Scarlet Letter Scaffold Scene Essay

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Characters in a story can come back to the same area at different times and have such a dramatic change in perspective.The Scarlet Letter, a novel by Nathanial Hawthorne, was a story about a woman, Hester Prynne, who had to wear a scarlet A to mark her adultery and shame. Arthur Dimmesdale, her lover, was involved with her adultery, but didn’t want to be identified. Roger Chillingworth was seeking revenge because of Hester’s crime. These three characters all took part in the three pivotal scaffold scenes. Hawthorne unifies his novel with three pivotal scaffold scenes to show how each of these major characters grow and develop.

In the first scaffold scene, during midday, Hester is standing on the scaffold, Dimmesdale is nearby sharing the …show more content…

Hester hears Dimmesdale and comes up the steps and stands on the platform with Dimmesdale and her daughter, Pearl. Hester is still loyal and keeps her promise about exposing the identity of Chillingworth and stays silent. Hester, Pearl, and Dimmesdale join hands and she begins to feel warm and connected to her family. She is becoming more reflective. Hester changed from the beginning of book by becoming more meditative and closer to human nature. Dimmesdale was in a bad state of mind. His guilt was taking over and he was slowly breaking apart. He was suffering. He takes a night stroll to the scaffold and cries out. Something sparks him that night that made him feel more whole. “The minister felt for the child’s other hand, and took it. The tumultuous rush of new life, other life than his own, pouring like a torrent into his heart and hurrying through all his vein - The three formed an electric chain” (149). Dimmesdale joined hands with his family and instantly felt warm and connected, like a chain. Dimmesdale was not completely ready to confess his sin, but the darkness of night allowed him to comfortably confess to himself. Dimmesdale made more progress from the beginning of the book. Before, he was unwilling to confess his sin. Now, in the …show more content…

Hester isn’t feeling very well from that start. There are many strangers around since it is election day. All the curious dazes has her chest burning and the scarlet letter pains her more than it has ever had before. Hester is called by Dimmesdale to come up and join him on the platform. Hester feels like she needs to be very strong for the events that are soon to happen. In the beginning of the book, Hester did things without care and was strong-willed. Later, she has become more closer to human nature and more thoughtful. By the end, Hester evolved to a motherly figure. This happens became she didn’t want to lose her daughter. People started respecting Hester so she started accepting others. Hester changed by having more respect for society and by caring about others more. Dimmesdale preforms a successful sermon and is still hesitant to call up Hester and their daughter. At the same time, he was feeling victorious. When he does call them up, and prepares for his confession, he leans on Hester for support. “Yet he trembled, and turned to Hester with an expression of doubt and anxiety in his eyes” (249). He was struggling and was mentally anxious. In the beginning, Dimmesdale was very unwilling to confess his sin and shame. Later, he was building up the courage to finally confess but not completely. In the

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