"The Scarlet Letter"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that the lasting greatness of "The Scarlet Letter" relates to the remarkable way Hawthorne manages to evoke emotional sympathy for the heroine even when he is condemning her actions. The author analyzes the sins committed by the novel's two major characters and the novel's treatment of each of them: The minister Arthur Dimmesdale and the mother of Dimmesdale's child, Hester Prynne. The paper stresses that the greatest pain, which Hester Prynne suffers as a result of her previous sin and guilt, is neither her own ostracism from the community nor the cruel scorn of its judgmental and unforgiving members but rather the repeated reminders she must face of how her innocent daughter Pearl is hurt because of the past sins of her mother and father.

From the Paper:

"From the opening of "The Scarlet Letter", when Hester Prynne stands alone on a scaffold, condemned for the sin of adultery, with the unidentified father of her child, by the Salem community, until the end when she stands with Arthur and Pearl on that same scaffold, Hester is a remarkably strong character. Unlike Arthur Dimmesdale, her partner in sin, who appears strong initially but is progressively weakened by his overwhelming feelings of guilt and sinfulness throughout the story, Hester grows stronger, despite her own sin and guilt, as the story progresses."

More papers on "The Scarlet Letter":

• Analytical Essay # 142408 : "Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter"
• Analytical Essay # 124563 : "Characters in "The Scarlet Letter"
• Analytical Essay # 124489 : "Perspectives on "The Scarlet Letter"
• Analytical Essay # 120733 : "Adultery in "The Scarlet Letter"

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