Hester Prynne's Perseverance In The Scarlett Letter

The description of Pearl in this chapter is intended to manifest Pearl as the living embodiment of her mother's sin. Thus the name Pearl itself is misleading. A pearl is a beautiful object found inside an ugly oyster, and at the same time contains a hard kernel of sand within it. Thus Hawthorne is trying to point out that appearances are deceiving, and that Pearl is anything but a beautiful person.

Returning to Boston many years after standing upon the scaffold, Hester has become a completely changed person. From being a symbol of sin and ignominy she has now become one who is filled with compassion for others. Hester has fully shed the identity given to her by the puritan society and the scarlet letter. “...people brought all their sorrows and perplexities, and besought her counsel” (Hawthorne 247). She has gained an eminence in helping others who seek help. The fact that she has gone through a hardship unlike any other, she is able to give hope to those who

Who would have guessed a sense of feminism would be located within a book published in 1850, over 100 years before the feminist movement? Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter gives a glimpse into an adulterous woman’s life in a strict Puritan town located in Boston. Her name is Hester Prynne and her triumphs and tribulations are held within the novel. The reader gains an emotional connection to Hester and wants her to be happy. Support for an independent and shamed woman was controversial but may have helped spark a need for equality within the readers then and even now.

From the start of the novel, Hester is portrayed in exile. She begins in the jail, and soon after is paraded through the streets to start her public exile with her child, Pearl. This first public shame caused Hester to feel “as if her hear had been flung in the street for them all to spurn and trample upon (Hawthorne 52).” The

In spite of that, what makes her the protagonist of the story is how she is able to overcome her punishment that was meant to give her shame. Throughout Chapter 13 of the book, Hawthorne shows how Hester’s confidence has developed in herself and in view of the town, most noticeably when considering the meaning of the scarlet letter, “Such helpfulness was found in her ... that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength,” (Hawthorne 107). Instead of subjecting to the shame that was forced upon her, she grew above it, conveying a different aspect of the theme of guilt, which is redemption. This is not to say that Hester did not care about the sin she committed, as she is very much reminded of it every day of her life while living with the child of that sin. In fact, the author addresses this by saying, “In giving her existence a great law had been broken; and the result was a being whose elements were perhaps beautiful and brilliant, but all in disorder,” (Hawthorne 60). Hawthorne is implying how Pearl represents the outcome of a sin and arranged it so that Hester is always living with that sin, therefore, always being reminded of the shame she is supposed to

Her being forced to wear the scarlet letter which led her to becoming a women’s advocate reflects the theme that good things come from bad. There was plenty of negative backlash to Hester's mistake, however she gained the ability to help other women struggling just like her. “They said that it meant Able, so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman's strength” (pg 177, Hawthorne). The sin she committed and the experience gained through the aftermath of that sin, gives her insight on what it's like to be a woman who's being discriminated. Raising her daughter on her own and her saving her from harming herself reflects the theme that everyone makes mistakes. After all Hester is human just like everyone else. It is in our nature to make mistakes or even sin. “It is remarkable, that persons who speculate the most boldly often conform with the most perfect quietude to the external regulations of society” (pg 181, Hawthorne). The actions we take to reverse or to compensate for that sin is what makes us who we are as individuals. Her being alienated from society and developing an independent thinking mindset mirrors the theme that one must acknowledge their mistakes to learn from them. Hester’s society made it abundantly clear that what she did was absolutely heinous and that she needs to repent and beg for forgiveness. The isolation she suffered through helped her become an independent thinker and develop thoughts that we would consider ahead of her time. “The world's law was no law for her mind” (pg 180, Hawthorne). Being excluded socially gave her a chance to dwell in her own thoughts and gather perceptions different from that of other puritans. This decision that Hester makes is very important to the story because it mirrors many of the major themes the author tried getting across to its

The Scarlet letter shows hester as a humble person. She had to suffer a lot in the beginning. I tried to convey this with her distaste of the town shaming her. I also made sure to highlight her persistence to protect herself and her child. That’s the one thing Hester always did, protect Pearl. I decided

Hester harbored an intense love for her child Pearl although the child's mischievous and imp-like qualities brought nothing but pain to the child's mother. This is demonstrated as Hester, after having her talents as a seamstress publicized, began to change the attire of her family. For example, "Her own dress was of the coarsest materials and the most somber

While some would look at Pearl as a punishment to Hester, truly Pearl on the contrary is a blessing. Hester would never be where she is now without Pearl and would have never dreamt of some of the conclusions Pearl has come to. Pearl, coming from a mysterious background of not only knowing who her father is but who she really is, plays a huge role in her skeptical reasoning of people and

She came, not as a guest, but as a rightful inmate, into the household that was darkened by trouble” (146). This proves that even though Hester was left alone, her actions change the views of the community around her: “They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength” (146). Hester’s abilities surprise community members helping her gain respect from the residents in the Puritan town.

