Abstract

Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the most influential writers in American literature. The Scarlet Letter is based on the life in the New England of Colonial America. This thesis attempts to analyze the ecofeminism in The Scarlet Letter from three perspectives:  the destruction of nature by man, the suppression of women by men, and the correlation between women and nature. The section of the destruction of nature by man explores the excessive exploitation of nature and the discrimination against nature. Nature is greatly damaged by man. The section of the suppression of women by men reveals that in the Patriarchal society, women are governed by men. Women are inferior in society and they must bear the Puritan suppression. The section of the correlation between women and nature indicates that women are closer to nature and have more responsibilities to preserve the beautiful nature. Nature is a shelter for humans to escape the Puritanism pollution. The thesis also analyzes the establishment of harmonious society in the novel from three aspects: Hester’s love for Chillingworth, her love for Dimmesdale and her love for Pearl. Hester’s great love for the three promotes harmony of the society.

Key words: The Scarlet Letter; ecofeminism; patriarchy; harmony; nature

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1 Introduction-1

1.1 Background of the study-1

1.2 Objective and methods of the study-2

1.3 Overall structure of the thesis-2

2 Literature Review-2

3 Ecofeminism Embodied in The Scarlet Letter-3

3.1 The overview on the theory of ecofeminism-3

3.2 Hawthorne’s ecofeminist consciousness-5

3.3 Ecofeminism embodied in the novel-6

3.3.1 The destruction of nature by man-6

3.3.2 The suppression of women by men-7

3.3.3 The correlation between women and nature-9

4 Establishment of Harmonious Relationship-10

4.1 Hester’s love for Chillingworth-11

4.2 Hester’s love for Dimmesdale-12

4.3 Hester’s love for Pearl-13

5 Conclusion-13

References-15