Prompt #2: The Scarlet Letter

Prompt #2: Choose one of the three main characters and discuss his/her motivations throughout the novel. What is the final outcome for the character you are discussing, and what does this outcome suggest to the reader?

            Hester Prynne, infamous adulteress of The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is doomed to eternal religious and moral turmoil after committing the unspeakable sin of adultery. After committing such evil in early Puritan America, it seems that Hester might never survive the solitude and isolation of her punishment of wearing the scarlet letter “A.” Rather than crumbling under the contempt of her neighbors and her own guilt, Hester perseveres, choosing to endure her punishment. Hester is able to survive her punishment because she is empowered to bear her punishment and is motivated by her love for her daughter, Pearl, and her fellow sinner, Reverend Dimmesdale.

            Hester’s ultimate goal is to accept her punishment of wearing the scarlet letter. She does not want the letter to define the rest of her life, though she knows it will forever be connected to her. When Hester first emerges from prison, she is overwhelmed by the urge to hide the symbol of her crime. As Hester stands before the town, she attempts to cover the letter with her baby. Shortly afterwards, a different idea registers in Hester’s mind: “In a moment, however, wisely judging that one token of her shame would but poorly serve to hide another, she took the baby on her arm, and with a burning blush, and yet a haughty smile, and a glance that would not be abashed, looked around at her townspeople and neighbours” (27, Hawthorne). It is interesting that the author chooses to describe Hester as “wise.” She has made the mistake of having a child with a man other than her husband and seems anything but wise. This wisdom seems to come from within, as Hester realizes that she must consent to and tolerate her punishment if she is to survive the humiliation and guilt she feels. As the author notes, the people around Hester are only “townspeople and neighbours.” The only person deserving to judge and punish Hester is God. Hester realizes this and chooses to accept her punishment instead. This ability to endure the consequences of her sin and leave her fate with God is what separates Hester from Reverend Dimmesdale. He is unable to accept his punishment from God, instead suffering internally from his religious and moral conflict. Because Hester possesses this incentive to be at peace with her punishment, she is better able to cope with the situation, thriving even in her solitude.

            As Hester’s lifetime of punishment progresses, her motivation to accept the price of her sin becomes further evident. As time passes, the townspeople are decreasingly repulsed by her past. They allow her into their homes to treat the sick and needy, coming to appreciate her charity and generosity. Yet, when Hester leaves their homes in the morning, she distances herself from those who reach out to her, rejecting their forgiveness and gratitude. The author notes her behavior, saying, “This might be pride, but was so like humility, that it produced all the softening influence of the latter quality on the public mind […] Interpreting Hester Prynne’s department as an appeal of this nature, society was inclined to show its former victim a more benign countenance than she cared to be favoured with, or, perchance, than she deserved” (78). The community mistakenly believes that Hester is seeking forgiveness so she can be liberated of the implications of her punishment. The author attempts to define her attitude with words like “pride” and “humility.” These words give the impression of someone trying to escape her punishment, through aloofness or through an apologetic attitude. Instead, Hester has chosen to endure her punishment as means of coping with it. She neither “cares” to reject forgiveness, nor believes that she does not “deserve” it. Her outlook is more a combination of these two concepts. Hester has elected to serve her punishment in full, both because she feels obligated to and because it is how she chooses to deal with her sin.

            Hester’s ultimate motivation not only includes the desire to endure her consequences, but a drive to protect those she loves. Just as Hester can never separate herself from the scarlet letter, even if she takes it off, she cannot break her ties with Pearl and Reverend Dimmesdale. The three are forever united by the sin of adultery. Though Hester has truly wronged these people, she feels that she can protect them through persistence and solidarity. In the case of Pearl, Hester never expected to have a child and knows little of motherly instincts and childcare. The community attempts to take Pearl away, questioning whether she has received an adequate Christian upbringing. Hester herself fears for the purity of Pearl’s soul, but fights to keep her. This determination to protect her daughter stems from love. Hester’s motivation to protect Reverend Dimmesdale is also evident. From the beginning, Hester refuses to reveal him as Pearl’s father, protecting him from the shame of society. She later risks their lives to alert the reverend that Chillingworth has malicious intentions, and is actually her husband. The author reveals this choice by saying, “Such was the ruin to which she had brought the man, once – nay, why should we not speak it? – still so passionately loved! Hester felt that the sacrifice of the clergyman’s good name, and death itself, as she had already told Roger Chillingworth, would have been infinitely preferable to the alternative which she had taken upon herself to choose” (93). This passage shows how Hester would rather die than have to admit that she hid Chillingworth’s true identity from Reverend Dimmesdale for so long. Because Hester loves Reverend Dimmesdale so much, this confession is difficult for her. The syntax of the sentence is indicative of her deep love for Dimmesdale. By using the interjection of “nay, why should we not speak it?,” the reader feels Hester’s strong emotion of love. Hester’s love for Dimmesdale motivates her to protect him in any way possible, even if revealing Chillingworth’s identity poses a risk for her. This motivation of love leads Hester to take on the difficult task of protecting those closest to her: Pearl and Reverend Dimmesdale.

            Eventually, though Hester perseveres through her hardship, she loses both Reverend Dimmesdale and Pearl. Her motivation to endure her earthly punishment and to protect those she loves fails to keep her loved ones with her. Reverend Dimmesdale dies in the center of the town after revealing his role in the sin, finally releasing the burden of his guilt. Hester loses Pearl to adulthood. Pearl grows up and moves away from her mother and the scarlet letter, seeking a life that is not tainted by her past. Meanwhile, Hester chooses to stay in the town and to wear the scarlet letter. The author says, “Here had been her sin; here, her sorrow; and here was yet to be her penitence” (125). Even if Hester had moved away or removed the scarlet letter from her dress, the guilt of her mistake would stay with her forever. The syntax of this sentence suggests a chronological process through the use of semi-colons. Hester experienced sin, then sadness, and now experiences repentance. This also suggests a lesson of morality. One can tolerate a sin that they have committed, and even be forgiven by others and by God, yet they are never to rid themselves of it. Hester endured the trials of shame and isolation, motivated by her decision to withstand the punishment and by her determination to protect her loved ones. These well-loved people, who were Hester’s main motivations to persevere, eventually moved on, leaving Hester and her scarlet letter behind, showing that one can come to accept, yet never escape her sins.