Scarlet Letter Cost Of Shame

In the novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne faces humiliation after making a mistake, similar to how Monica Lewinsky spoke of her experience with shame during her Ted Talk: “The Price of Shame”. Hester and Lewinsky show drastic changes in their behaviors after they are shamed, explaining the true cost of shame. A common theme seen throughout the novel and the Ted Talk is how humanity thrives on public humiliation, whether it be on the scaffold or on the internet. Both Hester and Lewinsky, explain and attempt to get their audiences to understand that mistakes do not define the individual. Although Hester and Lewinsky made mistakes, things people do and say still have a great impact on how others feel. Hester and Monica Lewinsky show that after the humiliation they go through,

If shaming others brings our society joy, what does that mean for the ones being shamed? Hester is marked by her community as a sinner, forced to wear a letter to represent her sin. Her society uses the letter to single her out, for the pleasure of the town. One of the townspeople explains, “Let her cover the mark as she will, the pang of it will be always in her heart” (Hawthorne 49). In this quote, the townspeople are trying to say that even though Hester might hide the letter that she wears, there will always be pain for the sin in her heart. This shows that the town enjoys watching Hester, knowing she is in pain. In close relation, Monica Lewinsky describes some of the things that were said about her. She explains that the people who were calling her names, simply did not know who she was or much about her. She recites, “I was branded as a tramp, tart, slut, whore, bimbo, and of course, that woman” (Lewinsky). Society shames people online, for its own pleasure. Lewinsky's message is that people who do not know her, are making fun of her to feel better about themselves. But in reality, one mistake does not set limits to the