分析《红字》中的女权主义
recognition of gendered power relationships in the conduct and process of research may not be unique to feminist methodology; they are an essential component of it. The use of feminist methodology implies a commitment to the empowerment of women. Feminist methodology challenges to the traditional social methodology in two aspects: first of all, feminist critics pay enough attention to feminist analysis of various traditional epistemologies; secondly, they focus on the equality between sexes. Generally speaking, feminist methodology and methods are still developing and appear to be multivariate. As a result, there are many detailed methods in feminist methodologies, such as the application of comparative method; content analysis; quantitative analysis and oral history method. Obviously, there is a variety of feminist methodology and methods and each of them has merit and demerit, consequently, feminist critics tend to combine some of the methods for the study. In fact, the feminist critics put more focus on the qualitative method. Feminist critics aim to change Western sanction of tradition that females are inferior to males, they begin to debunk male superiority by exposing stereotypes of women who are often demeaned, devalued and demoralized.
This thesis will follow the feminist critical theories from Virginia Woolf, and adopt the qualitative analysis method combined with content analysis, that is to say, through the analysis of the text, a descriptive method will be used to illustrate and interpret the protagonist Hester in Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Compared with most of feminist critics who used to reveal Hawthorne’s misogyny in the novel, this thesis explores Hawthorne's feminist consciousness in the portrayal of the protagonist Hester.
B. Hawthorne’s Feminism
The background for living in the political environment and with religious belief has offered Hawthorne with the soil for the growth of his feminist consciousness. In consideration of the process of the feminism movement, the period from the nineteenth century to the first half of the twentieth century has just been the most formidable time for women, when they tolerated the exceptionally grave oppressions
