Lucille Ball once said: “Love yourself first, and everything else falls in line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world”. This quote can and should be applied to all of mankind at any point in time, past, present and future. The concept is one of which individuals must accept themselves in order to make progress. This enables growth whether it be landing on the moon, or simply reading a book. This empowerment from self-acceptance is not discriminate towards any gender, race, religion, or sexuality; it is universal and essential to life. Without self-love, how could individuals possibly carry out their life constantly held back by their self perception? Although the process of self-acceptance is difficult, in the
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Hawthorne purposefully displays an example of this in the protagonist, Hester Prynne. Readers are introduced to Hester, full of shame, standing upon a platform and receiving brutal punishment as her fellow townspeople mock her. Furthermore, she leaves this platform of shame only to continue her life in isolation shunned by her community and in a constant state of worry regarding others’ opinions. Yet, this does not last as she begins to turn her life around by focusing on recovering her image in the townspeople's eyes through various charitable actions, such as bringing food to the poor. This does not go unnoticed, in fact, most of her community begins to shift their opinions from disgust to a sense of affection. The townspeople now have this loving attitude because they have grown to see and accept her for who she is. As time goes on, this acceptance from others frees Hester from the worry that originally bound her. Now, she is not socially isolated nor in constant worry of others’ opinions, and is finally able to come to terms with her sin. This freedom allows her to blossom and, in turn, voluntarily wear the very thing that previously embodied all of her shame, even after the townspeople give her the opportunity to take it off. This is just one example of how Hester’s self-acceptance is allowing her to shape her future. She could have allowed the townspeople to influence her and ditch the scarlet letter, but instead she embraces it as a part of who she is proving just how much her newfound pride is acting as a shield by blocking outside opinion from influencing her. In addition to boldly wearing the scarlet letter, she continues to define her future by returning to the very town where she once felt worried of others’ opinions even after moving away. Hawthorne includes this explicit detail
Hawthorne purposefully displays an example of this in the protagonist, Hester Prynne. Readers are introduced to Hester, full of shame, standing upon a platform and receiving brutal punishment as her fellow townspeople mock her. Furthermore, she leaves this platform of shame only to continue her life in isolation shunned by her community and in a constant state of worry regarding others’ opinions. Yet, this does not last as she begins to turn her life around by focusing on recovering her image in the townspeople's eyes through various charitable actions, such as bringing food to the poor. This does not go unnoticed, in fact, most of her community begins to shift their opinions from disgust to a sense of affection. The townspeople now have this loving attitude because they have grown to see and accept her for who she is. As time goes on, this acceptance from others frees Hester from the worry that originally bound her. Now, she is not socially isolated nor in constant worry of others’ opinions, and is finally able to come to terms with her sin. This freedom allows her to blossom and, in turn, voluntarily wear the very thing that previously embodied all of her shame, even after the townspeople give her the opportunity to take it off. This is just one example of how Hester’s self-acceptance is allowing her to shape her future. She could have allowed the townspeople to influence her and ditch the scarlet letter, but instead she embraces it as a part of who she is proving just how much her newfound pride is acting as a shield by blocking outside opinion from influencing her. In addition to boldly wearing the scarlet letter, she continues to define her future by returning to the very town where she once felt worried of others’ opinions even after moving away. Hawthorne includes this explicit detail