Travel Motif in Three Novels. The Scarlet Term Paper

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travel motif in three novels. The Scarlet Letter, Moby Dick and Huckleberry Finn are compared and contrasted regarding their travel motifs. There were three sources used to complete this paper.

For one to understand and extract a travel motif from any novel one must understand what a motif consists of. A motif is a recurring and persistent theme that is used in any area of work including literature. In three classic novels the evidence of a travel motif is laced and intertwined throughout the stories as they weave their way around the lives of the protagonists. Moby Dick, The Scarlet Letter, and Huckleberry Finn all make use of travel motifs for the purpose of connecting the plot to the needs of those who live the stories.

The Scarlet Letter is a classic example of the travel motif being put to use for the purpose of assisting the story. Travel is a thematic strength throughout the book because it begins with Hester traveling to America ahead of her husband. Travel is what brought her to the place where she was all alone and had to wait for her husband to arrive. He didn't and there were assumptions that he had died en-route to the states. However while waiting she had an affair and consequently had a baby with Dimmsdale the local pastor. Travel is used as a motif in this story largely because it provides avenues of escape for many of the characters

Hawthorne pp). Her husband has not really died, and he did eventually travel to the states and lay in hiding to scorn Hester for her actions.

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Hester had traveled here to begin anew. When she was sent to prison for committing adultery and then forced to wear a scarlet A on her clothing, her life become very difficult. It is further complicated by the preacher's weakness and refusal to come forward and legitimize their daughter Pearl. The travel motif was again brought out when they plan to rush off and live elsewhere. Travel and geographic change has long been used as a way to change the course of a story, but in this book the travel motif is about not being able to escape. The preacher confesses his love and his daughter to the town and then drops dead. Hester leaves and goes elsewhere to live but returns

Hawthorne pp). Travel in this book does not cure the problems and when she dies she is buried next to the pastor and they share a tombstone with an epitaph of simply the letter "A"

Hawthorne pp).

In Moby Dick the use of travel motif is evident though used in a different manner than in Scarlet Letter. The entire book is based….....

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