The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Hester Prynne, an adulterous who's just about to be released from
prison so that she can be paraded through town, displaying the scarlet "A" that
she's been forced to wear as evidence of her adultery. She's has a baby
daughter, Pearl, but her husband has been away for two full years. Despite all
the shaming, Hester protects Pearl's father from punishment by refusing to give
up his name. The adultery parade is winding through town when her long-lost
husband arrives in disguise. Once she's back in prison, he shows up and orders
her to keep her mouth shut so he can carry out his plan of seeking revenge on
her lover and she agrees. Hester’s husband tells the townspeople that he's a
physician named Roger Chillingworth. He's a smart fellow, so he realizes pretty
quickly that the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is the likely father of Hester's
baby. Obviously, his next step is to stalk the minister day and night. The
minister is too afraid to confess his sin publicly, but he's feeling pretty
guilty, not to mention antsy from Chillingworth's constant examination, and also
maybe in a little pain from strange red mark that's on his chest. Finally,
Hester realizes that her husband has been doing psychological manipulation to
the man she loves, and she reveals Chillingworth's true identity to Dimmesdale.
They make a plan to settle in England to create a new life together. However,
Dimmesdale backs out and confesses his sin to the townspeople on the scaffold
where Hester was publicly shamed seven years earlier. He rips his shirt open to
reveal the mark on his chest, just before dying. About a year later,
Chillingworth dies and leaves all his money and property to Pearl, which means
she and her mom can finally get themselves out of that awful community and
return to England to build a new life. Years later, Hester returns to the colony, resuming the scarlet letter of her own will. When she dies, she's buried near the minister, and they share a gravestone marked with
the letter "A”.
prison so that she can be paraded through town, displaying the scarlet "A" that
she's been forced to wear as evidence of her adultery. She's has a baby
daughter, Pearl, but her husband has been away for two full years. Despite all
the shaming, Hester protects Pearl's father from punishment by refusing to give
up his name. The adultery parade is winding through town when her long-lost
husband arrives in disguise. Once she's back in prison, he shows up and orders
her to keep her mouth shut so he can carry out his plan of seeking revenge on
her lover and she agrees. Hester’s husband tells the townspeople that he's a
physician named Roger Chillingworth. He's a smart fellow, so he realizes pretty
quickly that the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is the likely father of Hester's
baby. Obviously, his next step is to stalk the minister day and night. The
minister is too afraid to confess his sin publicly, but he's feeling pretty
guilty, not to mention antsy from Chillingworth's constant examination, and also
maybe in a little pain from strange red mark that's on his chest. Finally,
Hester realizes that her husband has been doing psychological manipulation to
the man she loves, and she reveals Chillingworth's true identity to Dimmesdale.
They make a plan to settle in England to create a new life together. However,
Dimmesdale backs out and confesses his sin to the townspeople on the scaffold
where Hester was publicly shamed seven years earlier. He rips his shirt open to
reveal the mark on his chest, just before dying. About a year later,
Chillingworth dies and leaves all his money and property to Pearl, which means
she and her mom can finally get themselves out of that awful community and
return to England to build a new life. Years later, Hester returns to the colony, resuming the scarlet letter of her own will. When she dies, she's buried near the minister, and they share a gravestone marked with
the letter "A”.
There are four major characters in The
Scarlet Letter such as, Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, Arthur
Dimmesdale, and Pearl.
The fact that Prynne has an affair suggests that
she once had a passionate nature, but it is what happens after Hester’s affair
that makes her into the woman that the reader is familiar. Alienated from the
rest of the community, Hester becomes a freethinker. Although the narrator
pretends to disapprove of Hester’s independence, his tone indicates that he
secretly admires it and her ideas. Hester also becomes a compassionate maternal
figure as a result of her experiences. Hester is also maternal with not only
Pearl but she also cares for the poor and brings them food and clothing. By the
novel’s end, Hester has become a mother figure to the women of the community.
