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Post by Will Smith on Aug 13, 2014 20:57:00 GMT
A Puritanical ideal that is still seen today is that adultery is wrong, and a horrible sin. There is no punishment for today but, it is still considered wrong and people are often looked down upon and shunned for it. Another Puritanical ideal that is still followed today is gender equality. Today in society men and women are supposed to be equal but, in some cases they are not. For example today in some cases women are paid less even if they are doing the same job as a man.
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Post by Chelsea Catarelli on Aug 14, 2014 0:51:33 GMT
Some of the ideals/laws are still the same in this period of time as they were in the Puritan period. In today's society an affair happens quit often. Though they are still shamed and looked down on, today's society doesn't shame one person in the relationship. Both parties get blamed. In "The Scarelt Letter", Hester is shamed but the man doesn't get shamed. The women is publicly humiliated in the novel were as the male is forced to fight an inernal war with himself.
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Post by Dillonwrigley on Aug 14, 2014 3:10:14 GMT
In the Scarlet letter, Hester commits adultery with the reverend and, as a result, is forced to wear an A on her chest to represent her crime. The reverend however, other than internal conflicts, isn't punished. The gender equality in The Scarlet Letter is different from how it is now as the man and woman would both be blamed equally for affairs, but the puritanical ideals are similar. If an affair were to happen now, they wouldn't be punished like in the novel, but they'd be thought of differently, gossiped about, and even shunned similarly to what Hester went through.
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Post by iangray on Aug 14, 2014 18:05:38 GMT
Adultery is a huge part of this book and was considered as a crime back then, but only as a sin now. When it happens now, people get punished only by break ups, but really if they cheated, is that really a punishment. In the scarlet letter they got punished with a permanent letter on their clothes so everyone knew what she had done. "Ah, but let her cover the mark as she will, the pang of it will be always in her heart." Another Puritan ideal is gender equality, which is still practiced today. Lastly, another Puritan ideal that is punishable by a scarlet letter is racism, and again, there is no punishment for that in today's society. "A pure hand needs no glove to cover it."
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Post by K.C. Bomonti on Aug 14, 2014 18:47:53 GMT
In 21st century America some states still have laws making adultery illegal even though it is rarely if ever enforced . Today you would not be required to wear the scarlet letter "A" as Hester was however in some states you could still be thrown in jail for committing adultery and your spouse would have grounds to divorce. Hester was thrown in jail and made to wear the scarlet letter "A" because she committed adultery. Whether in puritanical or modern times, adultery is still an ideal and in some places a law which our society still conforms to in that can be considered a sin or illegal activity. |
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Post by hunterp99 on Aug 14, 2014 23:23:24 GMT
While Puritanical laws, regulations, ideas, etc. are still in effect in today's society they have become different as society has moved forward. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is made to wear an "A" on her chest and stand on a stage in front of the people of her town, as punishment for adultery. But the people of her town believed she should be put to death, "This women has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die. Is there no law for it? Truly there is, both in the Scripture and the statute-book," because in that time period the state and the law were one and were enforced to the extreme compared to today's laws. But in today's society people commit adultery and are not arrested or punished by the law, like Hester was, but are probably just divorced or shamed by there friends and/or family. In Hester Prynne's time period elections in Great Britain were extremely exorbitant, "Had they followed their hereditary taste, the New England settlers would have illustrated all events of public importance by bonfires, banquets pageantries, and processions," but instead the New Englanders decided to stray from the English way of celebration elections, "Here, it is true, were none of the appliances which popular merriment would so readily have found in the England of Elizabeth's time, or that of James." While in today's society election celebrations are more or less extravagant, depending on how high ranking the election is. An election celebration today can include a gathering of people, music, speeches, etc. like in The Scarlet Letter.
By: Hunter Pease
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Post by Jordan Briske on Aug 15, 2014 0:53:02 GMT
The laws/ideals/regulations that are from the Puritan period that we still see in the 21st century in America are if a man or women cheats on their partner they aren't forced to wear the letter "A" on their clothes for the rest of their life but they are publicly ashamed on social media. Others will no longer find him or her appealing and treat them lower than the average person. Another example is how women were treated less back then and still are today, such as salaries and opinions. The final example is the way people follow the bible, back in the Puritan period people followed God's word very seriously even though times have changed God's opinion still plays a huge role in laws everyday. For example how gay people cannot get married in some states in the US.
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Post by Ryan Bangtson on Aug 15, 2014 15:22:24 GMT
An ideal found in The Scarlet Letter that is shared between the Puritan period and 21st century America is how adultery is viewed. In both periods of time, it is sinful to not be loyal to your spouse, and shameful when you are not. Loyalty to your spouse is important in both of these societies and is frowned when not shown in both of them as well. Another ideal that was kept from the Puritan period to 21st century America is the value of relationship. When Hester Prynne meets Arthur Dimmesdale, they have an honorable relationship, and show connection through the symbol A.
