It is unlikely that if someone were expecting a child, and looking for parenting books, that anyone would recommend Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and possibly even less likely that anyone would recommend Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Despite that, it is undeniable that both tell the stories of parents, even if one takes place in pre-colonial America and the other in post-apocalyptic America, making them unlikely references for current-day parents.
Of each respective volume, there is the focus on aforementioned parents: in The Scarlet Letter, we have Hester Prynne, and in The Road there is the father. These two characters are alike in numerous instantly observable ways, both are single parents, both with one child of the same sex, both are only them and their progeny against the world. Both Hester and the father seek to vigilantly protect their children, in the present and the future.
In protecting her precious daughter, Hester has to refrain from confiding in Pearl, her only companion. She hides the reason of their estrangement from their strictly Puritan society from Pearl directly, knowing that if she were to confide in Pearl about the sin which she had committed, that Pearl would only shrug off the harsh comments and whispers of adultery surrounding her mother. "What does the letter mean, mother?" Pearl asks Hester. "and why dost thou wear it? and why does the minister keep his hand over his heart?" (127) Hester deliberates before answering Pearl, conflicted, wanting to gain the sympathy of her only confidant but refusing to give herself that relief for the price it would inflict upon Pearl - losing proper knowledge of sin for the idolatry of her mother that all children have. So, she becomes coy and makes light of Pearl's inquiries. "Silly Pearl," said she, "what questions are these? There are any things in this world a child must not ask about. What know I of the minister's heart? And as for the scarlet letter, I wear it for the sake of its gold thread." (127)
Likewise, the father in The Road holds his boy's future in high regard. He is, however, protecting his child's life in a much more immediate and literal way than that of the protection provided from Hester to Pearl. While the only danger that persists to threaten Pearl's life is the danger of lynching in her future if she fails to adopt a sin-based moral stance and commits a sin-based crime in their Puritan state, the boy is in immediate mortal danger. Him and his father are travelling along a stretch of highway crawling with cannibals and marauders, trekking along through autumn as with winter encroaching slowly and painstakingly upon them. Even if the rest of humanity didn't pose a threat to the two, the cold was enough of a threat. "He [the father] woke to the sound of distant thunder and sat up." (15) Even in the midst of night, the father worries only for his son's continued life, which he is preternaturally attuned to. "He pulled the tarp about them and he lay awake a long time listening. If they got wet there'd be no fires to dry by. If they got wet they would probably die." (15) The next day, the first snowfall ensues, adding to the father's solemn sense of foreboding. And so, perhaps even more quickly than before, "they pushed on together with the tarp pulled over them. The wet gray flakes twisting and falling over nothing." (16)
Though the two parents unanimously seek only to protect their offspring, they carry distinctly different attitudes towards their children, of an almost divine type. Hester sees Pearl as an inherently evil and impish force, given to her by God to punish her for her sin, and sees it as her divine duty to teach Pearl the Godly way, which, with Pearl's heathenish demeanor is a lifelong challenge and a sort of purgatory-like test for Hester.
The father, however, sees his son as the "fire". The boy is the next Christ to his father, the only good thing left of humanity and the only thing left to assure God's existence. As his wife had known before she took her own life, the boy was the only thing left in the world worth living for. The boy is the incarnation of the divine to his father, whereas to Hester, Pearl is quite the opposite - an incarnation of Satan and evil and sin.
1 comment:
I agree with most of the things you said. Although I would argue that Hester also saw Pearl as her way to salvation. If she raised Pearl in the proper godly way then she could pay for her sins and have a shot at redmption, much like Reverend Dimmesdale's self punishment being his guide to salvation. So, while she may have thought Pearl to be her punishment she also saw her as the one bright spot on her dreary horizon. 79
I really like your writing style. You are very clear about what the point is that you're trying to make, and you defend that point with strong evidence that clearly supports your point. Every piece of evidence that you used flows with your writing and it doesn't cause any awkward transitions that make it harder to read and understand. You use educated diction, but not so much so that it becomes jumbled and confusing. I love the variety in the words that you use and how some of the more advanced words help to convey your point better. You show that you have a clear understanding of the material, and that you are able to apply it too. I love your introduction paragraph it gets the readers attention and makes them curious as to where you are going with your writing. I really enjoyed reading your piece, and your comparisons helped me understand the reading better, as well as provided me with another point of view to consider. You did a really great job.
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