First, he judges Puritan style punishments to be too harsh, then he suggests that Hester Prynne has changed the meaning of the scarlet letter through her diligence and hard work. At this point in the novel, it appears that Hester has learned from her lesson and has changed her ways. The changes are both physical and in her mannerism’s. In contrast with her initial character, Hester Prynne is portrayed as a dull, melancholy, and defeated figure at the end of the novel.…, Hester is one of the main characters of the novel, and she makes a large change after the puritan community shuns her for committing adultery. From the start of the book to the end, a dramatic change in Hester’s attitude is apparent. After committing adultery with the Reverend Dimmesdale, this young woman, Hester Prynne, is branded with a scarlet letter A to signify her sin and humiliation. Hester’s haughty appearance does not accurately reflect the way she is feeling on the inside. The physician often will “play upon him as he chose” by alluding to topics that include the preacher’s sin. Roger, who dedicated his entire life to sin and revenge, now resembles the evil growing within him. Therefore, Hester only changes from strong to stronger. In order to purify himself, he tortured himself. When strangers looked curiously at the scarlet letter,—and none ever failed to do so,—they branded it afresh into Hester’s soul; so that, oftentimes, she could scarcely refrain, yet always did refrain, from covering the symbol with her hand.” Hester admits Pearl is her torture – in chapter six, Hawthorne writes, “so infinite was the torture inflicted by the intelligent touch of Pearl’s baby-hand.“, Not long after her punishment starts, Hester commences to help the needy by sewing clothing and helping them out in various other ways. Some of these events that lead to this dramatic change include the … They said that it meant Abel; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength.“. She stands up many other things other than the A itself. By the novel’s end, Hester has become a protofeminist mother figure to the women of the community. In the novel, the way Hester is viewed, by both herself and others, changes over the years since she commits her sin. Hester also fights to transform the meaning of her punishment by questioning the hypocritical morals of her community. Question:why does hester say the scarlet letter can never be removed from her chest? Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Hester starts by seeing her act as a sin that she is sorry for committing. He continued to punish himself for what he did for over seven years, working his body to exhaustion. In chapter two, Hawthorne writes, “he [the town-beadle] laid his right hand upon the shoulder of a young woman, whom he thus drew forward until, on the threshold of the prison-door, she repelled him, by an action marked with natural dignity and force of character, and stepped into the open air, as if by her own free-will.” Two paragraphs later, Hawthorne writes, “And never had Hester Prynne appeared more lady-like, in the antique interpretation of the term, than as she issued from the prison. In the end, Hester was still planning to commit adultery again. famous novels is The Scarlet Letter. One of his characters (Hester Prynne) is changed throughout the novel. 2 Answers. Dimmesdale then starts coming down the forest path, and Pearl sees him. Through the course of the novel, it appears that Hester changes from an arrogant, unremorseful woman to a much kinder and helpful, repentant woman. Shame, Despair, Solitude! While the scarlet letter may not be able to be seen as completely good or evil, the letter has changed much in Hester;s and the towns people’s lives.…, After Dimmesdale’ s death, Chillingworth’s revenge becomes worthless. There are many significant events which took place before the start of the novel and during the novel. Despite this action of imagination, he still shows his reasonable mind by punishing himself for his actions with Hester. Hester also becomes a kind of compassionate maternal figure as a result of her experiences. The story talks about Hester who committed adultery and instead of giving her the punishment of death she got the leeway of public humiliation. Hester may not have been happy all the time, but she was not miserable. Hester’s strong-willed personality doesn’t change much throughout the story. These had been her teachers, —stern and wild ones, —and they had made her strong, but taught her much amiss.“). While at first, Hester refuses to give in the society’s influence, she conforms to Puritan standards by the end of the novel. Yet, the narrator next tries to convince us that Hester has been wandering in a moral wilderness, after all, and that the past seven years of isolation have prepared her for this moment where she quickly jumps on sin’s bandwagon.) But the narrator describes the letter as a "mystic symbol" that means many things. In writing The Scarlet Letter, Hawethorne was creating a form of fiction he called the psychological romance. A few pages later, Hawthorne writes on the 10th paragraph of chapter 13, “The scarlet letter had not done its office.” As the story continues, it becomes more and more evident that the scarlet letter hasn’t done its office – it hasn’t done what it was meant for. Hester also said, “She had not known the weight until she felt the freedom.” (Hawthorne, 149), when she finally accepted that if people would not accept her then she would show them how good she could do it without them and with the power to do anything.