The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne :: essays research papers

The Scarlet Letter, written in the 1800s by Anti-Transcendentalist Nathaniel Hawthorne, tells the story of Hester Prynne. Young Hester lived in New England, about the kindred time witch trials were still conducted, and she is found guilty of carrying a baby whose father she refuses to confess. The punishment for this crime is from then until the rest of her life, Hester had to bear a sew together A on her breast. This A carries the namesake of the book, The Scarlet Letter. Although cerebration to be an embarrassment and form of torture for Hester, this scarlet garner seems to become a sense of pride for Prynne. This scarlet letter grows to become a part of Hester an identification to her child Pearl. The scarlet letter is a constant recurring symbol in Hawthornes fabrication, but it doesnt satisfy that one purpose. As many symbols tend to do, the scarlet letter serves numerous functions, which enhance the story. The first and most obvious symbol would be the actual A that was fix on Hesters chest. In this example, the scarlet letter was a symbol for the entire world to see and ridicule Prynne for her wrong-doing This use of public humiliation for Hester was thought to be necessary to punish and teach Prynne a lesson. This puts much focus on the way populate harass and torture others simply because they feel other people have done things mor every last(predicate)y wrong and deserve punishment. While the wrong-doers are being punished, the punishers in turn commit wrongs. Here many questions arise. Was it wrong for Hester to remain her childs father a secret from the public? Was is wrong for her to have to live her life as a walking, breathing example of what that Boston community thought was bad? Another usage of symbol in this book was what the scarlet letter becomes for Hester. This punishment which was branded into her soul for eternity starts to shift gears as the novel progresses. The sentence for her crime starts to become more a part of her than she would ever have imagined. Although the origin of the A to the public was, is, and always will be for her crime of adultery, which was at that time considered illegal and immoral, but it also gives her public recognition. The recognition was of course bad at first, but it was still a way that turned all heads, and eyes were on Hester.