Five Most Important Scenes in The Scarlet Letter
There are many important scenes in The Scarlet Letter but, there are five scenes that stand out above the others and are the most important scenes of the book. These five most important scenes are first, when Hester gets released from jail and forced to stand on the scaffold. The second, is when Hester’s husband takes on the name of Roger Chillingworth. Another is when the governor tries to take pearl away from Hester. The next, is when Hester meets Dimmesdale in the woods. Last is when Dimmesdale reveals what he had done to everyone while he was on the scaffold. Hester Released From Jail
The first important scene in The Scarlet Letter is when Hester is released from prison and is forced to
…show more content…
In this scene the governor claims that if Pearl is a demon child that she would corrupt Hester even more. If Pearl is not a demon child then Hester would be the one to corrupt Pearl. This is important because it tells you that the governor thinks that Pearl should not be living with Hester as implied when the governor says “ere is a child of three years old, and she cannot tell who made her! Without question, she is equally in the dark as to her soul, its present depravity, and future destiny! Methinks, gentlemen, we need inquire no further.” (Hawthorne 124). Another reason this is an important scene because it helps the reader to know that they have been keeping a close watch on Pearl. This allows the reader to know that they could take Pearl at any moment if they feel she is in danger of being …show more content…
In this scene Hester and Dimmesdale plan on leaving Boston and going back to England. Hester also tears off her scarlet letter showing that she will no longer need to wear it when they leave. Doing this makes Pearl upset because she has never seen her mother without the scarlet letter on. This scene shows the reader that they both still love each other despite what they have been through. In this scene Hester tells Dimmesdale who Roger Chillingworth really is which is important because they can fight back as explained when this article says “This chapter is a turning point in the novel in several ways. Foremost, Hester Prynne and Mr. Dimmesdale are now both aware of Roger Chillingworth’s intentions and have a plan to counter him”. (Nishihara Chapter
The first theme expressed in The Scarlet Letter is that even well meaning deceptions and secrets can lead to destruction. Dimmesdale is a prime example of this; he meant well by concealing his secret relationship with Hester, however, keeping it bound up was deteriorating his health. Over the course of the book this fact is made to stand out by Dimmesdale’s changing appearance. Over the course of the novel Dimmesdale becomes more pale, and emaciated. Hester prevents herself from suffer the same fate. She is open about her sin but stays loyal to her lover by not telling who is the father of Pearl. Hester matures in the book; becomes a stronger character.
The main point of Scarlet letter is how Hester Prynne one of the main characters have to wear a scarlet A to Mark her sinning. While the men her heart belongs to Arthur Dimmesdale stay quiet and agonize with guilt, while her husband Roger Chillingworth works towards revenge. The story takes place in the mid 17th century Puritan community of Boston. The theme of this story is mainly guilt and frustration.
Symbolism plays a very important part in Scarlet Letter because it helps to identify characters and the main ideas of the story. It can help a reader to visualize and understand the meaning of the story better when there are symbols to help explain the meaning of something. Hawthorne uses Hester Prynne, Pearl, and Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale as symbols all throughout the book. They are the main characters of the story and they all overcome some difficulties in the end. They all have important roles in the book.
The Scarlet Letter starts off by throwing Hester Prynne into drama after being convicted for adultery in a Puritan area. Traveling from Europe to America causes complications in her travel which also then separates her from her husband, Roger Chillingworth for about three years. Due to the separation, Hester has an affair with an unknown lover resulting in having a child. Ironically, her lover, Arthur Dimmesdale, is a Reverend belonging to their church who also is part of the superiors punishing the adulterer. No matter how many punishments are administered to Hester, her reactions are not changed. Through various punishments, Hester Prynne embraces her sin by embroidering a scarlet letter “A” onto her breast. However, she is also traumatized deep within from everything she’s been through. Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts this story of sin by using rhetorical devices such as allusion, alliteration and symbolism.
Hester and Dimmesdale’s affair goes undiscovered until Hester is pregnant and bears a child without having her husband present. As her punishment, Hester is forced to stand on the scaffold in the middle of the market place, with an A on her chest. Dimmesdale has not told a single person that he is the adulterer. He sits in the balcony with the Governor, a judge, a general, and the rest of the ministers, watching the display, without any expression or emotion. Hester and Pearl go to the Governor’s home to deliver a pair of gloves, but more importantly to inquire about the possibility of the government taking away her child. Also there with Governor Bellingham are Pastor Wilson, Reverend Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth. After Mr. Wilson asks Pearl a few questions, the Governor decides that Hester is unfit as a mother and that the child would be better off in the hands of the church. Hester begs Dimmesdale, whom she says knows everything about her and has charge of her soul, to speak for her. Therefore, he does, convincing the Governor to let Hester keep Pearl. This is Dimmesdale’s first step to becoming the moral blossom. Late at night, a few years after the previous incident, Dimmesdale takes a walk through the town. He climbs onto the scaffold and pretends to confess; though there is no one out at this time at night. Hester and Pearl, on their way home, pass Dimmesdale on the scaffold. Dimmesdale calls out to them and they join him, standing hand in hand in the darkness. Dimmesdale has begun the road to confession by acknowledging Hester and Pearl and by acting out confession. Now he feels guiltier than ever.
