Hester Prynne In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

300 Words2 Pages

There are a few different ways that scarlet letter can be interpreted. Hester has been able to reconnect to society and get through her troubled past. She has become a woman who devotes her time to helping the less fortunate and the needy gaining her more respect. Many people are starting to interpret the scarlet letter as “that is meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength.” (Hawthorne, 113). This is saying a lot considering the Puritan people are very strict with sinners. When she was first given the letter, they told her that she would only ever be able to be forgiven by God. Now the people see her and the letter in a completely different way. Although Hester is being very kind to others, she feels different about the letter than the others do. …show more content…

She has changed from this very graceful woman who had a very beautiful personality into a woman who has become hardened. She is forever changed by the isolation she was put in and hatred the town had for her. She visited with Chillingworth and they begin to have a conversation about her new image. Chillingworth mentions that the townspeople are thinking about letting her remove the scarlet letter. Hester replies by saying, “Were I worthy to be quit of it, it would fall away of its own nature” (Hawthorne, 122). She reveals her feelings about herself in the Puritan society. She believes no amount of human forgiveness can take the scarlet letter away. Only God can forgive her and take away the letter. She is still holding herself accountable for her sin rather than the rest of the Puritan