The Main Character Hester Prynne - Research Paper Example

?The Metamorphosis of Hester Prynne In early American culture, during the era of British colonization, many people came to the new world for a variety of reasons. Among these reasons were being able to have a new way of life as well as escape persecution, especially religious persecution. The Puritans were typically located in the New England area of the new colonies and were an extremely conservative sect of Christianity. They lived in very tight communities where religion was the guiding principle for everyday life. The main character Hester Prynne experiences a metamorphosis in Hawthorne’s The Scarlett Letter due to the act of adultery she commits, which causes a transformation that affects her, her daughter and the Puritan society in which she lives. In the case of The Scarlet Letter, the main protagonist of the story, Hester Prynne, is convicted of adultery and is chastised by the Puritan community. As punishment for her crime, she is forced to where a scarlet “A” on her chest for everyone to see. In the initial part of the novel, the identity of the father is unknown due to the fact that Hester’s husband is overseas in England; therefore he could not be the father. As a result, she refuses to reveal the identity of the true father, but is convicted of adultery. In this aspect, she is branded so that no one will associate with her due to the fact that she broke the Ten Commandments. It has the “effect of a spell” or a plague in that it causes the inability for her to associate with anyone in the town. Even travelers who come to visit the town soon learn the truth behind her sins. Because of the mark that she wears, it causes her to become isolated from the rest of the community. Therefore, she does not develop the typical relationships and social connections that would normally be experienced in Puritan society. This is due to the fact that religion is the bond, which ties the entire community together and that connection with Hester was severed when she was convicted of adultery. In this case, she creates her own world for both her and her daughter Pearl. In addition, by closing herself off to the rest of society, it protects the identity and questioning of who is the true father of Pearl. As a result, her “imprisonment” by society is used in terms as more of a social barrier, than as physical imprisonment. The aspect of her being in prison also transcended other bounds. She was not able to be with the man that she really loved. Chillingsworth tormented her about the whereabouts of her lover, and eventually set out on a vendetta to take revenge on that individual. In spite of all animosity and negative feelings toward her, she is able to maintain and create a safe environment in which both her and Pearl can live in. Because of the animosity that Hester experiences, there are a great deal of effects of both living and emotion that she has to deal with through the course of the novel. The first main effect on Hester is dealing with Pearl. She is an extremely unruly child that Hester has a hard time controlling. Because the child was conceived out of sin and because of the eccentric and misbehavior, many of the townspeople began to regard the child as a child of hell. In this respect, many of the community attempts to take away Pearl from Hester so that she may be saved and raised in a proper Puritan manner, however the minister of the town, Authur Dimmesdale protests saying that the daughter must remain with the mother. Also, Pearl served as a walking reminder of the sin that Hester committed along with complementing the scarlet “A” on her chest. Hester lived in this political and social prison for a very long time. Not willing to divulge the other adulterer, she was condemned to living a cursed life. The inability of her to form relations with anyone inside the town as well as raise a child by herself gave her a sense of hopelessness. All of Hester’s struggles and misery is derived from the structure of the Puritan religion. They often did not tolerate those who did not worship in the way in which they did. Going to church, reading the bible, and living a life that Jesus would have wanted were the guiding principles. Therefore, Hester stood out as the person who broke a mortal sin. The townspeople were extremely unforgiving of the sin that she had committed. Unbeknownst to the town, Hester’s husband, Roger Chillingworth, had returned from England, but having heard the sin committed by Hester, disguised himself as a physician. He partially took the blame in that he was an older man and she was younger. Upon asking whom the real father was, she told him that she would not divulge the true father. Chillingworth then replies with a rebuttal that he will eventually find out who it is. The main leader or authoritative figure in the Puritan town was the town minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. He often appeared fragile and week, both physically and psychologically, leading others to show concern for him and for Chillingworth to eventually learn that he himself is suffering from psychological duress because he is Hester’s lover. He himself had taken the brand as an adulterer, but unlike Hester who acknowledged the fact that she had sinned, he hid this from the community, as he would be the last person they would have expected to commit such grave of a sin. This inner conflict with Dimmesdale would ultimately serve as his biggest weakness that would cause him problems in overcoming the ordeal psychologically. Pearl serves an important role in the development of Hester’s character during the story. As a child, she is innocent of the crime that of which Hester committed, however she is forced to share the punishment of being exiled from society. This ultimately becomes a source of strength for Hester and gives her a reason to move on. The relationship and responsibility of motherhood also further strengthens the connection between her and Pearl. In a maladaptive way, Hester always has to look at Pearl as a result of the sin that she committed. This creates neuroticism due to the fact that she is torn between the fact that she loves her daughter and wants to care for her; however, Pearl stands as a sign of the sin that she committed and the reason that Hester can no longer be a fully functioning member of society. In other ways, Pearl also stands as a reflection for Hester. In some aspects, Hester is forced to see qualities of herself that the child possesses. This creates a deterministic effect for Hester as she attempts to raise Pearl in exile. The Puritan society is what ultimately dictated the conditions in which Hester has developed. Because Puritans were so strict and conservative, Hester felt the wrath of their community in regards to the way religion influences every aspect of that society. They physically labeled her a “sinner” as an adulteress so that everyone would know, a resident or a traveler, that she was unfit in the eyes of the lord. As a result, it would not matter where Hester went, but she would always be marked. In the Puritan community’s eyes, there was no redemption possible for her. The stance on her sin and then not admitting whom the other party was meant that she was going to hell, which put the connotation of evil with her name. In this case, the community did not want Hester around, seeing as she now had literally become a representation and embodiment of a sin in a Christian community. The Puritan community did not want her around and probably thought that the shame of being a sinner would force her to return to hell through death. Lastly, the biggest effect on Hester was the bearing of the scarlet letter. Besides the literal meaning of having to bear the letter, it was a mark that was always on Hester. To take it one step further, Pearl symbolized the scarlet letter in that she was the result and a walking testimonial to the fact that she symbolized the scarlet “A”. In this sense, Hester was bearing not only one her pain, but Pearl’s as well because she would never be able to integrate into Puritan society as she is living proof of Hester being a wretch. However, we see that Hester bears the letter without any complaint or accommodation on her part. This takes a great inner strength in order to do it. The main defining fact of this transformation is that she accepts the scarlet letter and undergoes the chastisement of the community in addition to protecting her lover. There is a sense of self-pride and self-sacrifice that can be taken from this. In this respect, Hester could be considered a marauder for love. Her bearing the scarlet letter in the manner in which she did shows true strength and the fact that she accepts what she has done, as well as integrated it into her life. In the end, Dimmesdale is the one who pays the price for the adultery in that he could no longer live with himself as watching Hester undergo torment. Eventually, both Hester and Pearl leave the town. Hester later returns to the community still bearing the scarlet letter. There were constant signs everywhere and she was forced to have to see them everyday, one of which she was forced to raise. Having observed the entire ordeal and with the passage of time, Hester becomes regarded as a leadership figure in society in that many of the women learn to forgive, which is a Christian value. The transformation that Hester experienced was based on the foundation of love and sacrifice for the one she loved. For that she received her reward of being able to be buried next to Dimmesdale so that they could be together in the after life. Works Cited Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Dover Publications, 1994. Print. Read More