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Punishment In Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter

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Punishment in The Scarlet Letter In life everyone falls short of making the right decisions, but mistakes do not define a person, one is defined by the deeds they accomplish and the tasks they are able to overcome even in the most difficult trials. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne asserts the fact that self punishment is more conflicting than social punishment in order to prove the Puritans customs were askew. He rebuts the Puritans through the main characters Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale as they face hardships of the societal humiliation as well as the forgiveness they must give themselves. At times, the punishment should fit the crime, but under certain circumstances, the crime itself holds all the punishment that is …show more content…

She is humiliated by the brand of the bright red “A” upon her bosom, but becomes highly respected for enduring this unthinkable punishment. Hester stays at the scene of her guilt, and insists here should also be “the scene of her earthly punishment”…Hester is more saint-like, in the result of suffering…“[she] therefore did not flee” (Hawthorne 55). Hester believed she was forced to stay in the congregation because she insisted on feeling the shame of the adultery in order to receive full forgiveness. Due to the fact she does not run from her problems, she becomes a glorified soul and all of the agony Hester encountered becomes rewarding because she can finally be redeemed. Hester Prynne portrays many traits of Mr. Hooper in “The Minister's Black Veil”, a short story also written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. In resemblance, he used both characters to “represent secret sins...Towards the end of Mr. Hoopers life, he [proclaims] “...and lo, on every visage a Black Veil!” (Hawthorne 59, Stroner Critical Work). From this quote, one can receive a better understanding of Hawthorne’s less optimistic view of the good in humanity. This portrays the true nature of townspeople in The Scarlet Letter because all along the people use Hester’s wrongdoing to distract them from secret sins of their own. Unlike other characters in the book, Hester can find peace with her suffering because she faced her sinful actions and refused to hide from reality. Hester forgives herself far before Dimmesdale due to the fact she “embraced her action allowing her to flourish” while he was hiding his secret sin for years (Stroner Critical Essay). Dimmesdale shows a trait of jealousy and is not surprised Hester is happy, for she had already dealt with her sin while his “burn[ed] in secret!” he exclaimed a yell of relief because for

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In the beginning of the Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne introduces the main character Hester Prynne, a young, beautiful member of a Puritan society being punished for her sin of love, not lust. The opening chapters introduce the reader to gossips who deem her original punishment, death, too harsh and contrary to Puritan beliefs that unborn babies should be given a chance at life. Instead, Hester and her child are to be alienated and shunned. In addition she is to wear the letter ‘A’ (which stands for ‘adultery’) on her chest which will forever display her as a symbol of shame for her sin. Though a very resilient figure who soon overcomes this pain, Hester’s isolation takes a negative toll on her life.

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