Failing to execute its original intent, the scarlet letter does force Hester to conform to societal views on judgement and condemnation. After seven years of wearing the scarlet letter, Hester thinks, “At time a fearful doubt strove to posses her soul, whether it were not better to send Pearl at once to Heaven, and go herself to such futurity as Eternal Justice should provide” (130). The fact that Hester does not say that she is going to hell, but that she will go to “such futurity as Eternal Justice should provide” proves that she does not believe in the town’s condemnation of her, but in God’s power to judge as the “Eternal Justice.” In addition to God’s power to judge, Hester believes that he judges at the end of one’s life and then she would to where ever he will send her. …show more content…
Hester’s belief that the scarlet letter does not serve as God’s judgement on her, supports itself through her use of “should provide,” which is another way of saying will provide in the future tense.
While the original intent of the letter is to shame, ridicule, and make her conform to societal norms, it also serves as a symbol of God’s judgement for her sins, which it fails to do so as she believes that she, in the future, can “go herself to such futurity as Eternal Justice should provide.” This means that she believes God does pass judgement before one’s death, but in one’s progression into the afterlife, which is significant because it shows that the scarlet letter does not meet its original intention, as it does not make her believe that God passes judgement on her the moment the towns people place a scarlet letter on her chest. Thinking that the townspeople’s and the church’s judgement of her does not damn her, she believe that only God, Eternal Justice, can judge a person based on their character and deeds, after one’s
death. Hester even goes so far as to lecture the town’s minister, her former lover, by saying, “Let God punish! Thou shalt forgive!” (152), which furthers the conclusion that Hester does not conform to the town’s view on judgement, being that it comes from the church leaders and true judgement can only come from God, “Eternal Justice,” after one’s death. Ultimately failing to convince Hester of God’s immediate judgement upon her by means of the church officials, the scarlet letter does not fulfill its original purpose as Hester believes that only God can provide judgement after death, not the towns people regardless of their status in the community.
In the book, Pearl was always the smartest character portrayed by Hawthorne. Had Hester been put to death because of her sin, Pearl might not have been as successful as she became. Hester was a very admirable person. After committing her awful sin (awful as seen by the townspeople), and losing the respect of most of the townspeople, Hester was able to turn her life around for the better. Her turn around, however, happened slowly.
There are situations during the first part of the Scarlet Letter where Hester responds to the community’s power differently. As Hester stood on the scaffold, babe in hand, community officials demanded she “Speak out the name!” (Ch. 3; Pg. 47). Though pressed with legitimate power, Hester refuses and withdraws from answering who the father of the sin-born baby is. The reader already begins to notice the strong spirit of Hester. The characterization of Hester continues to develop throughout this section when she “ … did not flee.” The adulterer’s inner strength to not withdraw is astonishing. Why not leave the people who just judged you and imprisoned you? Hester and Pearl lived “On the outskirts of the town … but not in close vicinity to any other habitation” (Ch. 4; Pg. 55). The mother decided to stay, but still withdrew from the community. Hester begins to do service for the poor as well as make clothing for a community that harshly judged her. She begins to embrace her position in this power imbalance by doing good deeds, and the narrator suggests that “None so ready as she to give of her little substance to every demand of poverty” (Ch. 13; Pg. 110). The view of Hester by the community changes towards the end of the book. Her “A” was now viewed to mean “able.” No longer did it mean it regular interpretation. Hester at first was on the negative spectrum of responses to power, but we see her embrace her position in the community in the third part of the
Hester wants to protect the ones that she loves --, Pearl, Dimmesdale, her husband -- , even though she suffers more from it. In the Bible, it is one of the commandments is, to not commit adultery. When the gGossips were saying that they wanted Hester put to death (Hawthorn, 1994, p.g 36 lines 17-18), they were following the law of the Old Testament, but now that Christ died for our sins, we do not have to be put to death for our sins; we can ask for forgiveness of our sins. Nathaniel Hawthorne wanted to portray the life of an adulteress in a Puritan colony; he did so by writing how Hester’s sin affected other people, as well as the character’s strength throughout the book. The law from the Old Testament is portrayed by the people of the colony when Hester was on trial. At the end of the book, Hester Prynne is still wearing the letter, but she was presenting herself differently compared to the beginning despite the fact that the letter still made her heart ache from memories of the
