The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, portrays the shameful life the main character, Hester Prynne, lives because of a sinful encounter that resulted with her daughter Pearl. Throughout the novel it is evident that she grows close with a minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, who later in context is revealed as the father of Pearl. However, her public shame in never shared with Dimmesdale since neither of them let it known that he acted with her. It is not until toward the end that Dimmesdale finds the strength, right before his death, to publicly announce he is Pearl’s father. Because of this, many infer that Hester’s ignominy was at greater price than the self-shame Dimmesdale brought upon himself.
Even if one make a regret able mistake, should that person be shamed for a past human error? Scarlett Letter takes place in Salem Massachusetts around the time frame where if something seemed strange to others you were accused of being a witch by all the Puritans and Quakers. If a person was accused of such accusations they were usually hung or stoned. Miss Hester Prynne’s is an independent mother who is doing all she can to make sure she keeps her child since it her against the world. In Nathaniel Hawthorne 's book, “The Scarlett Letter” the story ranges from compassion to forgiveness with Little Pearl as the symbol of savior in Miss Hester Prynne’s life.
Making Connections – The Arduousness of Lies Lies are often told spontaneously as the result of troubling events occurring to someone or something and are often used to manipulate segments of these events in order to attempt to alleviate the trouble or punishment given to the causer of the event. In the novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the character Dimmesdale committed a sin and has withheld this secret for the rest of the town, while he watched the other perpetrator of the sin be punished, ridiculed, and isolated by the town of Boston. The pressure and guilt of lies is often too great of a force to withstand, judging by a past life experience, Dimmesdale reviled his secret to alleviate this dreadful feeling of pressure and guilt. At the age
Nearly 400 years ago shame emerged as a technique for punishment and many have used it ever since. Even in puritan times, as seen in the historical novel, The Scarlet Letter, shaming, although it has some downfalls, has provided a useful way to prevent offenders from repeating their actions. Despite some critics believing that shaming has detrimental effects on an offender, shaming ultimately provides a more humane, economical, and effective way of punishing criminals, furthermore judges should use ignominy as a form of punishment. Some may believe that shame causes one to feel socially isolated, such as the main protagonist in Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne. After committing adultery and receiving the letter A,
While coming to terms with one’s past, the individual's mental and physical state can take a toll, but ultimate acceptance results in a rise out of this decline and a new found inner strength. Hawthorne portrays this process through Dimmesdale’s struggle to accept his sin. As Dimmesdale drowns in guilt, his mental and physical state decay to the extent that the townspeople compare him to a walking skeleton. He becomes pale, weak, and enrapt in emotions of self hatred believing self inflicted torture how he must repent for his sins. Dimmesdale does not believe that forgiveness from God, others, and/or himself is in his future.
In the Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne seems to aspire to get everyone to have forgiveness, in order to do so he tells us to “be true”. In my opinion, and in all honesty it has ended up hard to choose whether or not Dimmesdale and Hester have shown forgiveness, Hawthorne tells the scarlet letter in a form to where they have earned forgiveness. Even though it may look in a form of forgiveness, people may think otherwise. To begin my first statement, it may be wrongfully so for Dimmesdale to have waited so long, to tell his fellow people about his scarlet letter, but he had shown the right give, he told and finally showed who he really has become. Dimmesdale stood in front of the crowd and told the people who the real man he was and
I felt very confident in my Scarlet Letter Project. Like Hester’s scarlet letter, I made my letter as ornate and beautiful as a piece of art. I assembled pieces of my letter from my online blog and internet pictures. Unlike Hester, I would not be ashamed for adding a “personal touch” to my letter. In the early chapters of the novel, the townspeople ridiculed Hester for having a letter of “gorgeous luxuriance” (Hawthorne 43).
The topics in The Scarlet Letter reflect towards the character’s physical and emotional health. Hester Prynne and Reverend Dimmesdale both share attributes that represent the topics of guilt. Each of the characters display guilt in their own way. Hester and Dimmesdale show guilt based off their physical appearance. Body language can expose internal problems, emotions, and deep secrets.
No matter our ethnicity, our beliefs, or any other distinction, we are all human. Part of which includes being imperfect and making mistakes. However what keeps us together is empathy and forgiveness. Seeing as we are all far from perfect and are in no position to judge one another, as we are no better than the next flawed individual. In The Scarlet Letter, a young women by Hester Prynne is outcasted by the entire village due to the child her had out of wedlock.
Nobody is perfect. Every action has a consequence. Whether that consequence is good or bad, that is based on the action. Typically, we correlate bad actions with bad consequences. However, sometimes society gives a bad consequence for a not-so-bad action.
The novel The Scarlet Letter focuses on the lives of sinners in a puritan community. Hester Prynne has been convicted of adultery. Unknown to the other characters Arthur Dimmesdale, the town priest is her partner in crime. The product of this sin is their daughter Pearl. While Hester was being persecuted her long lost husband arrived.
In the Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne expresses that redemption is possible through commendable actions. Hester Prynne, the protagonist, works to change the way viewers interpret The Scarlet Letter from its original significance. Her punishment pushed it’s sinful meaning,, however, her engagement in various acts prove otherwise. Although many scholars have argued that the embroidered ‘A’ in the book represents the path of sin and shame, a careful examination suggest that it represents a path of redemption. Hester is looked upon as the outcast of society.
Puritans felt redemption could not be achieved because the sins were so wrong and so evil. Hawthorne used redemption to help develop the characters and the ideas the reader had on them. The whole book happened because of a sin that occurred, and that sin was the cause of many actions of the characters. Throughout “The Scarlet Letter,” Hawthorne
Amanda Vicente The Scarlet Letter Reading Response AP English Language Period J 16 August 2016 Journal Entry 1: Chapters 1-2 In The Scarlet Letter, the author sets a mood from the beginning of the book. The setting is old and beat up in front of an aged wooden prison with judgmental Puritans ready to tear a women apart. The Puritans are hypocrites and the author portrays that in the story.
Hawthorne described three things in The Scarlet Letter. Sin, guilt, and redemption. Hawthorne uses people to symbolize them. Hester Prynne was one. Hawthorne allows the reader to get a better understanding by using biblical references.