Throughout the duration of the novel, Hester displays copious amounts of bravery. In the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, Hester is forced to stand in front of the town as part of her punishment for her crimes. Instead of displaying emotion or cowering away, Hester stands tall and accepts the reality she is in. Gracefully, she exhorts an air of dignity that can be matched by few as she accepts the first portion of her sentence. After her initial punishment, Hester is flung into the world as a single mother of an infant with no source of income or support. Freedom to leave and live anywhere she chooses is given to her, yet she decides to stay in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Using her skills as a seamstress to provide for herself and Pearl,

Hester has changed in so many different ways. First, Hester starts the story looking very ladylike, but as the story progresses she becomes to look manly. Some of the townspeople believed she had cut her hair off because she started always having it up. She starts to look ladylike again when she is in the forest with Dimmesdale. Hester said she had to stay in Boston to face what she had done but being with Dimmesdale changed her mind. She thought Dimmesdale and her could move away from all of their sin `and start fresh. Another reason why Hester wanted to move away with Dimmesdale is so Pearl can have a father figure in her life. “In vast London - or, surely, in Germany...thou wouldst be beyond his power and knowledge” (Hawthorne 218). Another way Hester grows is her choice of going with the Black Man. Hester would have gone with the Black Man to get away from all her troubles. Since they did not take Pearl away from her, Hester stayed and Pearl changed her view on life. “Had they taken her from me, I would have willingly have gone with thee into the forest” (Hawthorne 129). One of the changes that occur since she has gotten the Scarlet Letter is her view of people. She understands and has the knowledge of other’s sins but the downfall is she loses faith. The last change she goes through is her needing to wear the Scarlet Letter. “Townspeople say she may, she does take it off privately in the forest” (Johnson 133). At first, Hester believes she must wear the Scarlet Letter and if it gains another meaning or just falls off then it is okay not to wear it. Eventually, the forest is a place where she feels safe and away from the rules of the community so she feels it is okay to be able to take it off. There are many more changes or growths that Hester has went through but can people really relate to

After Hester is released from prison Hawthorne leaves us wondering if her choice to stay in Boston was even a choice she could make. Chapter five opens with Hester coming into the light and leaving the cell in which she had been punished in for so long. However, once she is out, she decides to stay in Massachusetts, in the same community which has shamed her for so long. Hawthorne describes the decision when he writes, “it may seem marvelous, that this woman should still call that place her home… But there is a fatality… which almost invariably compels human beings to linger … the spot where some great and marked event has given the color to their lifetime” (71). In this quote Hawthorne is not only speaking of Hester, he is speaking of

While Hester is a feminist, not only does she share the ideals but shows superiority to the town while being fearless. " It may seem marvelous, that this woman should still call that place her home, where, and where only, she must needs be the type of shame.” (chapter 5, paragraph 2) Hester does not let the shame and remorse of the sin keep her away from the town like most would do. Hawthorne even states that Dimmesdale is weaker than Hester by punishing himself and holding his heart while Hester embraces the sin and is strong while carrying the letter on her chest. She leads a self-righteous life, although she could keep what she earns, she gives most away. Even the townsfolk say Hester is "so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, so comfortable to the afflicted."(chapter 13, paragraph 5) Hester can be seen over the townspeople helping them although they shamed her. Hawthorne presents that Hester’s “tendency of her fate and fortunes had been to set her free.” (chapter 18, paragraph 2) With this Hester has a “radiant and tender smile, that seemed gushing from the very heart of womanhood. (chapter 18, paragraph 12) These quotes from Hawthorne show that Hester’s kindness helps her overcome her sin on her own. With Hester’s contribution to the town, “Her handiwork became what would now be termed the fashion.” (chapter 5, paragraph 6) In his research, Sacvan Bercovitch remarks that “Hester Prynne ‘builds upon the tradition of the biblical Esther -

“Women belong in the kitchen.” “All women should be barefoot and pregnant.” “Women are strictly homemakers.” These are a few of the commonly used phrases regarding the female role in society that date back to the mid-seventeenth century. However, ardent supporters of gender equality have surfaced in almost every culture where this ideology is practiced. Nathaniel Hawthorne explores this inveterate societal conflict through his story The Scarlet Letter. The main character, Hester Prynne, is punished for committing adultery by being forced to wear a scarlet letter upon her bosom; Hawthorne created a story sympathetic to the female cause and demonstrated, through Hester, qualities of early feminism that later establish themselves during his