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Post by alyssasnyder on Aug 15, 2014 15:57:43 GMT
In today's world, puritan ideals still exist. The rights of women in some parts of the world in the middle east. Serve consequences would occur if a women committed adultery. Although, men can marry multiple women. Hester had an affair and was forced to wear a letter on her chest and be looked down upon by citizens in her town. At the end of “Scarlet Letter”, the father of Hester's child, Pearl, is revealed and he had no consequences. This showed gender equality was a major issue. The act of adultery is another ideal. In the puritan period having an affair was a sin and had humiliating punishments like Hester in “Scarlet Letter”. Today, if someone had a affair, there is no legal punishment because adultery is not illegal. If someone did adultery today it would maybe cause a divorce or disappointment towards others.
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Post by laurenmcrae on Aug 15, 2014 16:16:42 GMT
Back in the Puritan period an act of adultery could be punishable by death, "They were stern enough to look upon her death had that been the sentence," Today in America people still cheat, but it is not a crime and certainly not punishable by death. However, in both Puritan times and today, people will still judge you for cheating on your partner. Also, Hester was the only one who paid for what happened. Arthur did not have to publicly wear a scarlet letter. Today, both the woman and man would be held accountable for their actions.
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Post by Emily Carter on Aug 15, 2014 17:26:51 GMT
Some similar rules and laws set during the time that is set in The Scarlet Letter are still in effect today. For example, if a woman commits adultery in some Middle Eastern countries she can be severely punished or even put to death. However, if a man cheats on his wife, he usually goes unpunished. Just like in The Scarlet Letter. In the United States, although adultery is not illegal, people who engage in adultery are often looked down upon and criticized. This is true for women more than men.
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Post by Aidan Anderson on Aug 15, 2014 18:43:11 GMT
The main theme of The Scarlet Letter, adultery, is still a bad thing in America today. While it is not illegal, it is a widely frowned upon action. For example, Bill Clinton got a lot of negative attention for cheating on his wife. Murder is still against the law and definitely hated. Stealing is still against the law. Being a drunkard is still a bad thing, as it was back then. You are still supposed to address a church leader with respect. Many things are still the same, although much has changed.
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Post by Courtney bush on Aug 15, 2014 19:02:00 GMT
A Puritan ideal that is like the 21st century now is adultery. Hester is frowned upon for commuting adultery and is forced to wear a letter on her clothes signifying her act of adultery. Hester's community said harsh comments about her crime like "at the very least, they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne's forehead". Now a days when people commit adultery is it also frowned upon. People think lower of you and think it is a big sin. In the USA, people are frowned upon when they commit adultery. Countries all over the world have their different views on how people should be punished when they commit adultery. Some countries physically harm the people who committed the crime. In other words, every country has the idea that adultery is a crime just like the Puritan ideal.
Another Puritan idea that our country is based upon is equality. In our country of America, everyone is equal. Everyone is treated the same and nobody is better then anyone else. Women were thought of as "feminine gentility" which was characterized by "a certain state rather than dignity, rather than by the delicate, evanescent, and indescribable grace" during Hester's life. Today men and women are of equal rights. Men and women have the same rights as eachother. Even though men and women have the same rights, women are still treated differently from men just like Hester. Everybody focused on Hester's crime but no one really cared as much about the guy she committed the crime with. Even though she didn't reveal the man, people still only focused on her part of the crime. During the Puritan time, women and men were labeled for the crimes just like today's time. Hester was labeled as a person who commuted adultery. Today people are labeled as many different things.
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Post by jmathews on Aug 16, 2014 2:08:22 GMT
Puritan ideals can still be seen in present day America. One of the most noticeable is religion. While there is a division between church and state, you can still see religion in politics. In watching political elections many of the deciding issues are related to religious beliefs and values. Religious groups provide financial support to candidates that endorse the values the religious organization wants moved forward. In addition, when choosing a candidate the political party works to find candidates that are married with children. It is important that the candidate has a background that does not contain immoral activity. We have seen many public political figures leave office after confessing to things such as adultery. In addition, in many other countries the treatment of genders is very different. Islamic women are still treated as property with limited rights. These women are blamed and punished for crimes like adultery with the men going without any punishment or blame.
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Post by noorkantar on Aug 16, 2014 4:49:56 GMT
Ideals, laws and/or regulations from the Puritan period in The Scarlet Letter are still seen in the society of 21st century American. One example would be the act of Adultery. In Syria, women are stoned to death for sleeping with another man. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester's punishment was not taken to that much extreme, but she was still tormented and shamed for her sin, plus she had to wear the letter upon her bosom. Another example would be the sexism in the book. Women were treated with little respect. They were inferior to men. Their main roles were caring for their husbands and housework. And in the novel Hester was punished her sin while Dimmesdale was not even recognized and got away with the act. To this day women are still inferior to men. One example would be that many jobs and companies pay men higher wages than women.
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