... confess his sin, and it eats at him bit by bit. "He is not suspected by any of the townspeople. Even old Mrs. Hibbins, whose scent for moral carrion was as keen as that of a modern society magazine, can barely credit her own conviction. "What mortal imagination could conceive it!", " Many a church ... of his position, and had broken a law that his education had made more prominent than any other law in his soul. Yet he had neither moral courage nor moral honesty, with all his impressive piety to come forth and assert their sins and their mutual obligations. (Loring 2). He hints at his si...

• Word Count: 1373
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Dimmesdale: The Bearer of the Scarlet letter Who should bear the stigma of sin? Hawthorne's novel is a story of adultery, social judgment, and moral redemption. Hester cannot hide the consequences of her mistake, so she is exposed to public judgment and forced to wear the scarlet letter. However, ... with Hester. At the beginning of the book, we meet a young and self-confident minister who is trusted by the townspeople, as their moral and religious leader, "So powerful seemed the minister's appeal- (74). As the story progresses we see Dimmesdale become weaker physically, due to his ... can s...

• Word Count: 1627
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... Huckleberry Finn and Nathaniel Hawthorne The Scarlet Letter, show that one person with his or her own views may contradict a society. Huck's and Hester's moral struggles lead to a fight between conscience vs. civilization. It's ironic, but conscience in these cases is right, and civilization is evil and cruel. ... novel, Huck overcomes the bigotry that society preached. He goes against society's rules and tries to help his friend, Jim, a runaway slave. Moral struggles come into play several times as they"re making their voyage down the river. The river symbolizes serenity and the beauty...

• Word Count: 593
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... of the scarlet letter and that she emerged triumphant. Overcoming the scarlet letter was Hawthorne's way of displaying that women may have not been physically stronger, but women's heart, spirit, courage, and character could be victorious in battles where physical strength could never triumph. The shame Hester first felt when she wore the scarlet letter was almost unbearable. Instead of lying ... thought of any woman being able to become a better person under such conditions, but Hawthorne exhibited that it was possible and that women featured an unmeasured strength. Hester's heart, spi...

• Word Count: 1087
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... intimate romance between Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. The various relationships and feelings behind these relationships are intense, one can never really be quite sure of the true emotion. The moral of the story is to be true, yet each character is a hypocrite in some form. Hester Prynne came to Boston when she married to wait for her husband while he ... , Arthur Dimmesdale was at the peak of his hypocrisy throughout the story, telling her that "What can thy silence do for him, except tempt him ..who perchance hath not the courage to grasp it for himself?-#. Staring out at the c...

• Word Count: 995
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Societies have long established in their moral codes that the price of hidden guilt is tremendous, and therefore wrongdoings should be confessed in order to receive forgiveness. Christian ideology is a prime example of such teaching. The Bible ... finally ends his own torment through public confession In the Bible, King David, a man of high position, angered God when he committed adultery. In Psalm 32:1-5, he struggles with the moral dilemma of whether to confess or to keep silent. He begins by praising those who have hidden nothing from God, and speaking of how great it would be to be ... ...

• Word Count: 587
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... other side, Dimmesdale stayed away and was not punished at all. But, as he began to change he felt something should be done. Dimmesdale's final disclosure of sins displayed his moral strength because during the beginning of the book, he lives his life as a coward, never admitting his sin, leaving all the blame and embarrassment to Hester. His character evolved drastically ... of all that was pure. However, he lied to everyone around him, pretending to be something he wasn't. When Hester was publicly ostracized for her sin, Dimmesdale never had the courage to stand up with her and share ...

• Word Count: 854
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

The Effects of a Conscience Everyone has a conscience, or "the moral sense which determines right or wrong" (Webster's, 273). If someone does something that is morally wrong, then it is left on his or her conscience and they begin to feel ... in that way she relieved her guilt. Hester did not like all the Puritan ideals, but according to the Bible, she knew adultery was a sin against God. Only the tremendous courage she had, and the large sense of righteousness kept her from fleeing. She obviously believed that her repenting and punishment would be enough to gain her sanctity in the eyes ......

• Word Count: 914
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter 1804-64, American novelist and short-story writer, Salem, Mass., one of the great masters of American fiction. His novels and tales are penetrating explorations of moral and spiritual conflicts. Descended from a prominent Puritan family, Hawthorne was the son of a sea captain who died when Nathaniel was 4 years old. His first novel, Fanshawe (1829), published anonymously, was ... father but also to consider her actions carefully. If he is speaking of himself when he speaks of the other sinner, Arthur Dimmesdale is admitting that he has not the courage to c...

• Word Count: 2453
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... sought out by everyone, tried and duplicated by many, and yet succeeded by much less. The puritans believed that the way to achieve this was through strict practicing of their moral beliefs. This included not only following it themselves, but also making sure that others in their community were living by the same morals and standards. We as a society today have ... sense of reality. In a world that is against most of those things pretty strongly it is hard to accept such radicals. The hippies on the other hard had a lot of courage to defend what they believed in so strongly. Just like w...

• Word Count: 956
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... . Hester loses her childhood dreams of what life should be. The quote from the book that best describes the song and Hester is, "But Hester Prynne, with a mind of native courage and activity, and for so long a period not merely estranged, but outlawed, from society, had habituated herself to such latitude of speculation as was altogether foreign to the clergyman. She ... had wandered, without rule or guidance, in a moral wilderness . The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had been her teachers,""stern and wild o...

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