Scarlet Letter Essay, Research Paper

The story The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne this story takes place on puritan times, is about Hester Prynne who commits the act of adultery and has to b punished for her sin. Out of all the characters in the story, Hester suffers the most for one, she must wear the scarlet “A”. Second her daughter Pearl behaves strangely and causes Hester much grief; and third, she loves the reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, but she is not able to be with him.

Hester was punish by the town magistrates because she committed adultery. She went to jail, than she was humiliated in front of the hole town she was put in a scaffold for a few hours. This scaffold was not an ordinary scaffold, ” in fact this scaffold constituted a penal machine for two or three generations it had been historical and traditional. (pg. 53). She was given a red and gold “A” that represented adultery and she had to wear it at all times. The letter which Hester had to carry on her bosom made Hester feel a strange pain, as if she was being burn in side her soul. When she went to anywhere intown, people would stare at her and talk behind her back about what she did to deserve her punishment, and some times they would also be unpolite to her.

Hester suffered a great deal because of her daughter, Pearl. Pearl was a strange child, she was also really disrespectful toward Hester, she would point at the letter, ask Hester if she had ever met the black men, and she would throw stuff at Hester. Many would think that pearl was a demon child, and at one time the governor wanted to take pearl away ” on the opposition that pearl, as already hinted, was a demon origin ” (pg. 96). Hester also had doubts about Pearl because Pearl was always trying to play mind games with Hester, like she woul ask Hester how she got the “A” and Hester would give her an answer but Pearl knew it was not true and she would keep on asking. Pearl asked Hester where she came from, Hester told her that she came from her heavenly father to this pearl answer ” He did not send me I have no heavenly father” (pg.95). This made Hester s life even more miserable because her child claimed that there was no god..

Another reason Hester suffered was Arthur Dimmesdale, he was the man that Hester committed the act of adultery with. Hester really loved Dimmesdale but he was a minister, whom the people in town looked up to. Hester could not see him because she did not want any one to know that he was the man she committed adultery with, if she did he would be hanged, she could not tell Pearl who her father was. Whenever Hester and Dimmesdale would see each other Pearl would start playing mind games with both of them because in a way Pearl suspected that there was something between Dimmesdale and Hester. Dimmesdale was very sick and because of the pressure he had to carry for seven years he thought that the only way out was to dye this makes Hester berry sad because loves him. Hester suggested for them to run away and ” the clergyman resolved to flee, and not alone “(pg.197). They decide to live after the election, when Dimmesdale gives a be sermon in front of the town. The day of the ellection right after Dimmesdale s sermon he goes to the scaffold and he calls Hester, he tells the hole town that he was Pearls father and he dies, this makes Hester berry miserable and she suffers more because this was her chance to be with Dimmesdale and he dies.

Hester endured the greatest suffering because of the humiliation over wearing “A”, her child pearl who behaved so strangely, and because of Dimmesdale who was the love she could not have. I think this is a good story because of all the suspense it has. Also I think any one could get to like this book because is berry easy to read and is not to boring.