Furthermore, Hester downright refuses to identify her paramour with whom she bore her child. She is strictly compelled by the Reverend who administered her tribulation to make her confession and divulge the name of the father to the entire world: “I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow- sufferer” even if “he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal of shame” (Baym, 288). Hester refuses which forces another priest to raise her voice at her. To which she thunders “Never!” her denial to reveal the name with whom she had established sexual relations, seriously sabotages the Puritan society. They wanted the man too to be tried and shamed and never establish any relation within
…show more content…
She has proven time and again that she loves Dimmesdale and wishes to commence a new life with him but at the same time she does not make it her life mission. Hester works as a tailor and is able to fend for herself and her child, “Her needle-work was seen on the ruff of the Governor; military men wore it on their scarves, and the minister on his band; it decked the baby’s little cap…” (Baym, 254) It has to be noted that women were not allowed to work in the puritan society. Men were the bread winners and any alteration from the usual system was heavily frowned upon. Hester defies this norm and never begs for a living from either Dimmesdale or Chillingworth. The scarlet letter ‘A’ stands out as the powerful symbol of rebellion against Puritans amongst all others that Hester stood against. The letter ‘A’ is reflected as “her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had been her teachers […] and they had made her strong…” (Baym, 366) the symbol reigns as a teacher to her, as she propounds when the clergymen try to snatch her …show more content…
(Baym, 259)
2. CONCLUSION: Throughout the novel, one notices that Hester is undergoing a learning process. It is as though the letter A has been personified into a moral preacher. Inspite of being banished and mocked at, Hester turns bold and sagacious. Hester is a feminist in true sense of the word. She is heavily persecuted by the society she resides in. her enchanting face is deliberately hidden by a formal cap and she is further forced to wear the phallic symbol A’. Despite all this tyranny, Hester never falls apart. On the contrary, she emerges to fight back and challenge the male oriented society. She beautifully decorates the letter on her chest, walks with grace and poise and never divulges the name of her lover. All these are clear and powerful acts of rejecting the laws ascribed by the puritans. She also takes in her hands the responsibility of rearing her daughter despite being a single mother. She earns her own money; which again stands against the law. By all these noble and courageous initiations, Hester can rightly be termed as a
She has proven time and again that she loves Dimmesdale and wishes to commence a new life with him but at the same time she does not make it her life mission. Hester works as a tailor and is able to fend for herself and her child, “Her needle-work was seen on the ruff of the Governor; military men wore it on their scarves, and the minister on his band; it decked the baby’s little cap…” (Baym, 254) It has to be noted that women were not allowed to work in the puritan society. Men were the bread winners and any alteration from the usual system was heavily frowned upon. Hester defies this norm and never begs for a living from either Dimmesdale or Chillingworth. The scarlet letter ‘A’ stands out as the powerful symbol of rebellion against Puritans amongst all others that Hester stood against. The letter ‘A’ is reflected as “her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had been her teachers […] and they had made her strong…” (Baym, 366) the symbol reigns as a teacher to her, as she propounds when the clergymen try to snatch her …show more content…
(Baym, 259)
2. CONCLUSION: Throughout the novel, one notices that Hester is undergoing a learning process. It is as though the letter A has been personified into a moral preacher. Inspite of being banished and mocked at, Hester turns bold and sagacious. Hester is a feminist in true sense of the word. She is heavily persecuted by the society she resides in. her enchanting face is deliberately hidden by a formal cap and she is further forced to wear the phallic symbol A’. Despite all this tyranny, Hester never falls apart. On the contrary, she emerges to fight back and challenge the male oriented society. She beautifully decorates the letter on her chest, walks with grace and poise and never divulges the name of her lover. All these are clear and powerful acts of rejecting the laws ascribed by the puritans. She also takes in her hands the responsibility of rearing her daughter despite being a single mother. She earns her own money; which again stands against the law. By all these noble and courageous initiations, Hester can rightly be termed as a