The Scarlet Letter

A detailed Summary of The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter - Individuality within a Puritan Society

Often in society people are criticized, punished and despised for their individual choices and flaws. In the novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author attempts to show the way society casts out individuals simply because their ideas and deeds differ from the common values. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses Hester Prynne to symbolize that those who challenge social conformities can benefit society as a whole. Though she has been banished for committing adultery, she sees that the community needs her. Through her generous accomplishments the community realizes she is a person who, regardless of her sin, can affect the community in a positive way.

In the beginning of the book Hester Prynne is publicly humiliated as a punishment for breaking a Puritan belief and one of the Ten Commandments; adultery. She is then forced to stand in front of the town for hours as the crowd tries to break her down with criticism and shaming words. After her release, "the scene was not without a mixture of awe, such as much always invest the spectacle of guilt and shame of a fellow creature" (63). They almost took a delight in her punishment, having thought they cleansed the town,

"Such helpfulness was found in her-so much power to do and power to sympathized -that many people refused to interpret the scarlet "A" by its original signification. They said that it meant "Able": so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman's strength" (156).

When Hester is forced to live apart from the townspeople society begins to learn what Hester's real nature is. Society is able to see her for what and who she is and realizes that she is an asset to the community. The community realizes Hester's honesty in her wrongdoing and her willingness to repent, by the fact that she does not deny anything that she had done. They see her as a good person and someone gifted with the talent of sewing, "by degrees, her handiwork would now be termed as fashion" (86). With this the people started accepting her back into their lives once again. So they used her and were willing to overlook her sins when she looked to be of value to them. Even though Hester is considered the worst person in the community, she manages to give back to the community by caring for the poor. She barely gets by with the money she gets from her sewing skills, but still she shares what little she has with the indigent. Even though, the people that she gives food too still insult her, she continues anyway.

The whole time the letter "A" was stitched upon her clothing it stood for only one thing, adultery. But as the story goes on and the community finally starts accepting her again, through her good deeds, the letter "A" starts representing other words.

Over time the community began to soften their views about Hester and slowly she reclaimed a place within the community. Despite all that she had been through, she never spoke up in her own defense. She let her skills and charity for others speak for themselves and it was through those very actions that brought her back into the fold. People in the community even started to discuss whether or not the letter "A" should remain on her clothing. "It was debated whether or not the scarlet letter was to be taken off her bosom" (163). With this the people are beginning to consider that maybe Hester has fulfilled her punishment. Although she has gained their acceptance once again, it was mostly due to her not ever backing down from her silence.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Hester Prynne, Ten Commandments, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Puritan Society, hester prynne, scarlet letter, Scarlet Letter, society society, puritan society, person community, society able, sewing skills, nathaniel hawthorne, community realizes, community community,

Approximate Word count = 1528
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels