The Symbolism Of 'A In The Scarlet Letter'

Just because other people have forgiven you, doesn't mean you can forgive yourself. In Nathaniel Hawthorne's book “The Scarlet Letter,” the townspeople brand Hester wit the letter A on her chest, which she embroiders with gold and which is colored red, hence the scarlet letter. In the beginning of the book, the letter A is a symbol of her grievous sin of adultery. Around the middle, the symbol of sin becomes a symbol of life and perseverance, and good deeds, now standing for Able. In the end, the scarlet letter is on Hester's grave, as a coat of arms. The letter A shows that no matter how many people forgive you, that alone isn't enough and you have to forgive yourself also, to have true repentance. The townspeople branded Hester with her sin, the sown scarlet letter A being the equivalent of a branding iron's mark. Throughout the town, Hester was known as the woman with the scarlet letter, and was the main person to be avoided. Hester even thinks of the A as a token of shame: “In a moment, however, wisely judging that one token of 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.” Here, it seems as if Hester is quite prideful.
Even though she wore the scarlet letter for Pearl's sake, it was no longer a symbol of sin but a coat of arms to be later on her grave. On Hester's grave was the letter A, and it wasn't the sewn letter A she wore on her bosom. The letter A was made into a coat of arms, as if it was something to be proud of “ON A FIELD, SABLE, THE LETTER A. GULES” (Hawthorne 228). Since the letter A was on her grave in that form, it would be interesting to assume that Hester had gone from seeing the letter A as a token of shame, to seeing the letter A as a token of life, perhaps a token of war given what she had to face while