Judgment And Justice In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Throughout literature, the themes of judgement and justice have been explored heavily. For example, in The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne undergoes the town’s judgment and has to wear a scarlet letter A as punishment for committing adultery. However, by the end of the book, Hester becomes respected because of, not in spite of, her willingness to wear the scarlet letter and to carry it as a symbol of pride and identity instead of shame. Interestingly enough, by judging herself and choosing to undergo judgment, Hester is redeemed. In contrast, most people cannot restrain themselves from their fear and run away from judgment. They are instead paralyzed in their desire to see themselves as they want to be seen. The theme of lack of restraint in

Marlow is twice described as being a Buddha, as if he were some sort of spiritual guru. Combined with Marlow’s keen insight into the darkness of humanity after having visited the jungle and Kurtz, it is clear that Marlow has some innate ability to see things as they truly are. Unlike the hollow men, he is not afraid to meet the eyes of judgment - in fact, in some ways he is the eyes of judgment throughout the novel. Unlike everyone else, with the exception of Kurtz at the end of his life, Marlow is able to judge truly without any ulterior motives. Unlike the manager, he does not deride Kurtz out of poor self-esteem; unlike the harlequin he does not continue to admire Kurtz when he sees evidence of Kurtz’s madness. Nor does Marlow sugarcoat anything about himself - he admits when he has lied and admits his temptation to participate in primitive, savage rituals. However, Marlow never does participate in such events, nor commits any deed of great moral wrong, demonstrating a clear ability to restrain himself. Marlow is also not a hollow man because he is not moved by hollow desires. He is disgusted by the manager’s - and therefore the company’s - obsession with gold and ivory, deeming their imperialism purposeless. Due to his lack of attachment to material goods, Marlow is able to practice restraint, leaving instead of selling the ivory in Kurtz’s place. This notion of Marlow controlling his own destiny is especially solidified when he declares that he is loyal to Kurtz because Kurtz is his choice of nightmares. This definitive decision demonstrates that Marlow has the ability to act as he truly deems fit, and therefore is not stuck in the proverbial Shadow. In choosing Kurtz and deeming him a nightmare,