Moby Dick And Hawthorne Analysis

As writers, thinkers, and philosophers, it is the job of authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville to try and grasp the full meaning of our meaning, the gravity behind humanity, and the ineffable struggle to comprehend the significance of society and ourselves. Both Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter and Melville's Moby Dick attempt to solve this enigma of life and civilization, looking into the hearts and experiences of those who inhabit it; either aboard an eccentric whaling ship or on the outskirts of 18th century Boston. The two authors present in their works a means of understanding our society, the symbiosis of nature and the workings of human convention, and through the lens of tradition, culture, profession and United States …show more content…
It is an unarguable fact that nature has existed long before humans began using it to their adaptation and societal evolution. Technological advancements of the last few centuries has allowed humankind to surpass the presence of nature at an alarming rate - with urban refuge covering almost as much as the existing foliage and fauna. Not only have the settlements and inventions of our people infringed on the realm of Mother Nature, our traditions and cultures have also molded their way into her intricacies and have manipulated them as time progresses. The presence of human thought, human creation, and human idealism is what is called human convention, and as was stated before, has been in constant discourse with the natural world. This struggle stands as the basis for the novels of both Hawthorne and Melville, and undoubtedly plays a large role in understanding the essence of our …show more content…
Both deal with the uneasy decisions we must make, the sinfulness of man, the necessity of companionship, and most importantly, the existence of a divide between convention and nature. It is, coincidentally, within this factor that we find the key contrasts between Hawthorne and Melville's views. Melville appoints, by the end of his novel, that Ishmael's rebirth occurs at sea - amongst the dangerous extremes of nature - and that is where he discovers the "true" foundations of society. Hawthorne, on the other hand, advises us to seek moderation between convention and nature by creating this contrasting portrait of puritan society and Pearl - both dangerous and sinful in their own rights - and unwittingly comparing them to the story's protagonist, Hester Prynne, who seems to embody both. She is willing to admit her sins and her humanity, destroying the guise of a living "Saint" and humbling herself beneath the others in order to live selflessly, helping the other women and the society that expelled her in the first place. Hawthorne states, in order to differentiate the masses from Hester, that "No man for any considerable period can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be the true." (Hawthorne 322) The Puritans have forgotten which mask truly represents their own inner beings, and it is only through the

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