Cassandra+Q2

I've been giving this some thought and I know it's a bit disappointing, but I have decided to stop reading Wuthering Heights. I've decided to start reading articles instead; they just seem more interesting. I'm not saying Wuthering Heights isn't interested but I want to try something new. I think it would be easier for me to keep up with an article than to keep up with a book, especially one that's challenging to me such as Wuthering Heights. It's just time for something new.
 * What I'm thinking about:**

I have began reading [|The Scarlet Letter] by Nathaniel Hawthorne. I had always heard good things about this book and until recently I decided to pick it up and begin reading it. I've read chapters 1, 2, and 3. Before I began reading this book I knew it was going to be a challenging book for me. When I actually began reading it, I realized I liked the book more than anticipated. I like how the book doesn't start off as a life story but rather it starts off //in medias res//, meaning the book starts off in the middle of things. I like how the author chose to begin the book because it makes it more interesting to start off at a point of action and suspense;It makes me want to keep reading. This got me hooked on to the book and not many books that I have read have that effect on me. I want to actually finish reading this book, unlike __Wuthering Heights__. So far, so good. I plan on finishing this book.
 * What I'm Reading Now**
 * What I've Read**
 * What I'm Thinking About**

After Hester recognized a man in the crowd as her husband, they have a little talk. Like any other husband, Roger Chillingworth demanded to know who the father of Pearl, the baby, is. He also asked her to promise him that she wouldn't say anything about them two being married. Chillingworth is going to get his revenge and find out who the father is. I know I would want to do the same if I found out my wife had a baby with an unknown man while I was at another country; It just makes sense to want to do that. In chapter 5, we find out that Hester is released from prison. She is an outsider, no doubt about that, but she must find a way to support herself and what she found was that she could use her great talent in needlework to support herself. This is where we begin to see that Hester is affected by her sin. She's successful at what she does, but no one ever wanted her to make a wedding dress for them. It would be unsuitable for a bride to wear something made by Hester Prynne because the white dress of a bride is supposed to symbolize purity and anything made by Hester, for example her baby, is not pure. Chapter six goes very into detail about Pearl. This chapter made me think about the book's cover because in the cover, the child (which I assume is Pearl) has a face filled with bewilderment. The light peeking out of the clouds is shinning on both Hester and Pearl, and this light, in my eyes, represents the sin committed by Hester. They are both being affected by what Hester did, and this is true because in the chapter it is brought to our attention that other children from the town are mean to Pearl but they don't quite know why, they just know both Hester and Pearl are different.
 * What I'm Thinking About**

For a couple of chapters now, there has been a debate of whether or not Pearl should be taken away from her mother. I understand if Hester was mistreating her or if she couldn't support her but that's not the case. Hester's is doing well with her needlework and she does not mistreat Pear, therefore I don't think she should be taken away from her. A mother's child shouldn't be taken away just because society thinks it's wrong for her to keep the child due to the mistake she made of committing adultery. I think that if Hester is able to give her a well-off life then she should be able to keep her own child.
 * What I'm Thinking About**

In chapter ten, Chillingworth, being Dimmesdale's doctor, found something on his chest. Something that is unknown to the reader. I like the way the author chose to end this chapter. It left me wondering. I like when authors do that because it makes me want to keep reading more. It's that extra push towards wanting to finish the book. When I read a book and I find myself about halfway through the book without anything interesting going on, I feel like just giving up on the book but when the author does something like Hawthorne did, I am motivated to finish the book to find out what is hidden from us as the reader.
 * What I'm Thinking About**

One thing that I've noticed is that the years go by really fast in the book. First couple of chapters Pearl is a new born baby, couple of chapters later she is three years old. Now, a couple chapters later, she is seven. Everything is just moving really fast in the book and happening in a blink of an eye. Although I don't think there's much wrong with doing this, it wouldn't hurt to know what happened in that time period that the author doesn't talk about. Either way, I still think this is a pretty interesting book. Still looking forward to the end.
 * What I'm Thinking About**