultery is more common and less of a shock. Poor Hester had her lover abandon her, her husband condemn her, and the town mock her. I just wish Hester could have someone to confide in without being judged. Society’s punishment is too harsh for Hester’s actions.

Scarlet Letter

Although The Scarlet Letter is a book with wonderful symbolism and signifigance, it fails to grab my attention and hold it for longer than a couple of paragraphs. There will be points in the book where it grabs me in, enthralls me, and then takes me on a ride. But the ride doesn't last very long at all, maybe a minute or two, and then, BAM! I have lost focus, and I sit there blankly staring at my bedroom walls wondering what the hell I just read. I like some points, and feel that the book has amazing writing, I wish I could write as deeply as Nathaniel Hawthorne achieves to. But the depth, after a while, becomes extremely cumbersome. My favorite thing about the book so far is the feminism that is intertwined within the depths of the text. I also really like the symbolism of the rose bush, the open sky, and the sunshine. It really annoys me that Pearl is so utterly bratty. Her presence is extremely unnerving and I feel it hard to want good for the child when she's so obnoxious. I really love the descriptions of her though...Just not her actions. Overall, I feel the book is really deep, and has a good point, but I cannot be throughly entertained by it.

nature vs society

The Scarlet Letter so far, in my opinion, has been a very interesting read. Something that was really compelling to me was how the author portrays in his own way nature vs. society. When Hester goes into the forest it becomes a sanctuary. In the forest, Hester and Dimmesdale are able to talk as their own spirits which are free and openlly ready to portray true character from deep within. In society they cannot speak as they wouold in nature. Some of the things they talk about include Roger Chiullingworth's true identity. Also Dimmesdale was able to forgive Hester for not telling him of her husband. He said, "I do forgive you, Hester...May God forgive us both! We are not, Hester, the worst sinners in the world. I though it was interesting to see Dimmesdale speak openly of what he had done as a sinner and that is why nature is so sacred. It creates this secret place for Hester and Dimmesdale, or anyone for that matter, to shed l9ight unto their deep and true feelings that they may be either too afriad or ashamed of to share with the world.

day vs night

i have noticed a strong importance in the difference between the night and the day in this book. the things that happen during the day time are very different that the things that happen at night. the book uses the sunlight to show events that are socially acceptable and the darkness shows events that need to happen under cover. the daylight can expose others to things. the punishment that hester recives is for her to wear her scarlet letter on her clothes at all times. but the only time that she actually gets publicly shamed is durring the day. everyone can see hester and her scarlett letter. the night lets things happen that not everyone knows about. for example when hester pearl and dimsdale are all out on the scaffold together. this could have never happened innocently if it was in daylight.

sonja

"And mother, he has his hand over his heart! Is it because, when the minister wrote his name in the book, the Black Man set his mark in that place? But why does he not wear it outside his bosom, as thou dost mother?"

Pearl is told by her mom that she signed the black man's book to make her be quiet, and then when the little girl sees Dimmesdale walking through the woods she comments on how maybe he did the same thing. Which is true, both of the adults committed a sin, and Pearl notices how her mother has to wear it on the outside so everyone can see, but Dimmesdale covers it up and keeps it secret inside of him. Although Pearl thinks this on false pretence, but it shows how much she really does see.

Hester and Dimsdale are very similar hypocrites. To most people in Boston they are very good on the outside. They think that Dimsdale is a very good minister. The way he speaks inspires them all. Hester is also viewed as a good person. The people think that she has been purified by the scarlet letter. The two of them are very different on the inside than they are on the outside. Dimsdale is dying because of his secret about his affair with Hester. He is also being eaten up by the fact that he cannot help Hester and Pearl. Hester on the inside is very depressed. She has ideas about feminism that were unheard of in her time. Dimsdale’s hypocrisy is worse than Hester’s. In Boston at that period of time the citizens would have thought that Hester’s ideas were far worse than Dimsdale’s sin. Now, quite the opposite is true. Although neither would technically be considered illegal, Dimsdale hiding what he did is far worse than having ideas about feminism. This is because most people in the world give each other freedom to have their own thoughts.

