Dudley–Winthrop family

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s characters Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne commit adultery that results in their daughter Pearl. As a result, Hester faces the consequences of her perceived sin in the form of cruelty she receives from her community: the Puritans ostracize her from society by forcing her to wear a scarlet A. This suffering results in Hester attaining a greater ability to sympathize with others. For Hawthorne, cruelty functions as a means of carrying out the…

Nathaniel Hawthorne uses conflicts to further progress the characters in The Scarlet Letter. These conflicts affect Hester and Dimmesdale’s appearance and role in society. Although Hester is an adulteress, she is progressively able to live a normal life; Dimmesdale, on the other hand, lives with guilt which slowly deteriorates his health. Dimmesdale is most affected by the events that occur between Hester and him. In The Scarlet Letter, Dimmesdale lives in a society that looks upon him as “a…

Confessing to one’s wrongs displays true honest character and reveals one’s bravery rather than their flaws. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a young woman named, Hester Prynne lives in Boston, Massachusetts during the seventh century, in a Puritan society. Hester’s husband, who goes by the name Roger Chillingworth, sends her to America while he deals with some business in Europe. He happens to be caught and held captive by Native Americans which delays his arrival to America.…

When Hester Pyrnne’s reputation is buried beneath a wine-colored blemish, it doesn’t alter who she is. Hester Pyrnne is a woman of immense strength of character and defiance for convention. Because of this, she refuses to crumble and lose all sight of her dreams. Like many new mothers, she simply replaces them, hanging new ones in their place. Hester once wished for what many Puritan women did-- to float over to the New World with the nice older man she was saddled with and live a quiet, simple…

Hester Prynne is unlike any other woman back in the 1650 's. She had to shamefully wear a scarlet "A" on her chest, that she sewed herself. Back in the day women were supposed to only take orders from the men of the house. Women were to cook, clean, and take care of their husbands. In the village where Hester lived she had done quite the opposite. Hester Prynne committed one of the worst crimes possible back in those days. She had an affair with a well known man and even carried his child. In…

Puritan thought, the so called start of American thought, and the time of the Puritans was very important for the development of American history. Two tales that show the flaws in thinking and judgment of that time are “The Crucible”, and “The Scarlet Letter”. Both of these stories give a similar portrayal of the Puritans, the freedom that can be won - or lost - by a symbol, and shows how sin, whether it be lying or adultery, can destroy you. However, these narratives also differ in many ways…

Sin in the Scarlet Letter: The Use of Masks and Secrecy Vs. Open Confession “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.” (Proverbs: 28) These words embody the underlying morals of The Scarlet Letter, an American novel published in 1850, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The Scarlet Letter presents the unfortunate situation of Hester Prynne, an adulteress in a Puritan community. Hester’s husband, Roger Chillingworth, seeks revenge…

The Scarlet Letter is a novel filled with intriguing intricacies and convoluted symbolism. In the beginning of the book, Hester Prynne confesses to the sin of adultery, and is forced to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her chest as a mark of shame. Hester’s scarlet letter, although at first treated by others with contempt and anger at Hester, causes Hester to become a better and more philanthropic over time, effectively increasing her reputation in society. By the end of the book, after the death of…

The setting of the prison gives readers the idea that prison is very sad and depressing and that the people in the prison are not glad to be there. The people in the prison are miserable and the prison itself is harsh. The rose bush growing in front of the prison is kind of ironic because a rose bush is something that is beautiful. It is an amazing that something so beautiful is found next to a prison, which kind of suggests that nature does not judge humans as humans do. The author…

pearl herself and the green letter A she makes out of eel grass, and all of their meanings. The old sexton at the end of chapter 12, The Minister’s Vigil, says “that the great red letter in the sky must stand for Angel, because our Good Governor Winthrop was made an angel this past night, it was held doubtless held fit that there should be some notice thereof!” (Hawthorne, pg. 138) Being that Dimmesdale had just been talking to Hester and Pearl, and then was told of this occurrence. This says…