Hester Prynne is the protagonist in the story The Scarlet Letter who also happens to be a witch. Hester’s sweet personality is shadowed by her wicked deeds that constantly haunt her throughout the story. A witch frequently visits Hester during the story, Hester’s child has qualities of the devil, and Hester embraces her sin. Isolation from Puritan society has revealed Hester’s true identity as a witch. The story begins with Hester’s release from prison and public shaming. All the townspeople immediately notice the “A” sewn on the chest of her dress. Hester created the letter “in fine red cloth, surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread” (Hawthorne 46). The A represented a great sin that she decorated so elaborately, as if she were proud she had sinned. Hester’s courage to defy Puritan society grew stronger with the influence of Mistress Hibbins. …show more content…
Mistress Hibbins visits Hester several times to tempt her into signing the devil's book. Hester politely tells Hibbins, “‘Had they taken her (Pearl) from me, I would willingly have gone with thee into the forest, and signed my name in the Black Man’s book too, and that with mine own blood!”’ (Hawthorne 97). Hester has connections to evil spirits such as Mistress Hibbins and the Black Man. The Black Man represents the devil who makes people sign his book in blood. When Pearl asks Hester if she has ever met the Black Man in stories, Hester replies, “‘Once in my life I met the Black Man!...This scarlet letter is his mark!’” (Hawthorne 154). The statement’s original purpose was to shush Pearl; however, “she gave into temptation, and in this devout culture, an act such as this was viewed as a pact with the devil” (“Witchcraft”). Hester’s lack of religious discipline for Pearl leads to Pearl’s devilish
The very scarlet letter from which the novel’s name is derived from is a symbol of sinning; the scarlet letter represents how Puritan society views sinning as unforgivable and something for public speculation. Hester is punished by wearing hers out for the world to see. The letter is “so fantastically embroidered” that one townswoman argues that its intricacy and design defeat the entire purpose of wearing it. The scarlet letter serves as an
Initially, both The Scarlet Letter and The Devil and Tom Walker share ideas of religion. In the Scarlet Letter the story takes place in a strict Puritan society. The Puritans believe in following God’s Law and the Bible, therefore, they believed everything in the Bible was true and must be strictly followed. They believed that if God was present in their society so was the Devil. Hester Prynne and her daughter Pearl live in this society with these religious beliefs. Pear asks to hear a story of the Black Man, or in other words, the Devil, while in the forest with Hester. “But you may sit down if you tell me as story meanwhile. A story, child! said Hester. And what about? Oh a story about the Black Man, answered Pearl, taking hold of her mother’s gown, and looking up, half earnestly, half mischievously,
Hester is a character portrayed in both the light and the dark as she walks out of prison. She is free of sin, but is reminded everyday by the letter she wears. Hester struggled with the Puritan’s intolerance to Pearl and her. Hester “like a black shadow emerging out into the sunshine like she was free of sin” depicts the contrast between light and dark. (Hawthorne 49). When she walked into the sunshine she felt like something was lifted off of her chest. As a seamstress she had “sewn on her chest in bright red…an A” (Hawthorne 50). This mark symbolized the acceptance of her sin.
In the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne is portrayed as an adulterous woman, having a child out of wedlock. She is forced to display her terrible sin publicly by wearing a letter A the color of scarlet. Though she is seen by the Puritans as sinful, she displays many of the virtues stated in Proverbs 31. Hester Prynne shows moral excellence as well as righteousness and goodness despite being wrought with sin.
