Scarlet Letter Essay: Hester's Identity

Hesterś Identity Hester Prynne wears the letter as a way to express her sin to the Puritans. Hester had committed adultery with Dimmesdale, the town minister, and was caught. Instead of getting the death penalty, Hester’s punishment was propagated by being forced to wear a scarlet letter on her chest and stand on the scaffold for three hours. She also gives birth to Pearl, who is saw as a wild child to the Puritans. In the novel, ¨The Scarlet Letter¨, Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts the relationship between the letter and her identity by showing the reader how much the letter means to Hester. He does this through Hester continuing to wear the scarlet letter as a way to become an individual, the Puritans symbolizing the letter to sin and Hester
becoming an individual while the Puritans use her as an example to the other nonconformists.
Hester continues to wear the scarlet letter as a way to become an individual. After standing on the scaffold, Hester had talked to Mr.Wilson. He told her that she could take it off but, Hester had refused. In chapter 3 it states, ¨´Never!´ replied Hester Prynne, looking, not at Mr. Wilson, but into the deep and troubled eyes of the younger clergyman. ´It is too deeply branded. Ye cannot take it off¨ (pg. 64). Here, the reader can see that Hester decided to continue to wear it because she is willing to change the meaning and it make it her own. Instead of making it a negative symbol, she was able to make it into something positive. The letter, to Hester, symbolizes what she did in the past. And what she did, will decide the meaning of those actions. Deciding the meanings will allow Hester to become her own and stand out from the rest of the community.
The Puritans symbolized the letter as sin.
Puritanism is a strict, “pristine” religion and the Puritans do not believe in anything that is against their religion. The Puritans were especially against adultery and when Hester committed it, they were very displeased with her. The citizens in the community had an enmity for Hester, because of what she had done. When they found out, they had punished Hester by making her wear the scarlet letter. In chapter two it states, “‘At the very least, they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne’s forehead. But she,--the naughty baggage,--little will she care what they put upon the bodice of her gown!”(pg. 49). Here, the reader can see that the men and women in the story do not like what Hester has done. It was a sinful act and it went against their religion. They felt that Hester should have had a worse punishment than what they had given her. But they know that whatever they do to her, Hester is not going to care and will go with it. When Hester came out with the letter looking very elegant, it had angered the citizens because it was supposed to symbol sin and adultery, but Hester made it out to be that she was proud of it by making the letter look like that. This step helped Hester become more of an
individual.
Hester becomes an individual while the Puritans use her as an example to the other nonconformists. Hester and Pearl were going to go visit the governor because he wanted to talk to Pearl. They lived in a cottage outside of town and they had to walk through the town to get to the governor’s house. While they were on their way, children were outside playing and had spotted them. In chapter seven it states, “‘Behold; verily, there is the woman of the scarlet letter; and, of a truth, moreover, there is the likeness of the scarlet letter running along by her side! Come, therefore, and let us fling mud at them!”(pg. 93). Here, the reader can see that the children playing would treat Hester and Pearl poorly when they see them walking in public. Committing adultery and the consequences that followed had made Hester become who she was at the end of the book. Since Hester was a sinner and was treated like an outcast, the Puritans were able to point her out. Both adults and children treated her and Pearl badly since they were both saw as sin. The scarlet letter worn by Hester, acted as a chasm between her and the rest of the community. This had helped make Hester an individual in her community. The Puritans had hoped this would scare anybody else who did not follow their religion and rules. They would get the same treatment as Hester if they sinned also.
Overall, Hester continuing to wear the scarlet letter as a step to becoming an individual, the Puritans symbolizing the letter as sin, and Hester becoming an individual while the Puritans uses her as an example to the other nonconformists is just a few ways Hawthorne depicted the relationship between the letter and Hester’s identity. Hester was able to become an individual because of the conclusion the Puritans gave her. Pearl had begged her to explain the meaning of it to her, but Hester had refused. This made Hester check her own self and she made the reason on her own. Chillingworth had came back, but made her and Dimmesdale regret what they had done. This made Hester rethink who she is. Since the Puritans were conformists, Hester was easily made an individual. The letter had made her her own person and Hester was fine with that.