![]() Hester does not tell who the father is, leaving Dimmsdale with his hand on his heart and keeping the truth hidden. Dimmsdale is in great grief but he is not standing by her side, he is too much of a coward to come forward so gives a speech to convince Hester to name her partner in sin hoping she would say that he is the baby’s father “I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow sinner and fellow sufferer! (47). The first scene is on the platform for the crowd to witness Hester’s shame. His struggle to free himself of is sin is represented in three scaffold scenes, at first he is a coward, then he feels guilt and remorse, and finally frees himself of his sin through confession. Hester’s husband, Roger Chillingworth, made her keep their marriage a secret to get revenge on Dimmsdale. Hester is punished to wear the scarlet letter A, which stands for Adultery, on her breast. As a result of their actions, Pearl is born. In the story the main character, Hester Prynne, commits adultery with the Reverend mr. The story takes place in a puritan community in Boston, Massachusetts in the 17th century. Even as she returns to the colony after starting a new life with Pearl in England, Prynne dons the scarlet letter with pride and is welcomed to the community as a figure of wisdom.The Scarlet Letter In the “Scarlet Letter” Nathaniel Hawthorne describes the consequences for sinning. The punishment that follows Prynne and Dimmesdale’s affair tests her self-reliance and conviction, but her control over the penance demonstrates that individuals, and especially women, have the ability to redeem themselves. It’s something unknown by the rigid townspeople, and therefore, condemned by them. The adultery Prynne commits, a sin of passion, results in her daughter Pearl becoming a symbol of this emotion. They said that it meant Able so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength.” Corresponding to her redefinition of stereotypical women’s work, through the course of the book, Prynne alters the meaning of the scarlet letter: “Many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. ![]() Her talent is so widely recognized that the community even begins to respect her work. Hawthorne even notes it might have been, ‘the passion of her life.’ The handiwork she applies to the scarlet “A” on her chest shines as an embodiment of her feminine power, rather than a token of shame. Prynne must support her family financially, so she turns her skill with needlework into her livelihood. She takes the accepted social models of women’s work and earns respect through them. In the domestic space, Prynne finds strength in her role as a single mother. ![]() Just as the physical unattractiveness of the townswomen parallels Hawthorne’s negative view of conformity, Prynne’s beauty and femininity illuminates the individuality admired by Romantic thought. Even as she stands on the scaffold for sinners, Prynne remains dignified and gracious. Hawthorne emphasizes her shining beauty among the dreary women in the town. Where order rules all, Prynne stands out on more counts than one. It’s a civilization that gives the single mother the death penalty for her adulterous, clandestine relationship with reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. The Puritan, witchcraft-condemning society of the early New England colony in which Prynne lives is structured by religion and law. Beyond the blazing scarlet “A” on Prynne’s chest, Hawthorne’s Romantic-era writing is rife with symbolism that celebrates the theme of individuality through Prynne’s own embracement of her femininity. The main character of Hawthorne’s novel, which was published on this day in 1850, may not be the obvious image of a heroic feminist, however, she successfully rebelled against the male dominated, Puritan social structure of the 17th century in which the book was set. ![]() Woven into Nathaniel Hawthorne’s tale of adultery, betrayal, and love in the Scarlet Letter is a narrative of female empowerment exemplified by Hester Prynne.
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