…, Dimmesdale is physically and psychologically abused by himself and Roger Chillingsworth. By running off with Arthur, she would be committing adultery again. Through Dimmesdale’s major characteristic of guilt, the reader is able to understand how the heart and soul can only handle so much anguish before cleansing it from evil is no longer attainable and the reach for purity and happiness is cut…, The exaggeration makes the situation more dramatic and makes his friend fear and respect him. All rights reserved. In the beginning, her sin weighs her down. Answer to: How does Hester change throughout The Scarlet Letter? it goes gfrom being a sign of shame to a sign of unremembered meaning in the end the villagers have forgotten the original meaning adn think it means able. “He was the leader and I was the led”, as he has the desirable life of the two.…, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a story of a young woman’s struggle to remain true to herself despite society’s influence. If she has, why, then, is she going … I know its original purpose is to punish Hester for her sin, and as time goes on, the meaning in society changes from "adulterer" to "able" and blah blah blah. Because of the vengeance, he becomes so dependent on Dimmesdale that without him, Chillingworth’s life lacks purpose.…, Distressed, humiliated and guilty endured day by day, these emotions cannot be changed due to countless people looking down on you; You are trapped in an overwhelming unpoppable bubble surrounded by others who point, poke and mock you for past mistakes. Her living separately from Roger for 9-10 years does not annul their marriage. Answer: because she would always have to live with he sin, and she will never be accepted by the community again. In each part her attitudes change significantly. In the next paragraph, we read the first description of her red-letter A. The church even tries to separate Pearl and Hester, they argued that “a Christina interest in the mother’s soul required them to remove” Pearl from Hester’s care, so that she would not corrupt Hester any more than she already had been by the devil (116). One of Hawthorne's most. We never witness a weak woman in her. How Does Hester Change Throughout The Scarlet Letter; How Does Hester Change Throughout The Scarlet Letter. Throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne's book The Scarlet Letter, Hester's attitudes toward her adultery are ambivalent. I'm mainly focusing on how the meaning/purpose/effect changes for Hester. Despite this, he idolises Keith. Dimmesdale suffers profusely from his unknown attacker with no apparent way to end the wrong-doing. Even as she is coming out of the prison, Hawthorne describes her rejection of the town beadle by saying, “she repelled him, by an action marked with natural dignity and force of character, and stepped into the open air, as if by her own free-will” (36). The Reverend’s own actions sicken him further; Arthur Dimmesdale “loathed his miserable self” enough to subject himself to torture(137).…, All things considered, Hester was forced to wear a scarlet letter on her chest meaning she committed adultery so that people can judge her for what she did. “Old Roger Chillingworth was a striking evidence of man’s faculty of transforming himself into a Devil, if he will only, for a reasonable space of time, undertake a Devil’s office...” (116). Hester Prynne changes throughout the novel in many ways. On the letter itself, there is an “A” which is used to stand for being an adulterer, but Hester then realizes that the “A” also stands for “able” and how she was able to stand through all of the shame she was put through. The letters meaning transforms as time passes throughout the story. Hester wishes for a better life for her child but due to her actions and the scarlet letter she is forced to wear, Pearl will always be tied to the letter “A”. Through the course of the novel, it appears that Hester changes from an arrogant, unremorseful woman to a much kinder and helpful, repentant woman. As The Scarlet Letter begins, we see Hester escorted from the Puritan prison into the view of the waiting crowds; there she is said to have “natural dignity and force of character” (50), by repelling the guiding hand of a guard. Both the scarlet letter and Pearl herself serve as constant reminders of Hester’s past, and therefore Hester cannot make a fresh start. The metamorphosis of Hester’s image and the change in her inner thoughts represented how she overcame the burden of the Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet Letter that Hester Prynne wears symbolizes the change in perception of sin through out the novel. Journaling through "My Bondage and My Freedom". Hester Prynne experiences this shame in the novel, The Scarlet Letter by; Nathaniel Hawthorne. In the 3rd paragraph of chapter 13, Hawthorne writes, “Such helpfulness was found in her,—so much power to do, and power to sympathize,—that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. The way in which Hester is viewed within the community changes throughout the novel. Hester does not want to live a life of lies so she figures that she might as well deal with the consequences. Pearl, being a product of passion, seems to speak to nature and understand its wildness and beauty. Remember: This is just a sample from a fellow student. The affair with Hester reveals that he has romanticism inside of him as it was a choice made on instinct, an important value to romantics. Through this quotation, Hawthorne implies that for seven years of Chillingworth’s life, he relies on torturing Dimmesdale to live. Yes!