Symbolism in the Scarlet Letter
摘要
A famous writer in American Renaissance, Nathaniel Hawthorne was deeply influenced by three thoughts, Puritanism consciousness, transcendental philosophy and transcendentalism .Novel The Scarlet Letter is Hawthorne's most remarkable masterpiece. It thoroughly response to people's spirit wreck of Puritanism and unbridled pursuit for happy life. Meanwhile, The Scarlet Letter also makes Nathaniel Hawthorne known all around the world. Hawthorne uses the symbolism so skillful that it enhances the artistic effects of his work greatly. This paper researches the symbolism in this novel from the following aspects: the changing symbolic meaning of the scarlet letter, the names of the major characters and many objects that are described in the novel to make the symbolism clear to the readers.