Abstract

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804—1864) is one of the most outstanding American Romanticists in the 19th century. As one of the founders of American literature, he creates various excellent works. The Scarlet Letter has attained much attention in American literary field since its publication. Simultaneously, it is generally regarded as the highest achievement in his literary career. Set in New England in colonial period, The Scarlet Letter portrays the physical and psychological persecution of Puritan, through a piece of adultery. Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts. During his growth, he was deeply influenced by a strong local religion and traditional culture. The constraint to humanity by the Puritanism ethics and the destroying of general people’s happy life led him to start a deeper probe into human’s life condition and destiny. He was also influenced by the old cultural tradition, and the contradictory thoughts. The Scarlet Letter is the best expression of his view to Puritanism while the portrayal of main characters’ conflicts are the best representation of his contradictory thoughts.

Keywords: Puritanism; conflicts; humanity; constrain

摘要

纳撒尼尔•霍桑(Nathaniel Hawthorne, 1804--1864)是十九世纪美国最杰出的浪漫主义代表作家之一。作为美国文学的奠基人之一，他创作了诸多优秀的作品。他的代表作《红字》一经问世就引起了美国文学界的广泛关注，同时也被认为是霍桑的最高文学成就。《红字》是以殖民时期的新英格兰为背景，以一桩通奸罪为线索展开情节，深入刻画了清教对民众肉体精神的双重迫害。霍桑出生于马萨诸塞州的塞勒姆镇。在成长过程中，他受到当地浓厚的传统宗教文化氛围的影响，这使其文化作品具有浓厚的宗教氛围。清教理论对人性的严重压抑和对幸福生活的不断摧残促使他开始对人类的生活状况和命运作了更深层次的探讨。又因霍桑从小深受旧文化传统的影响，思想的矛盾性便在他脑海中行成，并且一直困扰着他。《红字》就是他对清教主义看法的最好体现，其中的人物矛盾的刻画便是他自身矛盾思想的寄托。

关键词：清教主义； 矛盾； 人道； 束缚