Stereotypes In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Human nature thrives on labels and stereotypes; they are methods society uses to better comprehend others disposition and justify their behavior. However, when placed stereotypes can override individuality, and this can force one to conform to such labels, hide their true character, and change their persona. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester is a victim of such a stereotype. The Puritan society in which she lives confines and defines her based on her sin, and not by a totality of her actions and character. Nevertheless she emerges, reborn, as her own person once again. Hester Prynne's development through the use of archetypes, symbols, and Romanticism reinforce the theme of the effects of stereotypes and labels and their refutal in The Scarlet Letter. Hester has committed adultery, a major sin in Puritan society. This sin immediately archetypes her as a temptress in the community, and the women in the marketplace call her a “brazen hussy”, which is synonymous to an immoral woman ( ). This archetype suggests that Hester lured and provoked Dimmesdale into adultery, and that, as a married woman, she is the one at fault, and must be punished accordingly. The public hates and shames Hester when she is convicted, but Dimmesdale is praised when he attempts to

Hester’s true character is shielded from view when the archetype of temptress is placed upon her, both verbally and through the scarlet letter, and this archetype changes her appearance and she conforms to society because of it. Defiance and resistance are Romanticism characteristics that Hester portrays, and through her resistance Hester sheds the stereotype of an immoral temptress and is viewed as a misunderstood artist. [This is where I put my profound sentences about labels and their