... interpreted in may ways. Hawthorn used many literary techniques; such as, metaphor, imagery, and very serious tone. Throughout the novel the theme of sin, punishment, and redemption was portrayed through Hester Prynne on many ways and on many levels. An element of this theme is sin. The whole bases of ... Hester because she was forced to wear an "A" on her chest until the day she died. The second element of this theme is punishment. Hester's punishment for her crime was standing in a scaffold in front of the town and then she was forced to wear the letter "A" embroidered on her chest for...

• Word Count: 611
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... The author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, addresses sin in the book quiet frequently, this essay addresses how Hawthorne really thought about sin and it's aspects like punishment. The Scarlet Letter is a novel that deals with the theme of sin. Throughout history, people have committed all types of sins, and whether ... wrongdoing was. Others feel that a person's punishment should be based upon the severity of their crime. However, what many people overlook is the fact that in time, we all have committed sins. In The Scarlet Letter, the idea of sin and punishment is the main theme of the novel and ...

• Word Count: 802
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... in Puritan Society The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, deals with crime, punishment, and guilt in Puritan society. The main characters include Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, and Reverend Dimmesdale. All of the characters undergo a certain degree of crime, guilt, and punishment. Each of the characters either share the same amount of guilt, or ... public's knowledge until the very end of the story. Dimmesdale states, "If thou feelest it to be for thy soul's peace, and that thy eathly punishment will thereby be made more effectual to salvation, I charge thee to speak o...

• Word Count: 757
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... following pages will examine the way sin affected the Puritan Community in the Scarlet Letter. First, they explain the history of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Then, they explore the sin and according punishment for the Puritan Community. Finally, they show how the sin affected the Puritans (Shepard 5). Nathaniel Hawthorne, born in Salem, Massachusetts, July 4, 1804 and died May 11, 1864, was the first ... fine, taken from the pre-1650 court records of Plymouth.  For those who do not know, 1 pound ( £) = 20 shillings, and 1 shilling =12 pence. Crime Punishment Adultery Severely whipped on two ...

• Word Count: 1751
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... went by, her efforts proved to be worthwhile. This stigma was thought to be something great by those who were unfamiliar with Puritanical ways of punishment. Both the governor's servant, and the Native Americans at the Election Day pageant, thought it was a mark of significant importance and status. In ... . She is the consequence of a sin committed between two people and a constant reminder of this same sin. Consequently, Pearl can be viewed as both punishment for the sin and as a blessing from nature. Pearl constantly pesters Hester and some view her as a Devil-child; however, her pres...

• Word Count: 843
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... first I thought that Chillingworth might have tried to seek revenge against Hester, but then came to the conclusion that he viewed her public disgrace as more punishment than he could ever have managed. Chillingworth's revenge was very clever. Everyone in the town knew and respected him and this helped him gain "friendship" ... further into the book. The cruelty of it was terrible, but it accomplished his goal of torturing him while he should have taken his rightful punishment for the crime he committed from the beginning. My opinion of Arthur Dimmesdale changed quite a bit from when I wa...

• Word Count: 1043
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... settlement. The story line for the movie does portray history accurately in the way the puritans are portrayed by religion, witchcraft, indentured servants and punishment. However, it does not accurately portray the names of the historical people that were involved or that Hester Prynne was not hung also when the ... accusations of witchcraft" (p. 91). "Several colonists tried individuals as witch's men and women were executed" (Guiley, Rosemary Ellen, 2010). The crime in The Scarlet Letter was Hester committing adultery and fornication. In the movie Hester was jailed. "Jails were used m...

• Word Count: 1182
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... grown up, her personality changed greatly after the labeling of her sin, adultery. Hester's town was very strict with the punishment of sins and the citizens frowned upon many things. Public displays of a person's crime were common. Some may think that the simple task of wearing a scarlet letter is no big deal, but try to ... ; she did not want her love to be punished, she wanted him to get the strength to do it himself, or she knew that the punishment of the sin sitting and eating away at his heart would be enough. Either way the fact that she could not express her affection for Arthur ....