The shame attached to her scarlet letter is long gone. Women recognize that her
punishment stemmed in part from the town fathers’ sexism, and they come to
Hester seeking shelter from the sexist forces under which they themselves
suffer. Throughout The Scarlet Letter Hester is portrayed as an
intelligent, capable, but not necessarily extraordinary woman. It is the
extraordinary circumstances shaping her that make her such an important
figure.
Roger Chillingworth is a man deficient in human
warmth. His twisted, stooped, deformed shoulders mirror his distorted soul. From
what the reader is told of his early years with Hester, he was a difficult
husband. He ignored his wife for much of the time, yet expected her to nourish
his soul with affection when he did condescend to spend time with her. Unable to
engage in relationships with those around him, he feeds on the vitality of
others as a way of energizing his own projects. Ultimately, Chillingworth
represents true evil. His chemical experiments and medical practices
occasionally verge on witchcraft and murder. He is interested in revenge and he
seeks destruction of others. His desire to hurt others stands in contrast to
Hester and Dimmesdale’s sin, which had love, not hate, as its intent. Any harm
that may have come from the young lovers’ deed was unanticipated, while
Chillingworth reaps harm.
Arthur Dimmesdale is a scholar of some renown at
Oxford University. His past suggests that he is probably somewhat aloof, the
kind of man who would not have much natural sympathy for ordinary men and women.
However, Dimmesdale has an unusually active conscience. The fact that Hester
takes all of the blame for the shared sin allows him to empathize with others.
He becomes a compassionate leader and his congregation is able to receive
meaningful spiritual guidance from him. Ironically, the townspeople do not
believe Dimmesdale’s doings are of sinfulness. The town’s idolization of him
reaches new heights after his Election Day sermon, which is his last. In his
death, Dimmesdale becomes even more of an icon than he was in life. Many believe
his confession was a symbolic act, while others believe Dimmesdale’s fate was an
example of divine judgment.
Hester’s daughter, Pearl is quite young during
most of the events of this novel and her real importance lies in her ability to
provoke the adult characters in the book. She asks them pointed questions and
draws their attention, and the reader’s. In general, children in The Scarlet
Letter are portrayed as more perceptive and more honest than adults, and
Pearl is the most perceptive of them all. Pearl makes us constantly aware of her
mother’s scarlet letter and of the society that produced it. Pearl’s innocent
comments about the letter raise crucial questions about its meaning. Similarly,
she inquires about the relationships between those around her—most important,
the relationship between Hester and Dimmesdale—and offers perceptive critiques
of them. Pearl provides the text’s harshest, and most penetrating, judgment of
Dimmesdale’s failure to admit to his adultery.
In the 17th century in England, the state religion was Church of
England, which had broken off from the Roman Catholic Church about 200 years
earlier. The Church of England had gotten rid of or seriously cut back on a lot
of Catholic practices like the veneration of saints and emphasis on works rather
than grace, but the Puritans thought they hadn't gone nearly far enough.
Puritans were a section of Protestant Christians influenced by Calvinism, the
idea that salvation is predestined. Religious behavior was a result of
salvation, but also proof of it. Because Puritan communities were really into
purity sins were rooted out and punished harshly. Unfortunately for them, Church
of England was basically compulsory. You had to show up at least a couple of
times a year and you could be seriously persecuted for practicing different
beliefs. The surrounding forest, the marketplace, the scaffold, the prison, the governor's
house, and Hester’s cottage all play a big role in the setting. The Massachusetts Bay Colony
is surrounded by vast expanses of forest and ocean. The colony is like an island in the midst of
wilderness, and the sense of the unknown and unexplored is tangible. Nature is far larger than
civilization. The colonists are on the frontier, having left the Old World of England in exchange for
the New. Witchcraft, Indian medicine, and adulterous relationships are a new way to live.
Scarlet Letter such as, Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, Arthur
Dimmesdale, and Pearl.
