The Scarlet Letter Hypocrisy

In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, some main themes in story are hypocrisy, sin, and forgiveness. Throughout the novel, the Puritans mark, interrogate, ridicule, and disrespect Hester, but beginning in Chapter 13, they are reluctant about their vile demeanor towards the marked sinner. Suddenly forgiving, the Puritans start to view Hester and her scarlet letter as symbols of capability and kindness, not adultery and sin. The explanation of their unusual switch in opinion may be due to Hester’s acts of courtesy and comfort towards anyone in the town, but this also exposes their hypocrisy. In essence, The Scarlet Letter contains themes of hypocrisy, compassion, and sin, which are displayed when the Puritans, all of the sudden, begin

This quote symbolizes the explicit connection between Hester’s sin and why the Puritans decided to discipline her. The Puritans have an extreme set of societal rules and laws, characterized by the iron framework, but instead of following the Bible, they tend to follow their own feelings. Hester was marked as a sinner, and Puritans should have absolutely no tolerance for them whatsoever, but since she is being kind and compassionate to all, they decide it is fine to let her off the hook. This change of character is directly depicted in the following: “‘It is our Hester,--the town’s own Hester,--who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comfortable to the afflicted!’” (Hawthorne). The Puritans have hypocritically become proud that she is a part of their society, and seem to have forgiven Hester, for her sin. The specific reason for this, however, may be because the Puritan government does not have influence over all of society and Puritans themselves are more free-thinking than they appear: “...the men of rank, on whom their eminent position imposed the guardianship of public morals. Individuals in private life, meanwhile, had quite forgotten Hester Prynne for her frailty…” (Hawthorne) For the Puritans, Hester has become a symbol of

The A is described to somehow have “the effect of the cross on a nun’s bosom. It imparted to the wearer a kind of sacredness…” (Hawthorne). It was also rumored that “an Indian had drawn his arrow against the badge, but that the missile struck it, and fell harmless to the ground”. These further affirm the Puritan’s sudden change of heart towards Hester, but they even go as far as comparing the A to the symbol of Christianity and give it celestial powers. This furthermore contradicts the Puritan’s supposed ‘iron framework’ and proves they are hypocrites. If ‘the godly’ really believed what they preached, then comparing a symbol of adultery to the symbol of Christianity should be ludicrous to