Hester Prynne Sympathism In The Scarlet Letter

Edward Said, literary critic, has described exile as something “strangely compelling to think about but terrible to experience,” and as something that can be “potent, even enriching.” In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne experiences an exile after being marked as an adulteress which intrigues the reader because of its ability to change her substantially throughout the novel. Hester’s exile is intriguing because she often is near other people, but she remains on the outskirts of the town, and of society. Through the years, this exile leads to Hester’s complete transformation proves her incredible strength, even when faced with such tragedy.

Hester Prynne is forced to wear the scarlet letter for the rest of her life because of the one sin she has committed. As she stands on the scaffold in front of the whole town she is told “... And then and the after for the remained of her natural life, to wear a mark of shame upon her bosom.” (Hawthorne 59). This quote shows that hester is forever going to be guilty for the one sin she has committed with Dimmesdale. Hester will never be treated the same or looked at the same off because of the Scarlet A on her bosom. As the book goes on Hester moves into a cabin that is half in the forest and half in society and raised her daughter Pearl. She made clothes for a living and she decided to start making extra clothes for the poor. Hawthorne then explains how the poor don’t even have respect for Hester because of her scarlet letter “...she give of her little substance to every demand of poverty; even though the bitter-hearted pauper threw back a gibe in requital of the food…” ( Hawthorne 146). This proves that she is still being treated different because if her sin. She is getting treated so wrongly and this sometimes make her feel guilty for committing her sin. Although Hester can leave at anytime she plesases she decides to stay in this town because she believe she should be punished in the same town that she committed her sin. She also stays because of

  "What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us," stated Oliver Wendell Holmes. This eventually proves to be especially true for Hester Prynne, the main character in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Hester Prynne, a fair young maiden whose husband had disappeared two years prior to the opening of the novel, has an affair with the pastor of her Puritan church, resulting in the birth of her child Pearl. Because of this act of adultery, Hester Prynne is branded by the scarlet letter "A," which she is forced to forever wear upon her attire. The plot thickens as Hester's former husband returns to New England and becomes

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne develops the dynamic characterization of Hester Prynne from a beautiful, innocent girl into a somber, hardened women to showcase the evils and hypocrisy of Puritan New England’s culture of shaming. Hawthorne employs rhetorical devices such as metaphor and juxtaposition to further develop the characterization and his critique of Puritan society. When initially describing Hester, Hawthorne emphasizes her incredible beauty, and juxtaposes this with the other ugly, judging Puritan women, adding to the hypocrisy of her being shamed for sinning. Hawthorne emphasizes the verbal assault on Hester by employing metaphor and imagery in its description. After the community shuns and shames Hester for years, Hawthorne uses metaphor again to show how Hester’s body and character changes for the worst, emphasizes the malice and evil of public shame.

Throughout the novel, the puritan community punishes Hester Prynne through the scarlet letter, by the loss of her spirt, audacity and femininity, the ostracisation from the townspeople, imprisonment for her crimes and isolation from society.

When repentance is defined this way, as doing good works to compensate for one's wrongs, perhaps Hester is no longer a sinner; however, it is a wretched faith which requires only doing good but not changing one's heart in order to achieve true

We have all done bad, some worse than others. Hester Prynne is the main character in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, is seen as a strong woman who is breaking away from the Puritan society because of her committing adultery. Seymour Gross’ article, Solitude, and Love, and Anguish: The Tragic Design of The Scarlet Letter, analyzes Hester's life after committing her crime. Hester's life in the New World is much different than what it was before coming to Salem. In Salem, she is looked down on and seen as a disgrace to the town, especially the church. She is forced to move to the woods in a little cottage with her daughter, Pearl, to be isolated from the community. Hester being the strong woman she is, she makes the best of it for Pearl and herself. Gross’ essay demonstrates how Hester feels that her sin is not against God, her previous marriage is

In the Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is committed of adultery and has a baby as a result. Throughout the story she refuses to give the name of her lover, Reverend Dimmesdale. Temptation got the best of both of them and a child was created, Pearl. Although Hester was married to Roger Chillingworth from the beginning, she felt no love since he left her in New England. The main traits Hester displays are: proudness, honesty, and compassion. She is a strong, independent woman who needs no man to support her and a child.

Case Introduction Hester Prynne is a 30-year-old white European woman. She disclosed that she was born in New England in 1804. She indicated that she came from a middle class family. She felt that her parents were always attentive, loving, and supportive. She claimed that her psychological, emotional, and physical needs were met.

Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is describe as a vigorous, beautiful, lively, and proud woman. When first introduced in the story, Hester was known as a sinner of adultery and the townspeople degraded her, but yet she held her head high. Hester’s first description describes her natural confidence and mentions the strong glance that reveals no embarrassment of her difficult situation. The readers view her as most admirable because of her strength, selflessness, and her seek of remorse. Hester Prynne’s strength as a character is what makes her so remarkable.

Who is ultimately the best guardian for a child? Is it someone who teaches his or her child to fit in with society, or is it someone who teaches his or her child to be themselves? Teaching a child to be themselves and proud of who they are will benefit them in the long run by giving them confidence. In the novel The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850, the author presents the characters Hester Prynne and her outspoken, capricious daughter, Pearl. Throughout the novel, Hester Prynne is challenged with the idea that she is not capable of being the best guardian for Pearl. Although the townspeople suggest Hester is not teaching Pearl correct Puritan values, Hester is teaching her daughter to be herself and to be proud of

Hester Prynne, the central character in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, is a truly unique one. She is unique in how she defies traditional gender roles, and she "challenges the male-centered outlook of authors." (Napikoski) She challenges by being a woman obviously, which seems to exhilarate feminists, because you know, "Feminism is all about burning bras. And hating men. And being a witch, lesbian, and communist all lumped into one." (Shmoop Editorial Team.)

Imagine yourself on display in front of your whole town, being punished for cheating on your husband or wife. Today adultery is looked down on, but in reality nobody makes a huge deal out of it. Sin can affect a person in many ways, but whether it’s good or bad only time can tell. In the old days, religion and law were looked at as one, and Hester Prynne just so happened to sin, which in turn caused her to break the law. In the novel, Hester displays that how a person deals with sin has a lasting impact on the people around her, and most importantly those that are the closest to her.

Hawthorne uses Hester as an expression of rebellion of Puritan ways by how she is forced to wear the letter on her chest which gives her the feeling of redemption although it doesn’t spiritually redeem her. Hester felt like she was alone in the book because the letter “Had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and inclosing her in a sphere by herself.” (Hawthorne 37). The letter made her feel alone so by the end of the book she felt like she served her time and when the letter went from meaning “Adulterer” to “Able” and she felt redeemed for it although she wasn’t actually redeemed spiritually. Hester wore the letter on her bosom however “The scarlet letter had not done its office” (114) because it didn’t actually redeem her it just made her feel better about what she had done. In her eyes she didn’t feel like she had done anything wrong although the definition of redeem is compensation for the faults of something or someone. She

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.