@article{ART001928513},
author={Chulwon Cho},
title={Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter},
journal={Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University},
issn={1598-3021},
year={2014},
volume={71},
number={4},
pages={113-137},
doi={10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113}
TY - JOUR
AU - Chulwon Cho
TI - Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter
JO - Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University
PY - 2014
VL - 71
IS - 4
PB - Institute of Humanities, Seoul National University
SP - 113
EP - 137
SN - 1598-3021
AB - The complex, multilayered psychological conditions and change regardinggood and evil that the main characters of The Scarlet Letter, includingthe protagonist Hester Prynne, undergo are reproduced throughHawthorne’s unique narrative technique. Moreover, by not describing arisingincidents which could have been objective, the narrator elicitsopen-endings based on the possibilities of various interpretations. Readersassume that numerous endings are possible as they encounter the narrator’sambiguous and inconsistent descriptions throughout the story. Theambiguity of the narration increases more so as the novel approaches itsending, causing the readers to realize that the author’s attitude towards thePuritan society is not univocal.
Describing the different perspectives about Hester and Dimmesdale’sadultery, the narrator reveals many gaps in the various possibleinterpretations. Although the readers get lost within the ambiguities of thestory, they begin to agree with the author’s thoughts and values that are revealed through the ambiguous narration: there is no fixed meaning inhuman life. Through the various, unique narrative technique, the narratoravoids telling the story with certainty and readers are provided with theopportunity to fill the spaces of ambiguity with imagination. The narrator’scomplex depictions allow the possibilities of infinite interpretationsthroughout the novel. Despite having been written in the 19th century inthe background of the 17th century, The Scarlet Letter still maintains thepresent state because the significant open interpretations within the ambiguitycan be possible even for readers today.
KW - Hawthorne;The Scarlet Letter;narrative technique;romance;ambiguity;diversity;imagination;puritan society
DO - 10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
ER -
Chulwon Cho. (2014). Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University, 71(4), 113-137.
Chulwon Cho. 2014, "Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter", Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University, vol.71, no.4 pp.113-137. Available from: doi:10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
Chulwon Cho "Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter" Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University 71.4 pp.113-137 (2014) : 113.
Chulwon Cho. Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. 2014; 71(4), 113-137. Available from: doi:10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
Chulwon Cho. "Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter" Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University 71, no.4 (2014) : 113-137.doi: 10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
Chulwon Cho. Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University, 71(4), 113-137. doi: 10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
Chulwon Cho. Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University. 2014; 71(4) 113-137. doi: 10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
Chulwon Cho. Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. 2014; 71(4), 113-137. Available from: doi:10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
Chulwon Cho. "Ambiguous Narration and Open Interpretation - The Narrative Techniques in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter" Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University 71, no.4 (2014) : 113-137.doi: 10.17326/jhsnu.71.4.201411.113
