SCARLET LETTER

Socratic Seminar Guiding Questions

Monday, December 22, 14

GUIDING QUESTIONS
Considering the common use of physiognomy in pretwentieth-century literature, what might Hawthorne be
suggesting by portraying Hester as extremely beautiful?
physiognomy is:
a. The art of judging human character from
facial features.
b. Divination based on facial features.
What would Physiognomy suggest about Dimmsdale and
Chillingworth?
Monday, December 22, 14

GUIDING QUESTIONS

Whats in a name?
Hester
Pearl
Dimmesdale
Chillingsworth
Monday, December 22, 14

GUIDING QUESTIONS

How does Dimmsdales rationale for the confessing a

hidden sin support he doctrine of salvation by works rather
than salvation by faith?

Monday, December 22, 14

GUIDING QUESTIONS
Anti-Transcendentalism-Anti- Trascendentalism contrasts transcendentalism by
focusing on the darkness of the human soul. There were six characteristics of antitranscendentalism; evil which was the dominat force of work in AT writiting that
believed in the inherent of evil within humans, Gulit which was a common motif of
inherited guilt, Limitations where they believed that humans have limitations of the
knowledge of the human spirit, nature that they believed the nature world was
unexplainable, unpredictable, indifferent and often paroxical. Another characteristic
was battle which they believed humans posses the potential for both good and bad
but there is no inbetween.

Consider the role of Nature in Anti-Transcendental

literature, what is the significance of the meteor event?
*Edgar Allan Poe was Anti-Transcendental

Monday, December 22, 14