—these were her realities,—all else had vanished!” Hester has no reason here to clutch the child fiercely or to question the reality of the events occurring if the ordeal is not affecting her on the inside. She has to be prepared to endure a life where she will always be punished for her transgression. If she has, why, then, is she going to leave for Europe with Arthur Dimmesdale? Before her adultery, she had a defiant character and her own mother often had to help her control her personality. Although Hester has changed in some ways, the change that was supposed to be brought about by the scarlet letter never happened. When she was caught committing adultery and jailed, she stood strong. The Puritans mean for the scarlet letter to be a symbol of Hester 's shame. Hester Prynne, through the eyes of the Puritans, is an extreme sinner; she has gone against the Puritan ways, committing adultery. Those who had before known her, and had expected to behold her dimmed and obscured by a disastrous cloud, were astonished, and even startled, to perceive how her beauty shone out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in which she was enveloped.” At this first appearance to the townspeople, Hester acts as if nothing is wrong, as if she has chosen to appear before the people, rather than take it as a punishment. Her husband has sent her ahead of him while he concluded business. The Scarlet Letter: A Romance is a work of historical fiction by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in 1850. Hester changes three different times, from being a shamed woman to a capable women and then to a healer. She asks her mother if he covers his heart because he has a mark on his chest as well. Although it appears that Hester has learned a lesson from her sin and consequential punishment, has she really changed her sinful ways? It was supposed to represent the fact that she had committed a terrible sin and that no one to talk to her. Hester is one of the main characters of the novel, and she makes a large change after the puritan community shuns her for committing adultery. The Evolution of Hester’s Suffering and the Forgiveness of Society In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne is forced to wear a scarlet A on her chest, because of the sin, adultery, she committed. She clutched the child so fiercely to her breast, that it sent forth a cry; she turned her eyes downward at the scarlet letter, and even touched it with her finger, to assure herself that the infant and the shame were real. Hester Prynne emerges … He whipped himself, fasted, and held vigils to pay for his sin that he committed. For this harsh sin, she must wear a symbol of shame for the rest of her life. His actions were the opposite of Romantic values, as he was harming himself for a sin he made spontaneously. Living on her own she's had to overcome many obstacles to begin with. The letter does represent Hester Prynne's adultery, but as she grows and changes in the novel, the letter's symbolism evolves as well. She sees how the sunshine loves her yet disappears for Hester. She is ashamed by the “A” she wears. Dimmesdale’s death marks the end of his revenge, and because his sole purpose for life “consist in the pursuit and systematic exercise of revenge, he loses his determination to live (201). In the course of most stories, at least one of the main characters changes in one way or another. In chapter five, Hawthorne writes, “Another peculiar torture was felt in the gaze of a new eye. Hester is only to have a brief respite, however, because Pearl angrily demands she resume wearing the scarlet A. In the beginning of the book, the Puritans are disgusted by Hester, and shun … Some even believe that her punishment is sufficient and that she should no longer wear the scarlet letter. After their meeting in the forest, Hawthorne describes the ministers actions, “he leaped across the plashy places, thrust himself through the clinging underbrush, climbed the ascent, plunged into the, How Does Hester Change Throughout The Scarlet Letter. Copyright © 1997-2021 Erich Musick. She became independent but it was difficult for a single woman to support herself, so she decided to sew garments for wedding and get money so that way she can support herself and her daughter. Hawthorne indicates that “there [is] no more devil’s work on earth for him to do” (201). At one point in the story, Hawthorne explains that Hester has learned much from the letter (ch 18 – “The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. This action signifies that she is more imagination minded rather than reason, as she is unwilling to work with a member of the puritan community. In chapter 15, on the 27th paragraph, Hawthorne writes, “In all the seven bygone years, Hester Prynne had never before been false to the symbol on her bosom.” As the end of the story nears, Hester and Arthur discuss their plan to skip town for Europe. When she was forced to wear a scarlet letter “A” she stood strong, and lastly, when Hester learns from her sin and changes from being depressed to being happy, she stood strong. Due to the revelations of the governor Winthrop and the … In Nathanial Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the reader meets the character Hester Prynne who as the novel progresses, one notices the changes in her character are very dramatic. Directly after being punished during the flirts scaffold scene, Hester and Pearl and remove from society. He is a serious character who is loved by the Puritan community; however, he is not as reason based as he is expected to be. Throughout the Scarlet Letter, the main characters undergo a lot of change and transformation. But I can't find a way to tie in how the meaning changes for Hester… Her helpfulness causes people to give the meaning “able” to the letter, rather than “adulteress,” as it is supposed to mean. There is a time when he becomes imaginative once again, and it is after his meeting with Hester. and even if she did speak the name of who it was their would be controversy, and obvious denial drawing lire next to he name as well. Right at the end of chapter two, Hawthorne writes, “Could it be true? She endured the pain of the scarlet letter and tried not to let it affect her life. This letter then becomes a strong symbol of who Hester Prynne really is and it keeps pushing her forward. The scarlet letter has a profound effect on Hester, causing her to change and grow. The letter and punishment were supposed to teach Hester to not sin, and yet she lies to Pearl about the meaning of the letter, another sin. 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