Abraham Lincoln, one of the most revered presidents of our country, once expressed “I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.” Throughout history, many men have tried to teach their people by punishment. From the times of ancient Egypt, to the Dark Ages of Europe, even up to the times of colonial America, persecution, humiliation, and torture have been used to enforce the principles of righteousness. But God has seemingly different ideas. From the very beginning, God has been teaching his children on Earth by showing them mercy instead of giving them misery. This theme is exemplified in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter as Hester and Dimmesdale suffer
“Only the man who has enough good in him to feel the justice of the penalty can be punished; the other can only be hurt.'; This is a very interesting quote, and depending what you make of it, it can be very confusing. To most people this quote might not mean anything, but you
To Hester, the world is beginning to revolve around the letter that perches on her bosom. Even when she designs clothes for Pearl, she mends a dress with “…a crimson velvet tunic of a peculiar cut…” (102) and adorns it “with fantasies and flourishes of gold thread.” (102). Hester begins to project the image of her sin onto Pearl, drawing a connection between the two. The townspeople do not see Hester for herself, but for the letter residing on her chest. When Hester and Pearl walk by the Puritan boys, they scream “…there is the woman of the scarlet letter…” (103). Also, when Hester looks into the armor, the scarlet letter and Pearl – who resembles the letter – are contorted. They appear bigger, as to overshadow
From the very beginning of The Scarlet Letter, while Hester is shamed by having a baby as tangible evidence of her sin and shame, the responsibility of caring for Pearl and raising her with love and wisdom serves to calm the defiant, destructive passion of Hester's nature and to save her from its wild, desperate promptings. This sentiment is poignantly portrayed in Hester's visit to the Governor's mansion. While there, she pleads with the Governor, magistrates, and ministers that she be allowed to keep Pearl, exclaiming, 'She is my happiness!--She is my torture, none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life! Pearl punishes me too! See ye not, she is the scarlet letter, only...
Guilt is a feeling of responsibility or remorse for some offense, crime, wrong, whether real or imagined. There are different types of guilt. Guilt can be caused by a physical thing a person did that he isn’t proud of, or wanted to hide, can be something a person imagined he did to someone or something else, or can be caused when a person did something to his God or religion. Everyone at some time in his or her life has a run in with guilt, and it has a different impact on each person. People, who are feeling guilty because of something they did or said, can influence how other people act and feel. Some people are affected worse by guilt than others, for example, Dimmesdale from The Scarlet Letter. Talked about in The Scarlet Letter, Dimmesdale, a man with the deepest guilt, was responsible for the moral well-being of his people. He went against his teachings, committed adultery, and left the woman to suffer publicly alone while he stayed like a hero in the town. On the other hand, sometimes the masses are affected by one person’s guilt. He was affected much more by guilt, because he didn’t tell anyone of what he had done. By keeping guilt internalized, a person ultimately ends up hurting himself. More than seventy percent of all things that make people feel guilty are found out later on in their life by other people. Guilt has three categories that it affects the most in people: physical, mental, and spiritual.
By Hester committing a sin, they weren’t being sentenced to eternal damnation, she was. All the townspeople did was make Hester’s life a living hell. However, ironically, Hawthorne contrasts the goodness and strength with the cruelty of the religious Puritans. The letter ‘A’ upon her breast harsh cruel enough. It was “represented in exaggerated and gigantic proportions, so as to be greatly the most prominent feature of her appearance. In truth, she seemed absolutely hidden behind it” (Hawthorne 97). Hester’s identity was swallowed by her marking. Nobody knew the true Hester Prynne because the society connected the letter to her morality. Hester wasn’t a person who should be damned to Hell, but the Puritans thought so when they saw her chest. Hester almost escaped this life of being enslaved by the letter, but “Hester Prynne, with a mind of native courage and activity, and for so long a period not merely estranged, but out loud, from society, had habituated herself to such latitude of speculation” (Hawthorne 180). She chose to live her life with the embroidery upon her chest,
In the beginning, the scarlet letter represents the sinful nature of Hester’s crime, as revealed through the thoughts and feelings of Hester and the townspeople towards the letter. When first wearing the letter in public, Hester portrays herself as indifferent towards the town’s harsh language and detest for her, despite still feeling the intensity of her punishment internally. Hester portrays herself as indifferent towards the town’s harsh language and detest for her, and strong in the difficult conditions. By “wisely judging that one token of her shame would but poorly serve to hide another, she…with a burning blush, and…haughty smile…looked around at her townspeople and neighbours” (Hawthorne, 80).
