Essay On The Scaffold Scenes In The Scarlet Letter

1388 Words3 Pages

Melissa Phung
Mrs. Johnson-Smith
English 3 AP, Period 4
9 December 2014
The Scaffolds of Action Throughout The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, there are many important scenes that are being introduced to the reader that highlights the effectiveness of the development of the plot. In addition to that, the author develops these segments to help emphasize the importance of the events that are happening in the novel. He specifically chooses to include the three scaffold, or platform, scenes to show the readers how each symbolizes the significant changes of the characters. Hawthorne purposely includes the scaffold parts in the beginning, middle, and end to show how the scaffold affects the plot structure. He also puts the sections in this …show more content…

As a result of not telling the authorities who the father of her child is, Hester Prynne and her daughter, Pearl, are put onto the scaffold at the market place in Boston, Massachusetts for public interrogation. In addition to that, she is also forced to wear the scarlet letter, which represents her sin of adultery. From this, the readers can infer that one of the themes of this novel is that a person should be punished for their wrongdoings and sins. Her emotions and feelings at the moment in time are ignominy, shame, and embarrassment; the scaffold symbolizes humiliation. Thus, by presenting the first scaffold scene to the readers, they are able put together many literary elements in the plot …show more content…

By having the three scaffold segments, the readers are able to see the effectiveness of the events of the plot development. Altogether, the scenes are able to provide the readers with the major literary elements of a plot: character, plot, setting, and theme. In addition to that, each piece is a different meaning for the characters. For the first scene, it shows Hester’s view towards the scaffold: embarrassment and shame. As for the second one, it is a place of forgiveness for Dimmesdale. And lastly, the third symbolizes redemption for both the reverend and Hester. This shows that the scaffold not only represented different meanings, it also let the readers identify the importance of each section to the the characters. Throughout the novel, the scaffold representation changed from a place of humiliation to a place of freedom, to finally, a place of redemption and

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