Dimmesdale sucks

It is not fair for Hester to take all the blame for what happend with her and Dimmesdale. she has gone through so much pain and she has gone through it all alone. Dimmesdale is such an ass for getting Hester pregnant and then just leaving her to raise a kid and suffer humilitaion every day. Yes it happens now a days with pregnancy that males arent ready for and they leave but that is just no ok. if i was Hester i would be torturing him day to day and definitely rat him out. Hester should do everything to make his life miserable. :)

Scarlet Letter

This book is a cliff hanging mystery, because the story could end at any time but it doesn't. She could say Dimesdale did it and my husband just got back and he is in the crowd. End of story, instead it drags on and on to keep you on the edge of your seating craving for more of the story. This is relevant in so many other books and movies. A mystery keeps you wanting to watch or read when it could be solved at any moment, but it doesn't.

The Scarlet Letter Reactions

I think this book is amazing. I think it is really special how all of these recurring images keep coming back to life. The whole deal with light and dark, with roses, the Scarlet Letter itself. These images keep coming back, and at first you think, there is no way that the author can be that good. Maybe we are all over speculating. But then you see as it goes on and on, that the author, Nathaniel Hawthorn, is actually a very, very distinguished writer. And every time you see another rose pops up, or the Scarlett Letter takes a new shape, it makes you want to keep on going and read on till you see the next image that is almost an edifice in the book. And is a necessary commodity in the book.

Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter began with a whole big scene where the town magistrates displayed Hester and Pearl on the scaffold for hours. Then they ordered Hester to wear the scarlet "A" for the rest of her life. At the beginning, I thought the whole book would be about adultry and Hester raising Pearl singly and the troubles she goes through. As we read deeper into the book though, everything became more about how a single sin can affect so many. There is Pearl, who doesn't have a father. She believes she came from a rose bush. And she has a harder time growing up, because all the other people in Boston, specifically kids, tease her. Then, there is Hester's husband, Chillingworth. He seems to be hurt, but he is also realizing how it is his fault. He comes to terms with the fact that Hester is much younger than him, and very beautiful. He is the one who sent her to be alone. He realizes this at the beginning, but still goes through the whole book trying to learn who the other man is. When he finds out, he does nothing. He pretends like he doesn't know. He has all the control over the lover's life pretty much. As for the lover, Dimmesdale, he is suffering but also surviving well. His reputation as a good, pure minister strengthens throughout the book. The town's people believe he is giving his strongest sermons yet, and he is the best minister in Boston. That is on the exterior. Then, on the inside he is basically dying. His sin, because he won't confess, is taking over him. He is becoming more and more weak, and is leaving Hester to get all the shame put on her. He is too much of a coward to reveal he was the lover. So basically, the whole story talks about how the affects of Hester and Dimmesdale's affair on not only them and their love, but also on their child and Hester's husband.

MY TAKE ONTHE SCARLET LETTER

The scarlet letter is a ponderous novel. It is deep and wieghty and the main theme is hypocarcy.
Themain question I have, is that I feel that is has been over exagerrated are these sins because if she had truly no idea that her husnband was not dead,then how is it a true sin. If she truly had fallen in love and concieved a child out of passion I do not understand the circumstance to its full potential yet. I feel as if, Chillington had been there and she had willingly slept with the minister then it would have been through sin and guilt. However, I do think the biggtest sin is Dimmsdale himself. he is a weak individual that is daily torn apart, that he can not announce his actions and he lets the one he loved qand still has feeling for suffer, daily. If he was a man at all he would be able to confront himself as well as thepublic and merely take it as a learning aspect in his life. He is a good man, that did bad and clearly did learn from it. He could teach others lessons but instead he is a hyporcite that teaches people the bible and how they need to live for the right things and desire to incorp[orate good in their life and l;ive sin free and if they do sin they need to give back to society.

Hester Prynne has commited sin and been sinned greatly herself. She has a great sense of dignity and honor and she withholds it. She is a respectedfigure in my mind because she wants to help others and teach and praise still, yet she is out of luck considering MANY MANY people sin and yet she is the only one who hhas to wear a letter for her sin. Through out the book there is a great amount opf imagery much with nature because nature is the pl;ace where they can be themselves and let loose and see the devil and converse with who they really are. It is a meeting place and a signature that represents characters. I like the book. it is deep and full of thoughts and you have to put the pieces together.