• Word Count: 4111
• Approx Pages: 16
• Grade Level: High School

... is also a coward. He allowed Hester to suffer the consequences of the crime that he also took part in. Hester was sentenced to wear the letter A and had to stand on the scaffold while he took not a single ounce of punishment for his crime. Hester knew that Dimmesdale was the man who she had committed adultery with ... and she knew that if she told everyone what she knew, her punishment wouldn't have been as harsh as it was and yet Hester decided not to ... tell. Dimmesdale at this point should have admitted to his crime. Hester had shown how loyal she was and how she was willing to take...

• Word Count: 869
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... wrongdoing while Dimmesdale's analogous sin went unnoticed. Even though it wasn't only Hester's fault, she was the one who had to get a punishment. Her punishment for her crime was to spend a few hours on the scaffold to face public humiliation, and she was forced to wear the letter "A" on her clothes ... for the rest of her life. Hester's punishment for her sin was distinguished in that the results of her actions were for the most part external. Hawthorne describes what Hester's punishment ... tore at him internally and physically. Even though Dimmesdale punished himself emotionally and...

• Word Count: 1717
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... , but also sinful actions. Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Pryne realizes that her adulterous actions were criminal in nature, and therefore deserving of the punishment which the law imposed. However, she refuses to accept the moral implication of the scarlet "A" which the Church wished to impose. We can ... the interpretation of the scarlet "A" show a clear indication of her rejection of the moral implication of the letter. She clearly accepts the punishment for her crime (otherwise, she would simply have never worn the letter), but her reinterpretation of the letter raises the question ...

• Word Count: 1195
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... scene happened in chapter 12 which was about Dimmsdale. In a "utopia" like the puritan's society, one can never get away after committing crime, in the end they get punished and pays for what they did and regrets it. The first scaffold scene in the scarlet letter focuses on Hester ... husband and Hester didn't. It was a shameful experience for Hester. "Ooh, now it's time for a description of the solemn way Puritans observe any act of punishment, from the execution of a hardened criminal to a child's whipping, all "solemnity of demeanour" and "meager and cold" The second scaffold scene foc...

• Word Count: 560
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... "the sun does not like you, it hides from something on you bosom." (Hawthorne, 1988) This scene emphasizes Hester's scarlet letter upon her chest, the punishment she has been given, which is making her a darker person as she strays from the light. Chillingworth, Hester's husband when she was having an affair, ... Pearl as the black man, or the devil. Through out the novel, he is striving for revenge. He is obsessed with finding Hester's partner in crime. It is this obsession that makes him so evil or dark. When he finds out that Dimmesdale is Hester's partner he begins to slowly kill him...

• Word Count: 1649
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... letter "A" is clipped. Pearl is the consequence of her mother's actions and faults and serves as a reminder of Hester's sin, and is more of a punishment than a blessing, and should have the same place as the scarlet letter which Hester wears around. On the other hand, Pearl is seen as a child of ... to be true to herself, which is the most natural thing to do. In the beginning of the novel, the scarlet letter "A" symbolizes shame and punishment. Hester, by her own choice, wears humble, dismal clothes; she moves to the outskirts of her town, but refuses to run away to a place ... her cri...

• Word Count: 2041
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School

... is one that is based on the laws and morals of the Puritan society. Although adultery, in the eyes of Puritans, is seen as a horrendous crime, if it is out of love it contradicts the actual crime, which is to go against one's spouse as an act of spite. Hester follows her heart and so is therefore innocent of all sins. Hester ... with her scarlet letter. "Why, gossips, what is it but to laugh in the faces of our godly magistrates, and make pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for punishment?" (p. 47). Even though she is persecuted for having the scarlet letter, Hester does not...

• Word Count: 694
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... structure and later being joined by Pearl and Hester, something pulsed through his body and he was revitalized. However, he still refused to admit his crime in front of the town. Finally, when the book reaches its climax, Arthur succeeds in winning back the spirit that he had lost years before ... , and he prepares to tell his congregation of his horrible crime. With his last steps, he ascends the scaffold and completes something he feels he should have completed seven years earlier. He accepts his sin, he ... to understanding The Scarlet Letter as a novel. The Scarlet Letter "A" is the c...

• Word Count: 2338
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... . Also through much of her actions throughout the book she shows her naturalism. Three months after having a child she was incarcerated for adultery. Her punishment was concluded that she would have to wear a stitched red letter A on her chest as long as she remained in Boston. After being released ... under the heavy weight of a thousand unrelenting eyes all fastened upon her, and concentrated on her bosom..." (57) From that point on Hester punishment includes displaying the letter A on her chest at all times to show to everyone the adulterous act she committed. The thought of making th...

