Public Shaming In The Scarlet Letter

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Publicly shaming someone will never get someone to do the right thing. When you publicly shame someone it only shows them everything they have done wrong not what they have done right. This will cause the person to shut down their willpower to change. In addition, It will only show them they are lesser than everyone else for a small mistake and can cause many overpowering thoughts. Last but not least, Publicly shaming someone is not okay because it isolates them from their community making them feel alone. Shaming people in public for crimes they have committed is the worst way to get people to change their actions. For a start, public shaming is not the correct way to make someone change, many times it will shut down the person's willpower …show more content…

In the article “Concerns Raised on ‘Scarlet Letter’ for Drunk Drivers”, Locy wrote “‘If you don't want a mark on your driver's license, do not drink and drive and you won't have one.’” Which is very harsh for someone who made a simple mistake once. Anyone can judge you for having that mark and after so long of trying to change people will still make you feel less human. Hawthorne explains how Hester thinks about killing herself and pearl because she has little hope for improvement. This shows how public shaming can make people feel less human and cause overpowering …show more content…

Smith wrote, "’Our company has discharged human waste directly into coastal Massachusetts waters,’" reads an ad in the Boston Herald placed by The Rockmore Co., a local ferry operator. "’That's pretty ... that's bad," says Cindy Cisco, from her spot at a coffee shop in Marblehead, Mass. "That's terrible.’" Coming from a woman that works at another company, it proves how horrible public shaming really is and how the community isolates them. Hawthorne writes that Hester stands on the scaffold holding Pearl to be humiliated for her act of adultery. As the townspeople yell and chant horrible things, Hester is forced to take it all in and think about it. She then spends years walking around town isolated from everyone else. Locy wrote about how there would be a possibility of you getting a symbol on your license for drunk driving then somebody spoke, “‘'Whether we like it or not, the license has become the standard means of identification. You are required to show it for any number of purposes that have nothing to do with your ability to drive a car. I’d understand this if the only person who saw it was a police officer who stopped you on the road’”. Nowadays we use our driver's license to show identity for many