THe Scarlet Letter

A detailed Summary of THe Scarlet Letter

The prison is sad and gloomy. There is a small crowd of Puritans standing outside. Their clothes reflect the darkness of the prison. Hester Prynne is outwardly imprisoned. She committed adultery, and is now being punished for it through solitude and division. Arthur Dimmesdale is inwardly imprisoned, because he feels guilty inside for not confessing his sin. In the midst of all of the obscurity there is a single rose bush that symbolizes Hester living in truth despite everything happening around her.

The crowd is gathered to see Hester come out. For her sin of adultery, she is sentenced to public humiliation by wearing the letter "A" embroidered in gold thread on her dress forever. The "good-wives" believe that she should be more harshly punished, and refer to her as a hussy.

As Hester walks out of the jail, she looks proud. She clutches her baby in her arms, and pushes through the crowd. She goes to a scaffold, and has to stand there to boast her letter. The crowd includes her husband, Roger Chillingworth, her Pastor, Arthur Dimmesdale, Bellingham, the Governor of Boston, and Rev. John Wilson, the Senior Pastor.

Hester recognizes the small, deformed man in the crowd, and he signals to her that he doesn

Dimmesdale is finally able to confess what he had done, and dies. Then about a year later, Chillingworth dies, and Hester and Pearl move away from Boston. Pearl inherits a large sum of money from Chillingworth, so they are very well off. Before Hester dies, she moves back to Boston, and is buried next to Dimmesdale, with one tombstone with the letter "A" marking both of their graves.

After being released from prison, Hester is free. She can do whatever she wants, and can go wherever she wants to go. She decides to stay near Boston though. They move outside of the town, where they are alone. Town's people hire her to sew for them, but she is never asked to sew a wedding dress because she may tarnish it. For the most part though, she is treated like an outcast, and lives a secluded life.

The men are the Governor, Rev. John Wilson, Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. The men first notice Pearl's crimson dress and then Hester. The Governor tells Hester that they have been discussing giving Pearl to a guardian that will teach her religion. Even though Hester has taught her a lot, Pearl acts as if she knows nothing. Finally, Dimmesdale comes to Hester's aide and convinces the other men that Pearl is sent from God to remind Hester of her sin.

Dimmesdale seeks Hester's advice on how to get away from Chillingworth. She tells him that he needs to leave Boston, and change his name so he would finally be able to settle down and teach. He is hesitant at first, but anxious to be able to start a life with Hester. Even though it has been years, neither had lost their feelings for each other. Hester calls Pearl over, but she does not want to come. She does not like that her mother has taken off her scarlet letter and let down her hair, so she will not go to her until this is done. When she finally comes over, she is very uneasy about Dimmesdale. He gives her a kiss on the cheek, and she immediately washes

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1297
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English