Sin And Guilt In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter is set in Puritan Boston during the seventeenth century. Hester Prynne, a young woman guilty of adultery, is freed from jail to live the rest of her life with two reminders of her sin, a scarlet letter A on her chest and her daughter, Pearl. Hester experiences both societal and self-judgment as a consequence of her sin, and her self-judgment later transforms into sincere guilt. Arthur Dimmesdale, the minister, and Pearl’s secret father, is introduced and utilized to illustrate and contrast the impacts of sin and guilt on individuals. Hawthorne highlights the impacts of sin and guilt on the two main characters in the novel to add variation and reveal their truths. One handles it one way and the other handles it in a different

Hawthorne begins by appealing to readers for an emotional response to Hester’s ridicule and relentless torture that are ramifications of her sin. The “A” on Hester’s chest, separates her from the rest of society and distinguishes her as an outsider. This uncomforting sentiment of seclusion and alienation from society, known to most people, touches the hearts of readers and appeals to their emotions. In Hawthorne’s description of Hester’s sudden division from the community, he utilizes pathos to truly exaggerate the emotional ramifications of her sin. He describes the implications of the scarlet letter and says, “It had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself “(Hawthorne 41). Hawthorne continues by describing the impact of guilt on Hester, and he accomplishes this by taking advantage of readers’ emotions. He describes her deep shame and guilt with phrases that appeal to pathos and says, “She clutched the child so fiercely to her breast that it sent forth a cry; she turned her eyes downward at the scarlet letter, and even touched it with her finger, to assure herself that the infant and the shame were real. Yes these were her realities—all else had vanished!" (44). Because this sentiment of shame is shared by both the readers’ and Hester Hawthorne creates a connection between them. Because

Dimmesdale’s tell, a revealing yet unconscious action which is his hand over his heart, signifies his guilt. When Dimmesdale is confronted with reminders of his sin, he places his hand over his heart to discretely show his unbearable guilt. For example, in describing Dimmesdale’s meeting with Hester and Pearl, Hawthorne details the scene by writing, "there stood the minister, with his hand over his heart; and Hester Prynne, with the embroidered letter glimmering on her bosom; and little Pearl, herself a symbol, and the connecting link between those two" (101). In Pearl’s presence, in an unconscious gesture, Dimmesdale’s hand is placed over his heart. In another symbol of Dimmesdale’s sin, the meteor illustrates the impact of his guilt. In this instance, Hawthorne begins by describing the after-image of the meteor and says, “the letter A—marked out in lines of dull red light. Not but the meteor may have shown itself at that point, burning duskily through a veil of cloud, but with no such shape as his guilty imagination gave it, or, at least, with so little definiteness, that another’s guilt might have seen another symbol in it" (102). Like Hawthorne hints, “another’s guilt might have seen another symbol in it,” Dimmesdale interprets the meteor as a display of his own public scarlet letter because of his overwhelming guilt and paranoia. However, to society