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All throughout The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne is faced with challenge after challenge. Her first obstacle is her sin, which is without consequence. For Hester, this consequence is Pearl, her love child. Her beautiful daughter also presents herself as a constant reminder of the sin Hester has committed. While raising Pearl, it is evident that the pair is not welcome in the town, which leads Hester and Pearl to leave outsiders. Hester Prynne seems to be the ultimate optomist in this novel because whatever difficulty she faces she conquers with a cool head and courage.
Hester has sinned against God and against her husband by sleeping with another man. As if the guilt were not enough punishment, shame is added when the
entire town of Boston finds out. Because of the Puritan lifestyle at this time, Hester is made to publicly shame herself and wear a scarlet “A” embroidered on her chest. What is even more painful is the daily reminder of her betrayal in the form of her child of the affair, Pearl. Hester proves to be an optimist when she sees these repercussion as a blessing because it reminds her never to do that again. She also sees it as her ramification for sinning and her way of making up for it. Hester shows courage by vanquishing her guilt in the form of accepting it. As Pearl grows older, people become more hostile toward her and Hester causing them to move to a small cottage on the outskirts of Boston. Going into town for errands, they have various items thrown at them with people saying degrading comments. Being outcasts is yet another opposition Hester has to face and again she shows courage and calmness in facing this. She keeps to herself and learns how to become the best seamstress in Boston. Known for her sewing skills, people from town even come to her cottage to have her work for them. Hester makes the best out of every trial she is faced with. The greatest challenge Hester has to face is raising her daughter Pearl. Pearl is a consistent reminder of Hester’s sin, not only as who she is, the product of sin, but also what she does. Pearl grabs at Hester’s scarlet letter even from a young age, seeming to taunt Hester. Asking why Hester wears the “A”, why they are treated so poorly, and who her dad is are all natural questions from a child’s point of view, but to Hester it is Satan’s way of tormenting her. Yet at the end of the day Pearl is still Hester’s pride and joy and she never wants Pearl to have to live the life that she has to, so they escaped to Europe. Pearl is older at this time and finds a husband there, which gives her the chance at happiness that Hester was robbed of. Once more, Hester overcomes her obstacle with optimism and courage. Accepting her consequences for her sin, learning how to make the best out of being an outcast, and giving Pearl the life she never could have are all different ways Hester proves her confidence and strength in triumphing over her oppositions she is faced with. Hester looked at the glass half-full in every situation she was thrown into. A lot can be learned from Hester and how she overcomes her difficulties. Nathaniel Hawthorne provides an excellent structure and moral of his story by showing that no sin goes unpunished, however, there is always a bright side. Hawthorne’s intent was to give life to the old Puritan way and expand on their ideals but, subconsciously or not, he showed that difficulties in life can be overcome with courage and optimism.
Hester Prynne, the protagonist in the book The Scarlet Letter, has committed the sin of adultery, but learned to use that mistake as a form of strength. Hester’s husband, Roger Chillingworth, sent her to America and was supposed to follow her, but never arrived in Boston. While Hester was waiting on Chillingworth, she had an affair with the town minister, Dimmesdale. As a result, Hester gave birth to a beautiful daughter and was forced to wear the scarlet
Pearl is a symbol of Hester’s transgressions and even has similar qualities as the sin which she represents. Pearl’s life and behavior directly reflects the unacceptable and abnormal nature of Hester’s adulterous sin. Hester is plagued with more than just a letter “A”; she is given a child from her affair who is just as much a reminder of her sin as the scarlet letter. Ultimately Hester overcomes the shame associated the scarlet letter and creates a sense of family for herself and Pearl. This relationship is integral to the theme of this novel and the development of its characters.
Hester is a youthful, beautiful, proud woman who has committed an awful sin and a scandal that changes her life in a major way. She commits adultery with a man known as Arthur Dimmesdale, leader of the local Puritan church and Hester’s minister. The adultery committed results in a baby girl named Pearl. This child she clutches to her chest is the proof of her sin. This behavior is unacceptable. Hester is sent to prison and then punished. Hester is the only one who gets punished for this horrendous act, because no one knows who the man is that Hester has this scandalous affair with. Hester’s sin is confessed, and she lives with two constant reminders of that sin: the scarlet letter itself, and Pearl, the child conceived with Dimmesdale. Her punishment is that she must stand upon a scaffold receiving public humiliation for several hours each day, wearing the scarlet letter “A” on her chest, represe...
The punishments that the characters must undergo are worsened by the fact that they do not tell the whole truth. Hester has been found guilty of adultery but when she is asked to tell whom it was that she committed the sin with she refuses saying "Never.
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s well known novel, The Scarlet Letter, extensive diction and intense imagery are used to portray the overall tone of the characters. In particular, Hester Prynne, the wearer of the Scarlet Letter, receives plentiful positive characterization throughout the novel. Hester’s character most notably develops through the town’s peoples ever-changing views on the scarlet letter, the copious mentions of her bravery, and her ability to take care of herself, Pearl, and others, even when she reaches the point where most would give up and wallow in their suffering.