The fact that Prynne has an affair suggests that
she once had a passionate nature, but it is what happens after Hester’s affair
that makes her into the woman that the reader is familiar. Alienated from the
rest of the community, Hester becomes a freethinker. Although the narrator
pretends to disapprove of Hester’s independence, his tone indicates that he
secretly admires it and her ideas. Hester also becomes a compassionate maternal
figure as a result of her experiences. Hester is also maternal with not only
Pearl but she also cares for the poor and brings them food and clothing. By the
novel’s end, Hester has become a mother figure to the women of the community.
The shame attached to her scarlet letter is long gone. Women recognize that her
punishment stemmed in part from the town fathers’ sexism, and they come to
Hester seeking shelter from the sexist forces under which they themselves
suffer. Throughout The Scarlet Letter Hester is portrayed as an
intelligent, capable, but not necessarily extraordinary woman. It is the
extraordinary circumstances shaping her that make her such an important
figure.
Roger Chillingworth is a man deficient in human
warmth. His twisted, stooped, deformed shoulders mirror his distorted soul. From
what the reader is told of his early years with Hester, he was a difficult
husband. He ignored his wife for much of the time, yet expected her to nourish
his soul with affection when he did condescend to spend time with her. Unable to
engage in relationships with those around him, he feeds on the vitality of
others as a way of energizing his own projects. Ultimately, Chillingworth
represents true evil. His chemical experiments and medical practices
occasionally verge on witchcraft and murder. He is interested in revenge and he
seeks destruction of others. His desire to hurt others stands in contrast to
Hester and Dimmesdale’s sin, which had love, not hate, as its intent. Any harm
that may have come from the young lovers’ deed was unanticipated, while
Chillingworth reaps harm.
Arthur Dimmesdale is a scholar of some renown at
Oxford University. His past suggests that he is probably somewhat aloof, the
kind of man who would not have much natural sympathy for ordinary men and women.
However, Dimmesdale has an unusually active conscience. The fact that Hester
takes all of the blame for the shared sin allows him to empathize with others.
He becomes a compassionate leader and his congregation is able to receive
meaningful spiritual guidance from him. Ironically, the townspeople do not
believe Dimmesdale’s doings are of sinfulness. The town’s idolization of him
reaches new heights after his Election Day sermon, which is his last. In his
death, Dimmesdale becomes even more of an icon than he was in life. Many believe
his confession was a symbolic act, while others believe Dimmesdale’s fate was an
example of divine judgment.
Hester’s daughter, Pearl is quite young during
most of the events of this novel and her real importance lies in her ability to
provoke the adult characters in the book. She asks them pointed questions and
draws their attention, and the reader’s. In general, children in The Scarlet
Letter are portrayed as more perceptive and more honest than adults, and
Pearl is the most perceptive of them all. Pearl makes us constantly aware of her
mother’s scarlet letter and of the society that produced it. Pearl’s innocent
comments about the letter raise crucial questions about its meaning. Similarly,
she inquires about the relationships between those around her—most important,
the relationship between Hester and Dimmesdale—and offers perceptive critiques
of them. Pearl provides the text’s harshest, and most penetrating, judgment of
Dimmesdale’s failure to admit to his adultery.
In the 17th century in England, the state religion was Church of
England, which had broken off from the Roman Catholic Church about 200 years
earlier. The Church of England had gotten rid of or seriously cut back on a lot
of Catholic practices like the veneration of saints and emphasis on works rather
than grace, but the Puritans thought they hadn't gone nearly far enough.