My thoughts on the Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet letter is a pretty good book, Hawthorn likes to write with a lot of description and details that are sometime unnecessary, in my opinion. When you just get to the meat of the story it is very entertaining and a fun read. I don't get why Hester is dressing like a poor person and not living in her high class clothes that she used too.. I think its nice that she helps the poor and still sews but its kinda funny how no one has asked her to make there wedding dress. Its cool how Hawthorn makes the same references through out the book, Sunlight, and the rose bush. I like the sunlight reference that the sunlight is happiness and pearl asks Hester if she has any sunlight for her. I thought its also funny how pearl is a rule breaker and doesn't listen. When the magistrates asked Pearl were she came from and she said she was plucked from the rose bush, that was the perfect answer for a little girl. I hope that at the end of the book everyone confesses and Hester tells Pearl the truth about the letter.

Chillingworth

Chillingworth is the worst sinner in the Scarlet Letter. Honestly, Chillingworth is being completely unreasonable. He admitted that he was sorry for arranging the marriage. He had a sense that Hester did not love him anymore, and he should have let her go. Although Dimmesdale is lying to the whole community, Chillingworth is going behind everyone's back, pretending to be something he is not. Yes, Dimmesdale did that too, but his intentions are because he is scared. Chillingworth is being a devious back stabbing friend to Dimmesdale. Once he got the feeling that Dimmesdale was the father, he should have confronted him and told the whole community. Assuming that Hester loves Dimmesdale, she should have told Dimmesdale who Chillingworth really was. In a way, Hester is also going behind Dimmesdale's back. Maybe if she told Dimmesdale who Chillingworth really was, the community would be upset with Chillingworth for lying about their prominent minister. Overall, the Scarlet Letter has been very enjoyable to read and I am excited to continue on.

Dimsdale and Chillingworth

Throughout this book i have grown to hate Dimsdale and Roger Chillingworth. They are both like little emo old men who just complain about everything and never have anything positive to say. Dimsdale is such a whinny, pussy. He obviously isn't a real man because he dosent have the guts to reveal his secret. I hate liars and that is what Dimsdale is. Living i lie is what is tearing him away so why dosent he just tell it to everyone!!!! I mean i understand that he is a minister and he wants to keep his position. But all in all when you do something like that you have to tell for the sanity of yourself and other people. On the other hand, Roger Chillingworth is extremely corrupt and selfish. If he wasn't purposely torturing Dimsdale, then he would be an alright guy. What is more humanly corrupt then torturing someone for your own pleasure and revenge? Not to mention he is very creepy and almost devilish. Both Dimsdale and Chillingworth are tearing away at their own life's. And overall i can not stand either of them because they seem like every other depressed, whinny, sexist and "hopeless" man in this world!

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the scarlet letter- thoughts

As we read through the first few chapters i was disappointed. i thought the book was boring and was to confusing. yet as we read deeper into the book it gets better every chapter. the book has a very good plot or idea but i can't understand it unless i read it very slowly and read each chapter twice.
since we are in the heart of the book we can really start to analyzes the characters. my thoughts on Hester is that she is a good on the outside. she helps poor and treats everyone with respect. But on the inside she hates everyone and would do anything to change what the people think of her. Hester says that she would kill Pearl and then herself because she is in so much emotional pain. she really has horrible thoughts running wild in her mind.
Although Hester is having a troubled time Chillingworth is the worst sinner of them all. first her was "dead" so it was all most his fault that Hester committed the sin of adultery. She had no idea that Chillingworth was still alive. even though she wasn't married to Dimmesdale she thought she had no husband any longer. and at first Chillingworth forced Hester to marry him. now he is making Hester keep his true identity a secret. He is also torturing Dimmesdale. since he is the doctor he is "helping" Dimmesdale, because he is dieing from Shame.
overall this book is alright.