Many hearts are drawn to history's greatest love stories, such as Romeo and Juliet, Bonnie and Clyde, and Helen and Paris to name a few. One could argue that humanity’s way of finding happiness is to seek love. Pure, unadulterated love is one of the hardest feelings to acquire, but when one does, they’d do anything to keep it. Through Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and his characters, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, readers discover that this innate desire to be accepted and loved is both our most fatal flaw and our greatest virtue.
Hester Prynne is seen by many as worthy of respect and admiration throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter. She is ultimately seen as a hero in many areas of the novel. Literary critic Mark Van Doren argues that Hester Prynne is a heroic citizen who rises above the consequences of her sin. Van Doren argues that Hester Prynne should be seen as a noble hero through his use of repetition, praiseworthy diction, and admirable tone.
He defies the system of education by leaving the institution and starting his own school. He did this because he believed following a set system with rules would hurt his integrity. This similar act plays out in the novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. In the novel, main character Hester Prynne cares for her child despite what others think. She puts little importance to the townspeople's ridicule and judgement and continues to walk through the marketplace with her head held high. Hester keeps her integrity and continues to focus on her most important goal, which is to look after her daughter Pearl and give her all the love she deserves. Like Henry, Hester showed strength through her determination of keeping her strong moral principles and making her own decisions. Despite being judged and hated, Hester stayed sane and together because she had her integrity and knew the importance of defying against all external forces to be able to stick to what she believed
Hester Prynne, from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, the Scarlet Letter, faces a crucible. She commits adultery with Reverend Dimmesdale and becomes pregnant with a daughter, Pearl. She is isolated from the community and the general public except for when she must stand upon the scaffold for three hours as part of her punishment for her sin. She must also wear a scarlet letter “A” for adultery on her breast. The town looks at her differently because of her sin but Hester stays true to her personality. Hester fairs her life by honoring her punishment and her mistakes, as well as taking care of Pearl and teaching her to be kind.
This, as Arthur Dimmesdale almost prophetically expresses in the early scenes of Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, was the role of Pearl, the elfish child borne of his and Hester Prynne's guilty passion. Like Paul's thorn in the flesh, Pearl would bring trouble, heartache, and frustration to Hester, but serve a constructive purpose lying far beyond the daily provocations of her childish impishness. While in many respects a tormentor to Hester, Pearl was also her savior, while a reminder of her guilt, a promoter of honesty and true Virtue; and while an embodiment of Hester's worst qualities, a vision of a better life for Hester and for herself.
The Scarlet letter is a novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The plot focuses on sin in the Puritan society. Hester Prynne, the protagonist, has an affair with Reverend Dimmesdale, which means they are adulterers and sinners. As a result, Pearl is born and Hester is forced to where the scarlet letter. Pearl is a unique character. She is Hester’s human form of her scarlet letter, which constantly reminds her of her sin, yet at the same time, Pearl is a blessing to have since she represents the passion that Hester once had.
In the novel the Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the main character Hester Prynne sinned by committing adultery which changes her identity while she wears the Scarlet Letter. “In the social jungle of human existence, there is no feeling of being alive without a sense of identity” (Erik Erikson). The way the scarlet letter defines Hester as someone who sinned in her society. The way that her society reacted to her with the scarlet letter, made her question her identity of who she is with the scarlet letter. Hester is forced to change her identity and the society around her looks at her in a different eye than what she was before she received the scarlet letter.
In The Scarlet Letter, Hester is the main character. Hester is referred to as “Mistress Prynne” (Hawthorne 70). The Scarlet Letter also mentions she is holding her three month old baby, Pearl, in her arms who winked and turned her head by the sun’s rays (Hawthorne 71). She is described as having an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread “letter A” on the breast of her gown (Hawthorne 71). Hester was also a tall woman (Hawthorne 72). Her hair was dark and abundant her hair shined while the sunshine gleamed off her hair (Hawthorne 72). Hester had a marked brow and dark black eyes (Hawthorne 72). Hester Prynne is often described as a lady-like person (Hawthorne 72).
Throughout all the sinful things Hester Prynne has done, she still managed to obtain good qualities. Hester was an adulterer from the book The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hester was looked down upon by the citizens of Boston because of the sin she and another person committed, but no one knew who her partner in crime was because she refused to release his name. Towards the very end of the story Hester’s accomplice confessed and left Hester and Pearl feeling joyous, because now they didn’t have to keep in a secret. Hester is a trustworthy, helpful, and brave woman throughout The Scarlet Letter.
Hester is indeed a sinner, adultery is no light matter, even today. On the other hand, her sin has brought her not evil, but good. Her charity to the poor, her comfort to the broken-hearted, her unquestionable presence in times of trouble are all direct results of her quest for repe...