The Evolution of Hester’s Scarlet Letter Essay Example for Free

The Evolution of Hesters reddened earn EssayIn the novel, The crimson Letter, the protagonist, Hester Prynne, is forced to publically wear her sin on her sleeve. She committed adultery, which was a sin that was highly chastised by the Puritan society. The Scarlet Letter that Hester wore first symbolized the commit and humiliation that accompanied the sin. Throughout the novel however, the meaning of the earn changed to parallel Hesters give growing into a strong, independent woman.The letter starts out as a symbol of shame. A public tally in the presence of her fellow New England citizens forced Hester to wear this shameful letter. As Hester was standing on the subdue, her punishment for committing adultery was to display the mark of shame upon her bosom for all to see (Pg 58). The Scarlet Letter diminished Hesters image by subjecting her to public humiliation, which affected her emotionally and mentally. Puritan women at the pillory claimed that the Scarlet Letter coul d possibly be hidden on the outside by physically application program it, but the pain of it will be always in Hesters heart (Pg 49). Hester had to protrude belittlement and harassment at the hands the disappointed Puritan mob.Even the Puritan children, the most intolerant brood that ever lived, make disparaging remarks about her (Pg 83) because they scorned Hester and Pearl in their hearts(Pg 84). Hester was forced to the bottom of the social ladder if scour children can get away with making fun of an elder without fear of punishment in such(prenominal) a rigid society. The various tragic events exacerbated the guilt that Hester felt. This is demonstrated when she told her husband, Chillingsworth, that it was her fault for committing adultery to conceal the personal identity of the person with whom she committed the sin.She hid the identity of Pearls father because the constant humiliation and rebuke that she had to endure led her to believe that her sin was completely her bu rden to bear. Hester knew that her deed had been evil (Pg 80) because Pearl put to works out in a hostile and sinful manner. Pearl has grown to become a walking embodiment of the Scarlet Letter. Consequently, Hester felt all overwhelming guilty. However, as the novel progresses Hesters military position towards the Scarlet Letter changes and the meaning of the letter goes through a metamorphosis that would help Hester wear the letter with pride.When Hester no longer saw the Scarlet Letter as a symbol of shame, it correspond her freedom from the letters hold over her as she wore the letter with pride. Though she could have easily been defeated and sunken into despair, she persisted through the hardships. She became a amentiferous member of society by sewing miraculous materials, which allowed the massess perception of her to change. This can be interpreted as a change in meaning of the Scarlet Letter. Before, it had stood for adultery, but eventually people recognized it as a s ymbol of her many good deeds (Pg 142). The changes in the letter, both physically and symbolically, reflected the perception that people had of Hester.Hester transformed into a powerful peculiar, an individual who was so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick (Pg 142). Despite her initial difficult circumstances, Hester turned around her life. As Hester experienced her transformation, she showed resentment towards her punishment. She knew that in that location were others in the community who committed sins, some even greater than hers, but these atrocities went unpunished. Consequently, Hesters changing attitude revealed that while she saw her act as a sin, she felt that her punishment was unjustified due to the fraud that was prevalent within the society.Hester realized that the persecution against her was unfair given the hypocritical standards of the society and that other people should perchance wear their own Scarlet Letter for the sins that they have committed. Her trac k to redemption instilled the confidence in her to believe that she was not inferior to others if others were not going to own up to their own mistakes, she was not required to do so either. She was no longer sorry for what she had through because while she faced the consequences head-on, others were cowardly concealing their sins in order to evade public humiliation and punishment. Due to the double standard in society, Hester decided that the act was not as evil as it was made out to be by society. She told Dimmesdale that what they did had a consecration of its own (Pg 170). The Scarlet Letter was supposed to remind Hester and the townspeople of her sin, but the Scarlet Letter had not done its office (Pg 145).The meaning of the Scarlet Letter that Hester wore changed throughout the novel to parallel Hesters own path to enlightenment and freedom from societal pressure. The metamorphosis of Hesters image and the change in her inner thoughts represented how she overcame the burden o f the Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet Letter was an embodiment of Hesters life.