Truths In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

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“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”. This quote from the Declaration of Independence means to signify the putative promises America has made to its citizens: freedom and equality. But sadly, these promises have not been kept. These lines of the Declaration of Independence are a cruel lie hanging and dangling far out of reach of many Americans. They act as an affront to many Americans, as freedom and equality are not available to most people in America. To be able to call oneself a true American, a person must understand this truth and fight to rid his country of its many injustices.
Every morning at school, the children of America say the Pledge of Allegiance. “One nation. Under God. Indivisible. With liberty and justice for all”. These lines tell people the United States of America is one united nation with equality for …show more content…

The main character, Hester Prynne, is chastised by her community for committing adultery and having a child. The people in this town say they are Christians, but they contradict their own beliefs by passing judgement onto others. Hawthorne says "Man had marked this woman's sin by a scarlet letter, which had such potent and disasters efficacy that no human sympathy could reach her, save it were sinful like herself" (Hawthorne 84). This quote explains how intensely the town ostracized Hester for her sin. Hawthorne also shows how the town has turned Hester’s child, Pearl, into a symbol of ignominy. This is shown when Hester tries to use Pearl to cover her scarlet letter. The text says “one token of her shame would but poorly serve to hide another” (Hawthorne). This town is similar to America because the people in it say they are accepting and open, when in actuality they are the exact