• Word Count: 1687
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... in 1989, Edward Wagenknecht gives the following analysis of The Scarlet Letter: "Because Hawthorne did not believe that law can deal with sin as distinct from crime, he makes a whole paragraph of the sentence: "The scarlet letter had not done its office." He seems to have felt that in placing it upon ... , as here in [his] godly New England"(64). In this sentence, the townsman admits that the government in New England was responsible for the punishment of sinners. It is made clear at this point in the novel that sin, though an offense against God, is punished by the rulers of ... tortur...

• Word Count: 942
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... sin. He commits the same offense that Hester commits, adultery. The difference between Dimmesdale and Hester is that Dimmesdale was not publicly punished for his crime. This makes him feel extremely guilty. This feeling of guilt was so atrocious that it mentally and physically withers him, as he feels a very ... repent and cleanse his soul. Dimmesdale's sin is unnoticed. Hester is unable to hide her wrongdoing. Their act of adultery resulted in a child. Her punishment for her crime is to spend a few hours on the scaffold to face public humiliation and wear the letter "A" on her clothes ...

• Word Count: 1044
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... is very hard to find but several symbols are also obvious. In the first chapter Hawthorne describes the prison as "the black flower of civilized society". The prison represents the crime and punishment that was incorporated in the early Puritan life. He also contrasts the prison with the tombstone at the end of the novel by suggesting that ... crime and punishment bring about the end of civilized life. In the same chapter he describes the overgrown vegetation of weeds around the prison. The weeds symbolize how corrupt civilization really is. He ... . The letter A also has a variety of ...

• Word Count: 502
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... Hawthorne, is found guilty of committing adultery with a man who will remain, for quite some time, anonymous to the people of Salem. As a punishment for her sin, Hester must wear the Scarlet Letter "A" on her bosom for the remainder of her life. Hawthorne also uses many literary elements ... , causes her much pain and embarrassment by breaking nearly all moral codes of this Puritan community. Pearl's role was not to only further Hester's punishment for her sin, but she was also sent to give her father a name. Eventually, after pressuring her supposed father immensely, Reverend Dimmesdale...

• Word Count: 634
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... indicates that the colony set land aside for the cemetery and the prison. This shows that the colonists knew there would be serious sin that required punishment, and that every person would eventually die and would need a cemetery. They came to the realization that death and sin were inevitable. This is ... what they felt was right. The society had to protect itself from its own judgment. Their fault was that they only saw Hester for the crime she had committed but not as the wonderful woman she really was. When the community banished Hester, they succeeded in upholding their morality b...

• Word Count: 1128
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... looks of disapproval. Several of the women begin to discuss Hester Prynne, and soon vow that Hester would not have received such a light sentence for her crime if they had been the judges. One woman, the ugliest of the group, goes so far as to advocate death for Hester. Hester emerges from the ... Amsterdam. Hester fearfully clutches Pearl harder, and again causes her child to cry out in pain. Roger Chillingworth asks a bystander who Hester is and what her crime was. The man informs him of her past, telling how she was sent to Boston to await her husband, and how she ended up with a ch...

• Word Count: 5572
• Approx Pages: 22
• Grade Level: High School

... in Salem, Massachusetts. Her husband, Roger Chillingworth, was said t be lost at sea, and Hester assumed he was dead. Upon this assumption, Hester committed a crime of adultery with her fellow minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. The result of this affair was the birth of a daughter named Pearl. When the townspeople became aware of ... what Hester has done, they forced her to wear a sign of punishment, the scarlet letter. This letter "A," which stands for adultery, had to be worn at all times. Roger Chillingworth returns to Salem and explains to ... has nothing to live for anymore now that Dim...

• Word Count: 512
• Approx Pages: 2
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... way of repentance. Hester has to suffer the consequences alone because her fellow sinner will not admit to his crime, which in time drives him to torture himself. Hester continues in her punishment as a form of her repentance because she believes that if she keeps the "A" on she will serve her ... , like Hester and the other characters, as a romantic figure. As a romantic figure Dimmesdale is highly emotional which is the reason for his self-punishment which is caused by his sin. Dimmesdale's sin is that he commits adultery with Hester Prynne and becomes the father of an illegitimate chi...

• Word Count: 2203
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School