Puritans were a section of Protestant Christians influenced by Calvinism, the
idea that salvation is predestined. Religious behavior was a result of
salvation, but also proof of it. Because Puritan communities were really into
purity sins were rooted out and punished harshly. Unfortunately for them, Church
of England was basically compulsory. You had to show up at least a couple of
times a year and you could be seriously persecuted for practicing different
beliefs. The surrounding forest, the marketplace, the scaffold, the prison, the governor's
house, and Hester’s cottage all play a big role in the setting. The Massachusetts Bay Colony
is surrounded by vast expanses of forest and ocean. The colony is like an island in the midst of
wilderness, and the sense of the unknown and unexplored is tangible. Nature is far larger than
civilization. The colonists are on the frontier, having left the Old World of England in exchange for
the New. Witchcraft, Indian medicine, and adulterous relationships are a new way to live.
There are three main conflicts involved in this novel. They are
man vs. man, man vs. self, and man vs. society. In man vs. man Prynne’s husband
and lover face off for the love of Hester. This is when her husband tortures her
lover. In man vs. self and man vs. society, Hester Prynne is in desperate need
to face her shame that was brought to her by her behavioral acts. She has to
battle society and her own self to find out who she really is and what kind of
woman she can be for not only her, but her daughter as well.
man vs. man, man vs. self, and man vs. society. In man vs. man Prynne’s husband
and lover face off for the love of Hester. This is when her husband tortures her
lover. In man vs. self and man vs. society, Hester Prynne is in desperate need
to face her shame that was brought to her by her behavioral acts. She has to
battle society and her own self to find out who she really is and what kind of
woman she can be for not only her, but her daughter as well.
There are three themes in The Scarlet Letter including sin , the nature of evil, and finding one's identity.
The adulterous behaviors that Hester set out were sinful especially in the Puritan society where her intentions were no where near okay by any means. Although some may think sin and evil are both connected with each other, however in a certain light this is not always true. Not all sin comes from evil. Sin lies within everyone even if they are good people. Hester's act and sin of commiting a crime was not because she was evil but just because she is human. Chillingworth however has sin because he is evil and does evil acts towards Dimmesdale. Furthermore, Hester despite her commiting adultery, is a good person. The theme of finding one's identity can be seen through her as she takes her wrong doings and looks at them as mistakes to better herself. Although these themes are seperate, they do without a doubt coincide within one another.
The adulterous behaviors that Hester set out were sinful especially in the Puritan society where her intentions were no where near okay by any means. Although some may think sin and evil are both connected with each other, however in a certain light this is not always true. Not all sin comes from evil. Sin lies within everyone even if they are good people. Hester's act and sin of commiting a crime was not because she was evil but just because she is human. Chillingworth however has sin because he is evil and does evil acts towards Dimmesdale. Furthermore, Hester despite her commiting adultery, is a good person. The theme of finding one's identity can be seen through her as she takes her wrong doings and looks at them as mistakes to better herself. Although these themes are seperate, they do without a doubt coincide within one another.
There are three symbols in The Scarlet Letter such as, the scarlet letter "A", the meteor, and Pearl her daughter.
The scarlet letter "A" represents her adultery and her shame. The meteor shows that Dimmesdale should wear a mark of shame just like Hester as it draws an "A" in the night sky. Although, he did not commit adultery, he does deserve the same shame that Hester Prynne has to endure .Pearl, Hester's daughter, symbolizes innocence and all of the good things in life. Although Pearl came through her mother’s sin, she also represents a blessing to Hester and helps her become the good woman that she wants to be and become.
The scarlet letter "A" represents her adultery and her shame. The meteor shows that Dimmesdale should wear a mark of shame just like Hester as it draws an "A" in the night sky. Although, he did not commit adultery, he does deserve the same shame that Hester Prynne has to endure .Pearl, Hester's daughter, symbolizes innocence and all of the good things in life. Although Pearl came through her mother’s sin, she also represents a blessing to Hester and helps her become the good woman that she wants to be and become.
"The Scarlet Letter Summary." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.
"The Scarlet Letter." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 31 Mar.
2013.
"The Scarlet Letter Setting." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar.
2013.
"Google." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.
"The Scarlet Letter." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 31 Mar.
2013.
"The Scarlet Letter Setting." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar.
2013.
"Google." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.