Sin In The Scarlett Letter

Hester committed adultery, which was believed by the puritans to be a horrible crime. Because of this she lives everyday with the constant reminder of her sin from "Scarlet Letter" she is forced to wear on her bosom. Hester is also pushed away from everyday society, and forced to live a hidden and lonesome life. While in prison she is presented with her first child Pearl, who gives her a small amount of comfort. For Pearl was still too young to communicate and connect with Hester. Eventually Pearl matures to become Hester's one and only true confidant and friend. Finally sharing some feelings of warmth and comfort with Hester. The same applied to the rose bush. After years of torment, it reaches a point in its life where it is strong enough to present to the world the beauty it

Society puts pressure on citizens to conform to their standards of what is normal, however, when one obeys the toxicness that is expected, they lose their individualism and change who they truly are. It is not any different in Hester Prynne’s situation in the historical fiction novel, The Scarlet Letter. Nathaniel Hawthorne writes of an adulteress, who is forced to wear the letter “A” upon her chest to represent her sin, and her daughter, a constant reminder of what she has done. Although a puritan community demands a society to conform, Hester Prynne continues doing what is not expected and living her individual life even after being forced to hold a symbol of shame, ultimately illustrating the importance of being a nonconformist.

At first the scarlet letter is a burden for Hester but it eventually leads to her redemption and independence. After so many years Hester is able to wear the scarlet letter proudly and dies with honor instead of disgrace.

In The Scarlet Letter there are three main sinners presented to the reader. Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth are all written with their own forms of sin, and each has a unique coping mechanism for their sins and guilt. Sin, at this time, was a hugely important part of daily life, and punishment for one’s sins was universally seen as not only a positive thing, but a necessary action to keep the people of the colony pure. Both Hester and Dimmesdale receive great punishments for their sin of adultry. However, one character is portrayed as a true sinner, more so than the others. Roger Chillingworth is by far the worst sinner in The Scarlet Letter. This is made apparent by

In the Scarlet Letter, Hester was punished for her sin, she had to wear the letter A on her chest. The A on her chest stood for Adultery, Hester had to stand in front of the town’s people where she was judged. James 4:12 states “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you--who are you to judge your neighbor”? The Bible also states that whoever is without sin should throw the first stone in John 8:7 this means all men sin. If the world had to wear its sin people would be judgmental of others, they would unfairly compare sins and would carry their forgiven sins around. Such a world would be a dark place.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter took place in the Puritan Boston, Massachusetts, in the 17th century or in other words, the 1600’s. At this time the majority of the country was Puritans. This book takes place in a small town of Boston. In this book there are two major characters, Hester Prynne, and Reverend Dimmesdale.

Many people believe that they have the freedom to do whatever they want because they assume that what they do will not affect the lives of others; this is a dangerous assumption. Sometimes people don’t realize the effect they have on others until the effect materializes. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester’s sin has an effect on much more than just Hester. Not only does Hester’s sin affect herself, but it also affects the community around her.

In The Scarlet Letter, an example of sin and its consequences occurs to Hester Prynne. She commits adultery with Arthur Dimmesdale, becomes pregnant, and her sin is discovered by the town. The town thinking they let Hester off with a light punishment, makes her stand on the scaffold for three hours with her infant and then condemns her to display a red scarlet “A” for the remainder of her life. Hester “self‐protected from guilt by a refusal to look inward” (Bercovitch 580). Hester’s sin cost her the whole potential of what her life could have been, “...there was the taint of the deepest sin in the most sacred quality of human life, working such effort, that the world was only the darker for this woman’s beauty, and the more lost for

Hester commits the sin of adultery with Dimmesdale, and their daughter Pearl is the result. Her sin, disclosed to the town by a letter “A,” is displayed on her chest for people to see. Eventually, Hester’s scarlet letter turns into a token of her good deeds. People refer to her as “our Hester―the town’s own Hester―who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comforting to the afflicted” (Hawthorne 159). Because she displays a new side of herself, one that bears the pain of people’s harsh judgement, the townspeople find that her letter is not only there to punish her, but it is also used to resemble her resilience, her power to embrace her sin, and her will to help others.

The Scarlet Letter is a novel with the theme of sin. Throughout the life of a human being, everyone is guilty of sinning. The sin can be major, or minor, and can have a positive or negative effect on a person’s life and character. A cruel punishment may be the result of a major sin, and a fair warning may be the result of a minor sin. In the Scarlet Letter three of the main characters committed a sin which changed each of their lives drastically.

Living in an atrocious world that punishes a woman for a sin as adultery, that even the innocent child is punished with its mother, was something that was common in the lives of the immaculate Puritans. The Puritans were very harsh and strict on their religion and the how they follow it which also brought to the rigid consequences for their actions just like Hester and her daughter were. Although the rose bush seems to be mainly about either hope and sorrow, the rose bush is ambiguous and can also be the outcome that Hester could bring upon herself, but mostly now her daughter as she could also be interpreted as her power of strength to bring them both out of the sin and towards being accepted into society again.

Hester gave birth to a baby girl when her husband was missing at sea. She would not reveal her the father was. Even after the townspeople mocked her and argued with her, she still would not reveal the baby’s father. The baby girl’s name was Pearl. The officials of the town tried to take Pearl away

“The Scarlet Letter in which Hawthorne blatantly refuses some key aspects of an allegorical mode of representation. I will try to demonstrate that the scarlet "symbol," as well as its full-fledged equivalent Pearl, pertains on the contrary to a symbolic mode of representation” (Carrez). Hester wears the letter “A” on her chest because she committed adultery by definitions of social law. In the Puritans time, social and religion are similar. Hawthorne uses the symbol “A” to show the religion against woman. In the, Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne the letter “A” symbolize changes from adultery, to ability, to angel, and to the living persona of Pearl.

The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter is a psychological novel that delves into the depths of sin and morality. The Scarlet letter speaks of Hester Prynne, a Puritan woman who was sent to America by her then husband, Roger Chillingworth. Hester develops a relationship with a puritan minister in her town named Arthur Dimmesdale and they conceive a child out of wedlock. This leads to the public shaming of Hester Prynne and her daughter, Pearl.

Sin is present in everyone’s life and no human can escape its reach. In The Scarlett letter the main conflict is rooted in one sin between a man and a woman in colonial Massachusetts. The sin was adultery and there are several vital themes and symbols that stem from it. Sin controls and characterizes lives in so many ways that people do not realize. This is highlighted throughout The Scarlett Letter. Sin and revenge are symbolized by Pearl and nature in many instances throughout several different chapters.