I think it might be interesting to research the role of the minister in the Puritan community. There are several "levels" of minister in "The Scarlet Letter" and it might be interesting to look at them.
What was the relationship between the state officials (the Governor) and the religious leaders of the society. This is particularly interesting when the state is thinking of taking Pearl away from Hester.
What was the relationship between social guilt (Hester) and individual guilt (Dimmesdale). Did all the citizens share Dimmesdale's sense of personal anguish over failings? (You might get some clues from "Young Goodman Brown.")
Whichever topics you select from those suggested, you're going to have to do some extensive research. This is a fairly good place to start for some general background: http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/oal/oaltoc.htm as is http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap1/1intro.html
The PAL site is a good place to start your research into any American Literature topic ... it's not comprehensive, but it gets you started.
No comments:
Post a Comment