As punishment for her adultery, she wears the scarlet “A” on her clothes in addition to standing on the scaffold. Her penalty was almost nothing compared to the death penalty she would received had Reverend Dimmesdale not been one of the leaders of the town. Hester chooses to stay in the town to raise her daughter Pearl and to do charity work so that she can suffer for the sake of her soul. She is reprimanded by other Puritans for not disciplining Pearl, and threats are made to take her daughter away from her. Hester says that she will raise Pearl well: “This badge hath taught me—it daily teaches me—lessons whereof my child may be the wiser and better, albeit they can profit nothing to myself,” (102-103). She is convinced that she is completely repentant for her sin and will make sure that Pearl also will not sin consequently enduring the same consequences as she did. Later in the novel, “At times, a fearful doubt strove to possess her soul, whether it were not better to send Pearl at once to heaven, and go herself to such futurity as Eternal Justice should provide. The scarlet letter had not done its office,” (154). Hester considers murdering Pearl, subsequently committing suicide. Hawthorne shows that Hester has not learned from her sin and does not regret it. As a result, she cannot direct Pearl away from sin
Redemption, a word with many meanings but few examples. People who think of redemption will usually think of Jesus, but few ever think of Hester Pyrnne. In Hawthrone's The Scarlet Letter Hester was caught in the act of adultery, and in this society, it is no small crime. While in prison Hester gives birth to Pearl, and on the day of Hester's punishment in front of everyone, the entire crowd see Pearl as a small, innocent babe. When Hester was lead in front of the church to point out the man who also committed adultery with her she refuses, "'Never!' Replied Hester Prynne, looking, not at Mr. Wilson, but into the deep and troubled eyes of the younger clergyman. 'It is too deeply branded. You cannot take it off. And would that I might endure his agony, as well as mine!'"(Hawthorne 64) Although it would be easier to tell the town the man who also committed this crime, she says to have his life better treated than that of hers. "...that I might endure his agony, as well as mine!" (Hawthorne 64).
Nathaniel Hawthorne created themes in The Scarlet Letter just as significant as the obvious ideas pertaining to sin and Puritan society. Roger Chillingworth is a character through which one of these themes resonates, and a character that is often underplayed in analysis. His weakness and path of destruction of himself and others are summed up in one of Chillingworth's last sentences in the novel, to Arthur Dimmesdale: "Hadst thou sought the whole earth over... there were no place so secret, no high place nor lowly place, where thou couldst have escaped me, save on this very scaffold!" (171).
In Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Scarlet Letter, many of the characters suffer from the tolls of sin, but none as horribly as Hester's daughter Pearl. She alone suffers from sin that is not hers, but rather that of her mother's. From the day she is conceived, Pearl is portrayed as an offspring of vice. She is introduced into the discerning, pitiless domain of the Puritan religion from inside a jail; a place untouched by light, as is the depth of her mother's sin. The austere Puritan ways punish Hester through banishment from the community and the church, simultaneously punishing Pearl in the process. This isolation leads to an unspoken detachment and animosity between her and the other Puritan children. Thus we see how Pearl is conceived through sin, and how she suffers when her mother and the community situate this deed upon her like the scarlet letter on her mother's bosom.
Everyone in the town each has different views on their life, for Hester, her punishment has changed the view of the world around her. At the beginning of The Scarlet letter, Hester is put on the scaffold in the middle of the town. She is being publicly humiliated, as well as, questioned for what she has done. Hester stands on the scaffold looking as if she is not sorry for her sin. She stands there holding Pearl, the outcome of her sin. She was described as a tall and elegant beautiful woman with a rich complexion. The town is shocked by how she elegantly embroiders the scarlet letter “A.” Hester decides that she deserves the punishment of the town for her sin of adultery. When Chillingworth shows up this make her experience a bigger amount