Edna's denied acceptance hurt her, it hurt her so much that she ended up turning on them and becoming a rebel of sorts. However, by becoming a rebel she gave up who she really was in order to prove something to the gossips. All of this stress and dysfunction drove her to her knees and almost killed her. Between this stress and the dullness of her husband, Edna made a conscience decision to look elsewhere for pleasure and bliss. She found this pleasure in other men, which is what killed her. The quick release of pressure gave her a huge since of overconfidence which lead her to believe anything was possible. The explosive release of stress and emotion was much to great, so great in fact that it took her life along with it. She did die a happy woman though. Edna waited to long to act upon her emotions, just as Dimsdale did. She should have searched for an outlet before the everyday routine drove her to the ground. Unfortunately for Edna it was her outlet that killed her, just as it was Dimsdale outlet that killed him.
The inclination to hide the emotion that controls, is key in this situation; the emotion, depression, is suppressed. However, as natural as this my seem, it is about as helpful as shooting yourself in the foot. The weird thing about happiness is that it s not easy to achieve, or it is harder to achieve than sadness. It seems easier to hide the emotions that you hold, as in Mr. Dimsdale and Mrs. Pontellier's case, but by concealing the truth you only prolong the madness that has to escape. The high rolls with the low, so taking the easy way out can only ride with the low. If you take the hard road to happiness it will seem harder, but it is definitely, most definitely not as hard as holding an explosive emotion that will escape. Mr. Dimsdale hides the affair from the whole community, expecting that they would never find out. However, for Dimsdale to be happy he has to be with Hester and Pearl, but as long as the affair is a secret they can not meat for fear of suspicion.