Adultery In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

Response Is there a secret good to the scarlet “A” or is it as atrocious as the legend is known for today? The scarlet letter is known as a bad symbol that means that the wearer has committed adultery and should be ashamed. According to Goggle.com “Adultery is voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person who is not his or her spouse”. This against the law today and against the law in past times. The bible says “He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. 12 And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery” (Mark 10:11-12). The scarlet letter is meant to be an awful thing; however, Hester’s kindness changes the way the townspeople view it over time.

One of the townspeople in the beginning said “‘This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die; Is there not law for it? Truly there is, both in the Scripture and the statutebook. Then let the magistrates, who have made it of no effect, thank themselves if their own wives and daughters go astray" (Hawthorne 49). The townspeople hate Hester and the mark in the beginning. It meant sinner, shame, and a lot of other bad things. But, as time went on their views changed. Secondly, one of the reasons it changed was because of the Hester’s kind heart. She became more social and outgoing in her community. She brought food to the doors of the poor, she nursed the sick, and she was a source of aid in times of trouble and need. She became a brand new Hester. She wanted to be kinder and more outgoing. The townspeople changed the meaning of the “A” on her chest from “Adulterer” to “Able”. For example, when the governor died there said there was an “A” in the sky. They said the “A” was a sign, and the “A” meant angel. Hester was an angel in