Firstly, a melancholy feeling is associated with the cottage in which Hester Prynne chooses to make her home. The cottage is "on the outskirts of town" (p.84), and was abandoned by the early settlers of the New World "because the soil about it was too sterile for cultivation" (p.84). Also, the cottage is similar to a witch's cottage in that "a mystic shadow of suspicion immediately [attaches] itself to the spot" (p.84), and young children lurk about it trying to find out more about the mysterious woman who lives there. The cottage is "shut out from the sphere of human charities" and was

The prison, the forest, and the cottage are presented as havens to convey society's rigidity. Because those places are expected or described as dreary and confining, they stand out more to the reader. As a result, Hawthorne makes it easier for his audience to relate them together. The mind notices these oddities as the eyes are drawn to bright colored threads. Hawthorne weaves words as Hester Prynne weaves scarlet and gold threads and brings out recognition and brilliance. Without this intentional setting, the audience cannot differentiate the novel from other works as Pearl cannot recognize Hester without her scarlet letter.

Likewise, the prison, which serves a different role in today's society, offers shelter and tolerance instead of confinement and punishment. The prison "looked more antique than anything else in the New World" (p. 50) which indicates that the laws of this society are very traditional. Similarly, the image of "a wooden edifice, the door of which was heavily timbered with oak, and studded with iron spikes" gives an impression of firmness and reveals the strict enforcement of those laws (p.49). The prison is meant to seclude the criminals and nonconformists from the rest of society. Yet, as Prince Prospero's cold and formidable abbey is supposed to protect the jubilant people from the Red Death in Poe's The Masque of the Red Death, the prison protects its inhabitants from the traditional society. Within the prison's strong wooden walls, Hester and Chillingworth can freely discuss their past without exposing themselves to society. Also, it is from the strong tradition that new ideas grow. Anne Hutchinson, a heretic among the Puritans, passed through the prison door and spread her new concepts through the tradition. The rose growing outside the prison despite the weeds is also symbolic of salutary growth out of restraints. The prison, though usually considered as confining, is where new ideas emerge.

Likewise, the prison, which serves a different role in today's society, offers shelter and tolerance instead of confinement and punishment. The prison "looked more antique than anything else in the New World" (p. 50) which indicates that the laws of this society are very traditional. Similarly, the image of "a wooden edifice, the door of which was heavily timbered with oak, and studded with iron spikes" gives an impression of firmness and reveals the strict enforcement of those laws (p.49). The prison is meant to seclude the criminals and nonconformists from the rest of society. Yet, as Prince Prospero's cold and formida

Some common words found in the essay are:
Hester Prynne, Anne Hutchinson, Letter Likewise, Goodman Brown, Scarlet Letter, Arthur Dimmesdale, Hester Chillingworth, Red Death, Bibliography Threads, , scarlet letter, walls hester, cottage hester, allows hester, hester prynne, goodman brown, common picture, judgmental society, red death, laws society traditional, society traditional, society traditional similarly, traditional similarly image, 50 indicates laws, indicates laws society,
Approximate Word count = 1722
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)