Contrast Of Protagonists2

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A Contrast of Protagonists: The Scarlet Letter and The Last of Mohicans

Introduction

The Scarlet Letter is an American novel that is set in the 1600s. The book remarkably portrays a

puritanical American culture in the then Boston; through scathing examination of sin and

redemption (Hawthorne 79). Though the prose seems complex and layered, the writer

successfully employs irony and symbolism to let show the American morality and hypocrisy—

with the aid of enhanced and gloomy imagery of the moral sceneries. The protagonist, Hester

Prynne is set out of her home to the American society when found guilty of adultery, she is

subjected to public humiliation (Hawthorne 83). The letter A, symbolizing adultery, embroidered

on her breast, which cast a very lurid glint afore her pathway so as isolate her from the rest:

ironically meant to depict the guilt hidden in her heart (Hawthorne 80). The book that employs

mainly, irony and symbolism, sought to criticize the structural framework of American puritan

societies in ways so subtle to the ordinary eye.

Like The Scarlet Letter, The Last of the Mohicans is an American historical fictional

book by Fennimore Cooper. An epic set in 1757 when the French battled with Great Britain for

the control of North America. (Cooper 12) The writer exhibits great prowess with his rote tinge

of characterization—so subservient to the escapes and theme he sought to explore and examine.

The protagonist, Hawkeye, for instance, a white man living amongst his Indian friends Uncas

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and his father, is a very indelible a character to the reader's memory for his role in the

development and transition of the plot (Cooper 659). And the story verily captures a transition in

time, though with very tragic moments that typifies the growth of a nation to the detriment of the

others. In their incidental efforts to records critical moments of the growth of the American

nation, both Cooper and Nathaniel, present Hawkeye and Hester, in different circumstances but

the same character of strength and honesty. That grants a great insight into the development of

the American nation.

Contrast of Hawkeye and Hester Prynne

Hawkeye. A protagonist is a white man living, for the most of his life amongst the Indian

Mohicans—Uncas and his father. The essence of the element to the story is that it leans the

important symbolism that the whole book carries. And Fennimore uses this strong relationship of

Hawkeye and the Mohicans Indians to quieten the sour relationship that exists, hence

highlighting the primacy of this character. Moreover, he is portrayed throughout the story as a

very strong-hearted and strong-headed character that offers a great insight into the development

of a stroll-paced tale. His brave mien is mainly attributable to this indelible strength he possessed

that saw him through all the thrillingly trying moments and painted him a renowned warrior with

excellent marksmanship (Cooper 659). As a near-fearless warrior through his escapades in the

battles, the character earned him multiple names like the Long rifle, La Longue, and the scout.

Hawkeye also throughout the book stands out as a very loyal character to his friends

displaying the highest standards of honesty. Hawkeye presents great standards of loyalty and

honesty to his friend Chingachgook, with whom he prides on being the last in his line as he

epitomizes the first white American man. It is this loyalty to his friends that impels him to strip

off and cast away all the white European man traditions and practices, conform to those of his

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friends for the sole purpose of surviving the frontier (Cooper 543). Hawkeye’s character

subserviently depicts the cardinal themes of the story set in a very decisive and famous moment

of American, which might have arguably ignited the American Revolution 20 years later.

Therefore the unforgettable character of Hawkeye and his role in the development of the book,

The Last of the Mohicans carries with it a sense of the logical development to the inevitable

conclusions of the American history.

Hester Prynne. As the protagonist of The Scarlet Letter, she withstands very harsh humiliation

from the unforgiving society as she is forced to wear a letter A for the punishment of adultery

(Hawthorne 80). Hester like Hawkeye is inspiringly brave and strong-hearted: a trait that saw

succeeds her forced solitude to become a character that emits courage to the others. Moreover,

Prynne is also overly honest with herself and the others –displayed in instances where she

acknowledges her sin but also remained loyal to Dimmesdale. It is this resolute defiance to the

convention living then that ironically twisted what was supposedly the punishment to freedom,

as Hester would subsequently be freed from the constraining puritanical morality and

expectations of that community (Hawthorne 241). Therefore, the invincible glowing character of

a quintessential fictional American heroine plays a significant role in the development of The

Scarlet Letter, making her so similar Hawkeye of The Last of the Mohicans.

Conclusion

Both Hawkeye from The Last of the Mohicans and Hester Prynne of The Scarlet Letter, decades

after their creation in the different books by the different authors are still pertinent as they were

then. Both in their respective stories carry a great sense of the logical development of inevitable

conclusion from the historical moments of America’s past. As resolutely strong and reliant

characters in their respective stories, both granted a great insight in the controlled flow of the

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plot of both stories as people at the center of these stories. Hawkeye the character in the story set

in the French-Indian war that might have informed the American Revolution, and Hester a

character set in a religious and puritanical America: both very decisive moments in America's

history, aptly captured the transition in the time of the American nation.

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Works cited

Cooper, J F. The Last of the Mohicans. America: H.C Carey & I. Lea. 1826 Retrieved from

http://www.planetpublish.com/wp-

content/uploads/2011/11/The_Last_of_the_Mohicans_NT.pdf

Hawthorne, N. The Scarlet Letter. America: Simon & Brown. 1850. Retrieved from:

http://www.planetpublish.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/The_Scarlet_Letter_T.pdf

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