Transcendentalism

Sorry this is late.. anyways, I'm thinking that after all the editing is done, my paper needs a lot of organizing, it will involve the idea that conformity is a type of illusion. Emerson says that nature is the only form of escape from todays society, and to be free, you have to release yourself from all form of work and burdens. I don't believe this is true at all. Nature can be a form of relaxation, but its not the only form. I have been juggling so many ideas around in my head and talking to a few of my peers, what I have learned is that an individuals escape can be anything. It can be nature, music, sports, company, shopping, sleeping, art, even in some cases it can be work. Some people like to always be productive, its not bad, its just who they are. Also, it could be religion. In Emerson's Harvard Divinity School Address, he told the graduates there that they had wasted their time by studying religion and many were insulted resulting in his banishment from the campus. I can better understand their offense since beginning this paper. Religion can be an escape for people too. Knowing that there is always something out there that is perfect, in a sense its almost like nature.. I hope to re-do my paper and fit in somewhere that even if you try avoid conforming to the social norm.. you are still conforming to some sort of group. Being an individual is smudged by our society because people are influenced so easily by the media. For years those who fit the criteria of the "norm" will buy anything the entertainment business tries to sell. The newest weight loss scam, sex scandals, fashion statements, who's new and whats hot. Although those who oppose todays brainless following, they too were influenced by someone who was probably involved in the media. A protester, indie musician, any sort of rebel throughout history. Those are my ideas and it will happen.. hopefully in a more organized in flowing manner.

Transcendentalist Essay approach

What has really caught my eye for a topic is Emerson's thoughts on nature's way of embellishing our earth. Nature is what "designs" all in our world and I believe that we humans are bound to nature as well as any other living thing, but with intention to explore and prosper from the fruits of Mother Earth. These fruits are gifts that nature designs for humans and all other creatures that roam our planet. This is one way that nature binds us to our earth, and I think that this in general is a beautiful embellishment of Mother Nature.

"The stars awaken a certain reverence, because though always present, they are inaccessible; but all natural objects make a kindred impression, when the mind is open to their influence."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

The second half of this quote makes me think of us humans being placed on the earth to live our lives amongst the embellishments of mother nature, but only if we truly respect and appreciate all that we are given.

Your Inner Child.

Many of my peers have written about how nature-centric Emerson is, and are writing about how flawed our society, especially our schools, are. My topic is similar, yet completely different. I am focusing on how professional and almost inhuman our society has come. We don't see it as much here, but the world, especially America, has become so centered around maturity and being serious and robots all the time. As Emerson encourages us to embrace nature, I say we break free of this humorless charade and embrace our inner child. Be immature. Of course we should practice moderation in all things, but the work till you die course of our society (as Mason said), is so bleak and void of just plain, unadulterated fun. It should be okay for us to drift around Clark's with the tiny shopping carts and to play tackle football in Wal-Mart (true story). But we are taught to "Grow Up", to tie and beat our inner child, to shove them so far back into our subconscious that we forget they're there. I get told to "Grow Up" and to be mature every day, simply because I strive to make otherwise boring tasks more enjoyable for myself and everyone around me. Yet, for some reason, we have been raised to resist a joy and shun those who spread it. I feel pity for those who tell me I'm immature almost as if it's an insult, because they are never going to get as much enjoyment out of life as I do, even if they conquer this materialistic society and own every physical possession there is to own. We have lost sight of what is really important, that being happiness, and (at least as I see it) having a sense of humor is by far the fastest way to get there. I wholly embrace the saying that if you have fun wasting time, your not wasting time. Lift yourself up from the monotonous seriousness you have been born into. Don't conform to the miserable people that tell you to "Grow Up". Live a little bit.

Conformist

I think I am going to pull from two of Emerson's quotes, "Imitation is suicide" & "The sun shines today also"

I'm going to write about the challenge of keeping true to yourself as you grow up and move to different places, as cliche as that is. I think the hardest part of moving is staying yourself without trying to relive the life you had set up before. It's important to remember that everyplace is different but different can be good, it's just a matter of rebuilding your life with what you're given and not trying to recreate anything just because it's already been figured out. I'm also going to discuss how whether it's okay to adjust parts of yourself to relate to a new place.  Adaptation is a survival instinct, but the difficulty is in finding that balance between compromising with your surroundings and giving up the best parts of yourself to fit in. As Emerson says "Imitation is suicide" the worst thing you can do is come into a new place as someone you're not.

ideas

i think that i will write my essay on self discovery. im not sure if it is ok to write about what i got out of emmersons work and what i want to do with it in my life. but i feel like after reading others' posts this topic will be good. i want to think about emmerson's ideas and then write a reflection. i feel like there is work that i do in my life that is in strong alignment with emmerson. i love what he has to say and i would like to share what i feel happens in a more realistic context.

emmerson wrote a long time ago and he was facing a different reality. now we have so many issues to and extreem. to live the life emmerson wants you to live you would have to put yourself through extreem discomfort. also every person in socioty today has to maintain a life and a job and other things. complete solitude isn't really an option. i want to write about self discovery and some of emmerson's other ideas in a modern doable approach.

