The Scarlet Letter - Scaffold Scenes

A detailed Summary of The Scarlet Letter - Scaffold Scenes


The first scaffold scene in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter takes place in the beginning of the novel. It's noon on a June day in 1642. A large number of Puritans gather in Boston's market-place around the scaffold. They have come to witness the public punishment of Hester Prynne, who has commited the sin of adultery. Hester emerges from the prison holding her three month old child and bearing a scarlet letter A of the bodice of her dress. The scaffold is used only to disiple criminals who have severely violated Puritan law. It represents sin itself. As Hester stands with her daughter, the product of her and her lover's sin, her pride fades as she comes to realize and accept her shame. Looking up to the unsympathic stares of the crowd, Hester catches a glimpse of a misshapen old physican on the outskirts of the crowd. She is immediately recognizes this man as her long lost husband, unheard from for more than two years. Prestegious men in the society demand the identity of the father of her child from the balconcy above th


beside Dimmesdale repeating "Thou hast escaped me" over and over. Pearl kisses her father and he dies. The silence in the crowd is lost and everyone has their own account of exactly what happened with their praised minister that day.

and his sister, Mistress Hibbins at their home. Arthur remains blaketed by darkness in the middle of the night. Rev. Mr. Wilson walks near the scaffold when returning from Governor Winthrop's deathbed. Although he imagines otherwise, Dimmesdale remains unseen until he hears the laughing voice of a young child. It belongs to his now seven year old daughter Pearl, who is also returning from Winthrop's deathbed with Hester. He calls out to them and they all eventually mount the scaffold hand and hand. Pearl links them in a way that hasn't happened since their affair. Pearl asks Dimmesdale if he will

stand with them at noon the next day. It begins a long chain of occurances when he refuses to acknowledge Hester and Pearl in public. Chillingworth appears, this time closer to the scaffold. He also is

Some common words found in the essay are:
Hester Pearl, Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, Governor Winthrop's, Scarlet Letter, Day Dimmesdale, Chillingworth Dimmesdale's, Chillingworth Hester's, Pearl Dimmesdale, Mistress Hibbins, scaffold scene, hester pearl, scaffold returning, scarlet letter, winthrop's deathbed,

Approximate Word count = 704
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

join now Save Paper

Related Essays

  • Scarlet Letter Scaffold Scenes In Nathaniel Hawthorneamp39s, The Scarlet Letter, the author uses three scaffold scenes to mark the development of Hester Prynne. The ... 665 words
  • The Scarlet Letter Scaffol Scenes ... death. Hawthorne ties together all the important themes, plots, and symbols of The Scarlet Letter, into three scaffold scenes. These ... 908 words
  • The Scarlet Letter scaffold as a motif ... the Puritan community are depicted in the nineteenth century novel The Scarlet Letter. ... In the first of three scaffold scenes, Hester stands before the community ... 1013 words
  • The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter is structured around three main scaffold scenes and the characters involved in them. As we look at these three ... 611 words
  • Scarlet Letter Best ONe Unification In the novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the three scaffold scenes provide the novel with basic structure and perfect balance. ... 930 words

Professional Essays

  • The Scarlet Letter ... Body The number three is observed repeatedly in The Scarlet Letter. ... There are three scenes revolving around the scaffold, scenes that are highly relevant to ... 513 words
  • The Scarlet Letter ... Gerber sees The Scarlet Letter as having a fourpart structure that demonstrates the ... with the first, third, and fifth parts being the scaffold scenes 1, 13 ... 2284 words
  • Significance of the Number 3 in The Scarlet Letter ... Body The number three is observed repeatedly in The Scarlet Letter. ... There are three scenes revolving around the scaffold, scenes that are highly relevant to ... 513 words
  • The Scarlet Letter 1990 Version ... The Scarlet Letter is a novel about the consequences in Puritan society of a ... In the novel, the three scaffold scenes are key and indicate the slowly growing ... 1466 words
  • Nathaniel Hawthorne ... IMPACT OF THESE WORKS FO Matthiessen has this to say about The Scarlet Letter: ampquotIts symmetrical design is built around the three scenes on the scaffold of the ... 1631 words


Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

  • "Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
    Jack M.
  • "With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
    Brian P.
  • "I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
    Sara J.
  • "I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
    Rachel W.
  • "I love this site!!!"
    Marie N.
Home Join Now Support
Acceptable Use Policy About us FAQ
All papers are for research and reference purposes only!
© 2002-2009 DirectEssays.com. All Rights Reserved.