Scarlet Letter Essay
The word “object” has a tremendous amount of different meanings. One of them is, “A thing that has physical existence”. This definition is a nearly perfect description of Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Once Hester is forced to wear the scarlet letter, she is nothing more than just a physical existence. The way that townspeople originally treat Hester after her punishment is declared is truly shocking. Throughout most of the novel, Hester is not referred to as a person, but as an object because of the townspeople of Boston.
The start of Hester Prynne becoming an object all started when her punishment for committing adultery were issued. The moment that Hester was forced to wear the …show more content…
Hester’s daughter, Pearl, is a handful. She is portrayed somewhat as a devil, yet Hester still loves her. The governor thinks that Hester is not doing well with Pearl and wants to take Pearl from her. “Without question, she is equally in the dark as to her soul, its present depravity, and future destiny!” (Hawthorne 77). The governor and his officials have no doubt that they need to take Pearl away from Hester. This shows that they have no feelings for how this thing feels about them taking it’s daughter. Even if Pearl is not a fantastic child, Hester still loves her daughter; and these men just want to swoop in and take her? However, Hester pleads to her secret lover, Dimmesdale, to convince the governor to let Hester keep her daughter. Dimmesdale convinces the other men by saying, “God gave her the child, and gave her, too, an instinctive knowledge of its nature and requirements,--- both seemingly so peculiar,--- which no other mortal being can possess,” (Hawthorne 78). This persuades the men, so the Hester is able to keep Pearl despite the problems at the Governor’s Hall. That is how the government treated Hester as an …show more content…
Hester was a disgrace to Boston in the eyes of the people who lived there. But something changed. After years of putting up with her punishment, Hester was beginning to emerge as somewhat of an idol. “They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a women’s strength,” (Hawthorne 111). The townspeople of Boston were starting to understand the moral strength Hester obtained from outlasting her punishment. People were no longer shunning her for everything possible, but were forgiving her for the sins that she committed. This is how Hester Prynne became a winner in The Scarlet
The word “object” has a tremendous amount of different meanings. One of them is, “A thing that has physical existence”. This definition is a nearly perfect description of Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Once Hester is forced to wear the scarlet letter, she is nothing more than just a physical existence. The way that townspeople originally treat Hester after her punishment is declared is truly shocking. Throughout most of the novel, Hester is not referred to as a person, but as an object because of the townspeople of Boston.
The start of Hester Prynne becoming an object all started when her punishment for committing adultery were issued. The moment that Hester was forced to wear the …show more content…
Hester’s daughter, Pearl, is a handful. She is portrayed somewhat as a devil, yet Hester still loves her. The governor thinks that Hester is not doing well with Pearl and wants to take Pearl from her. “Without question, she is equally in the dark as to her soul, its present depravity, and future destiny!” (Hawthorne 77). The governor and his officials have no doubt that they need to take Pearl away from Hester. This shows that they have no feelings for how this thing feels about them taking it’s daughter. Even if Pearl is not a fantastic child, Hester still loves her daughter; and these men just want to swoop in and take her? However, Hester pleads to her secret lover, Dimmesdale, to convince the governor to let Hester keep her daughter. Dimmesdale convinces the other men by saying, “God gave her the child, and gave her, too, an instinctive knowledge of its nature and requirements,--- both seemingly so peculiar,--- which no other mortal being can possess,” (Hawthorne 78). This persuades the men, so the Hester is able to keep Pearl despite the problems at the Governor’s Hall. That is how the government treated Hester as an …show more content…
Hester was a disgrace to Boston in the eyes of the people who lived there. But something changed. After years of putting up with her punishment, Hester was beginning to emerge as somewhat of an idol. “They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a women’s strength,” (Hawthorne 111). The townspeople of Boston were starting to understand the moral strength Hester obtained from outlasting her punishment. People were no longer shunning her for everything possible, but were forgiving her for the sins that she committed. This is how Hester Prynne became a winner in The Scarlet