The Scarlett Letter By Hester Prynne: An Outsider In Society

Michelle Hefner
Mrs. Ochoa
AP English 3
22 October 2013
Synthesis Essay Being an outsider in society can give strength to a person, but in some cases it does not, and may even weaken an individual. Depending on the type of person, being an outsider in a community may or may not encourage strength. There are several cases where being an outsider made someone a stronger person, and there are also several cases where being an outsider has harmed a person. An example of being an outsider you might consider is perhaps a child being bullied. Personally, I believe that being bullied not too harshly can encourage strength in a person. However, there are instances where the person is being constantly bullied and isolated from the crowd, and it can be too much for them to handle, which can ultimately lead up to devastating results such as self-harm, or even suicide. It really depends on who you are evaluating and what the circumstances are; but it goes both ways.
Despite the conditions, there are people who gain strength from being an outsider to society.
In The Scarlett Letter, Hester Prynne has an attitude that embraces the fact that she is an outsider in the Puritan community. By the end of the story, Hester does not care anymore what any of the townspeople think of her, and she has become a stronger woman (Hawthorne 56-219). With all the judgment and scowl she faced, she found that the society she was surrounded by was corrupt and hypocritical, and being an outsider made her stronger than she would have been, alongside the hypocrites of the town. In The Crucible, John Proctor is an outsider because he admits to dealing with the devil. However, he became stronger after admitting it, because he felt an inner, spiritual freedom (Hytner). The freedom made him feel strong and
satisfied. Although being an outsider can encourage strength, it also discourages it and weakens some people. In contrast to Hester, in The Scarlett Letter, Arthur Dimmesdale had a rough time coping with the fact that he was an outsider (Hawthorne 56-219). Technically, he was not, since he was keeping his sin a secret. However, that is what harmed him; keeping the secret of him being an outsider. In his mind he was, therefore he saw himself as an outsider. As a result, he had horrible feelings of guilt and regret, which is what eventually ends up killing him. In the article North Carolina drops "scarlet letter" driver 's license for immigrants, immigrants are being discriminated against, practically being labeled as outsiders (Jenkins). One can make the assumption that these immigrants most likely didn’t feel very “strong” after having a label that says they are not truly part of the regular population- “outsiders.” There are different ways that being an outsider in society can affect someone. They can be given strength or be harmed emotionally and/or physically. All in all, it depends on the type of person and what they are going through to truly determine whether being an outsider in society can encourage strength in someone or not. It is quite controversial.

Works Cited
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. 1st. New York: Sterling Publishing , 2012. 56-219. Print.
Hytner, Nicholas, dir. The Crucible. Perf. Arthur Miller, Twentieth Century Fox, 1996. DVD. 21 Oct 2013.
Jenkins, Colleen. "North Carolina drops "scarlet letter" driver 's license for immigrants." Reuters. Reuters, 21 Mar 2013. Web. 21 Oct 2013. .