nature and life

For my essay topic, I am going for a journalistic approach. while reading old journal entries of mine and noticed that naturally people are born, people live, then like every life story it ends. No matter how hard we try, a life always ends in death. It's just the natural path. Nature and life are dependent to each other. Hopefully by taking some of the things I've written in the past I can construct an essay describing live and nature and how they work together.

essay topic

For my essay i was thinking about writing about how Emerson got inspired by nature, and how i am inspired by cheerleading. the motivation, inpiration, and the love of the sport drives me. Emerson wanted to understand nature and take as much part in it as he could. i understand cheerleading but there is still much more i can take in and learn from others and myself. this sport helps me realize who i am and how i deal with situations.

Transcendentalist Essay

I know I have already elaborated on Emerson’s idea “Imitation is suicide,” but I cannot seem to get these words out of my mind. So many ideas are sparked by this very sentence. I think about the pressure of today’s society to conform into the idealistic person. Whether watching the news, reading magazines, or simply walking among others we are told to “look like this, buy this, and eat this.” Money, status, appearance, are these the things that we should be striving for? Society teaches us to judge, mentally abusing each other for being different. And the lengths people will go to just to “fit in;” surgery to alter appearances and dieting to the point where it’s a struggle not to faint are more common than ever in today’s culture.

Then I look at all the people, in history and in present, who have broken the band of conformity. Some cases those individuals are ridiculed (or even worse) and abused until they step down and blend in. But those who have the immense strength to go against the mold despite the constant ridicule, become the new leaders of the pack. They are the ones who change the world and do the things we thought never possible. If it wasn’t for Benjamin Franklin, would we be an independent society? Without the Wright Brothers, would we have flight?

So what if I’m not part of a “clique” and don’t follow the alpha. I’d much rather be myself than a puppet of someone else. Like Emerson says, imitation means you will only ever be a lesser secondary version of the individual. Every person is born unique and I believe that is the biggest power we possess. Like I said earlier, conformity is like giving up your soul- everything you are.


My ideas are all over the place…

ideassssss

My essay will consist of 3 parts. In the first I will talk about how Emerson believes first hand learning to be the best and that teachers can only tell you about thing they can’t make you understand of experience these things on your own just from them telling you about it. In the second I will discus how school sucks and it’s not us learning anything. It’s simply us being told about the experiences of others. To really learn and understand we must experience things for ourselves. Sitting in a plastic chair is not learning, being outside, and firsthand learning will teach kids everything they need to know. The third part will be about authentic learning. How first hand experiences will benefit children and they will understand things so much more because it will be their own experiences they know about and not that of another.

I want to use Emmerson quote about the baubles and how little kids can learn more by not going to school essentially. I want to have a guy come back as the reincarnation of Emmerson, and he comes back and tells people not to go to school, and that we should all go into the woods and become one with the woods. It 's going to be a story on what would happen if Emmerson came back to life.

News and Gossip

“To a philosopher all news, as it is called, is gossip…”
----One of my ideas for the essay-----

As I over hear the daily news, blasting through my TV and being intently watched by my parents, I feel incredibly uncomfortable. I think that not only is the TV obnoxiously loud but all the gossip and crap they are talking about has no meaning. Why is the biggest news channel getting into other peoples problems? Who cares about Kate Gosslin and her fake boobs? Only people who have no life and would rather pick on someone else then face their own problems and fears. People should focus on what’s true and noble their heart not someone else’s.

My Idea

Im thinking about ripping on the way of life for most of America Today. You know, go through high school, go to college, do good then you can get a good job. Like Thoreau said," The universe constantly and obediently answers to our conceptions; whether we travel fast or slow, the track is laid for us". I disagree with this statement. Nothing is laid out for you, you have to take it for it to be your life. The way the western world works right now is by that form of a cart on a track, being guided. Its bullONEY. People should have the choice to do whatever they want, screw the track.

Transcendentaist Essay!

For my essay i want to write about how our generation has lost the appreciation for the natural beauty around us everyday and night. We don't see the qualities of life like we use to the first time we saw it, nothing is new and exciting. I'm going to use quotes from Emerson, Walden and Mr. Lavender. The quotes will start off my paper and then I'm going to spin off on my own story/topic to get my generation to appreciate the scenery around us.