In the beginning of the novel, Hester refuses to let her sin define her, which her subtle, beautiful, yet defiant nature displays. With all eyes on her as she walks out of the jail, the townspeople notice “On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth, surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread, appeared the letter A” (Hawthorne 46). This embroidered A serves as a punishment of her sin and is supposed to be a disgraceful, ugly reminder to her and everyone around her. If she had succumbed to her punishment and the persona that went with it, then it would be an ugly A, but she makes
Although the scarlet letter has several figurative meanings, it also has literal ones as well, such as the devil and its associations. In chapter sixteen, Pearl inquires Hester as to whether or not she has ever met the "Black Man," or forest-dwelling devil. She responds, "'Once in my life I met the Black Man!' ... 'This scarlet letter is his mark.'" Here, Hester is comparing the letter to the devil's symbol of previous presence. Moreover, the scarlet letter is an icon of Hell. When Roger Chillingworth and Hester are conversing in chapter three, Chillingworth admits that the adultery was "his folly", but he also makes a subtle remark about the letter itself, saying, "'I might have beheld the bale-fire of that
First of all, the scarlet letter stands for Hester's sin. By forcing Hester to wear the letter A on her bosom, the Puritan community not only punishes this weak young woman for her adultery but labels her identity as an adulteress and immoral human being as well. "Thus the young and the pure would be taught to look at her, with the letter flaming on her chest", also "as the figure, the body and the reality of sin." And the day Hester began to wear the scarlet A on her bosom is the opening of her darkness. From that moment, people, who look at her, must notice the letter A manifest itself in the red color covering not only her bosom, but her own character. The Puritans now only see the letter A, the representation of sin, scorn and hate
Hester Prynne is the protagonist of The Scarlet Letter, a novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. She was a beautiful woman who, because of her adultery, experienced persecution and was ostracized by everyone in her town. Her shame and guilt gave her an understanding of sin and redemption. She serves as an example of someone who is rejected by society and, because of it, grows in both strength and wisdom. Hester’s sin overshadowed her beauty and talent, but her humble and generous deeds gained her respect over many years.
In her harsh Puritan society, Hester is forced to wear the infamous letter “A” as a means to bear her sin in public humiliation. She becomes a figure of shame within
Part of her conflicts come from the punishment of having the scarlet letter, a constant reminder of her sins. Permanently blazoned on her bosom, it forces Hester into a mental state of sustained repentance that causes her to associate with evil. Even naive Pearl notices this connection as she comments that the sunlight does not love Hester, as it “runs away and hides itself, because it is afraid of something on [her] bosom” (180). This absence of light reinforces the notion that her society does not approve of the truth behind Hester’s act of adultery. Her physical appearances depict this judgement as “her beauty... departed, like fading sunshine; and a gray shadow seemed to fall across her” (160).
Hester Prynne is the first character who Nathaniel Hawthorne includes symbolic physical descriptions for in The Scarlet Letter to illustrate the idea that revealed sin leads to self-liberation. Hester Prynne is first described in the chapter ' The Market-Place' when a group of townspeople gathered on the lawn outside the jail witness her release. The first physical description of Hester follows just after her release. Described as a young woman, her actions are “marked with natural dignity and force of character” (Hawthorne ).
Prynne is described as “tall, with a figure of perfect elegance” (Hawthorne 50). The scarlet letter is stowed upon Hester’s bosom and takes on many meanings. After starting her new life, Hester is tormented by children who learn the meaning of the scarlet letter. Townspeople move across the street when Hester walks by. Preachers, women, and men use Hester as examples while on the subject of iniquity.
Pearl is connecting the Black Man with Hester, and the scarlet letter. Pearls interest in the Black Man revolves around the scarlet letter. Pearl mentions the big heavy book that the Black Man carries. This can be referred back to when Mistress Hibbins asked Hester to join her in the woods. The Black Man is described as manipulative and tempting. Pearl asks Hester if she has ever met the Black Man. Pearl is being sarcastic, she knows that Hester is marked forever by the
Hester Prynne is a protagonist in the novel " The Scarlet Letter" She is described as a young tall women, with dark and glossy hair. So beautiful that "her beauty shone out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in which she was enveloped." Hester Prynne suffers public humiliation, forced to wear the scarlet letter for the sin she has done. She then hides her beauty and sin underneath a cap for seven years. All the people who surround her look down on her and shame her, but after a long while. People begin to feel bad for her, telling her to remove the scarlet letter. Though, Hester disagrees and keeps the scarlet letter on. Leaving her with a burden on her back reminding her and the people for what she did. Hester continues with her
Hester Prynne, a character within The Scarlet Letter, is a prime example of Hawthorne's common transformation of individuals within his books. These mutations involve the qualities and attributes of her physical appearance, feminine emotions, and reputation among the townspeople. Throughout the novel, the mentioned elements of Hester's character develop and change several times, providing the reader with better understanding of the influence that the scarlet letter and other characters have on her.