4. The Scarlet Letter was written and published in 1850. The novel was a product of the Transcendentalist and Romantic period.
In “The Scarlet Letter,” the main character Hester get punished for adultery. In the beginning, she thought that her husband has died so she fell in love with Dimmesdale. However, her husband did not die and came back. Her husband, Chillingworth, later finds out that Hester has a secret lover. Therefore tried to find out who he is. At first Chillingworth does not reveal himself as Hester’s husband because she was being punished for adultery and he did not want to be ashamed. Later he tries to find out Hester’s secret lover by asking her but she will not tell him which makes him for desperate and angry. When he finds out that the secret lover is Dimmesdale, he finds out a secret about Dimmesdale.
Hester realizes what is going on between Dimmesdale and Chillingworth and gains permission from her husband to reveal his true identity to the minister. Dimmesdale is devastated by the news and agrees to flee Boston with Hester and Pearl. He will do anything to escape the hold that Chillingworth has on him. In the end, however, Dimmesdale realizes that he can only be rid of his tormentor by publicly acknowledging his guilt. At the end of the novel, on Election Day, Dimmesdale climbs the scaffold with Hester and Pearl again. This third scaffold scene is in the light of day and before a crowd. With his family at his side, Dimmesdale finally confesses his sin and shows the scarlet "A" on his chest. He then dies peacefully.
We can see how Hester begins changing even from the beginning of The Scarlet Letter. As the story starts Hester begins to develop a stronger and more rebellious attitude, which can be seen by the way she decorates the ‘A’ that represents the grave sin of adultery she has committed (p44). As the book progress we see Hester grow even stronger by the way she supports herself, her child born of sin, and helps the poor and sick out of the sincerity of her heart. Finally near the end of the novel we see the rebellious side of Hester evolve, symbolized by her casting the Scarlet letter to ground, as she takes control of her family, plans for escape, and a life as part of a family with the man she loves (p173).
Hester acts as the protagonist, Pearl as the symbol of sin, Dimmesdale as the victim, and Chillingworth as the antagonist. In the puritanical society of Boston, Hester is publically humiliated, and Dimmesdale struggles with internal guilt. Chillingworth attempts to afflict Dimmesdale as means to seek revenge. In contrast, Pearl guides Hester and Dimmesdale to the acceptance of their sin. Nathaniel Hawthorne characterizes Hester, Pearl, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth through their mien, disposition, and function in order to mold the storyline of The Scarlet
As Hester wears the scarlet letter, the reader can feel how much of an outcast Hester becomes. When walking through town, “…she never raised her head to receive their greeting. If they were resolute to accost her, she laid her finger on the scarlet letter and passed on” (Hawthorne, 127).She believes that she is not worthy of the towns acknowledgments and chooses to ignore them. The guilt that now rests in Hester is overwhelming to her and is a reason of her change in personality.
The characters of The Scarlet Letter showed the ruthless, orthodox society of Puritan society. Hester was a feministic, self-reliant conformist, living on her own. In the novel, she showed she wasn’t able to abandon her society completely, leading her to move on the outskirts of town. In essence, she could keep her distance but maintain her connection to the community. She and Mistress Hibbins, who she admired in the film and despised in the book, are the only characters in both the book and movie who behave according to their own personal beliefs. Hibbins’ minor function in the book evolved into an imperative role in the film. Her relationship with Governor Bellingham wasn’t well portrayed in the film, when this connection prevented her prosecution in the book.
Pearl is not only a symbol of Hester but also a symbol to Dimmsdale. Pearl will not let him into her life until he accepts his sin. She wants him as a father but will not let him until he will not hide his sin in public. Pearl knows that Dimmsdale will not be seen holding her hand in the public eye and this bothers her. She asks her mother, " wilt tho promise to hold my and thy mothers hand to-morrow?"(105)
While Hester tries to protect Dimmesdale by not giving the name of Pearl's father, she actually condemns him to a long road of suffering, self torture and disappointment. She does this by letting him keep the sin he committed in secret while he watches her being publicly punished. Chillingworth observes Dimmesdale's desire to confess, as well as his lack of willpower to do so. Dimmesdale rationalizes not confessing; all the while Chillingworth is torturing with constant reminders of his hypocrisy. Hester never voluntarily confesses to committing adultery, and never feels any remorse for it. Her public punishment comes not as a result of her having any contrition, but rather her apparent pregnancy. She stays in the town to be close to Dimmesdale, as a reader would find on page 84, "There dwelt...the feet of one with whom she deemed herself connected in a union..." She also stays in town to convince others, as well as herself, that she is actually regretful for her sin even though she knows in her heart she is not. She does this to appease her guilt. As Hawthorne puts it on page 84, "Here...had been the scene of her guilt...
‘The Scarlet Letter’ illustrates the lives of Hester Prynne, her daughter Pearl, local preacher Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester’s husband (whom uses the alias of Roger Chillingworth in order to disguise his true identity), and how they are affected after Hester committed an adulterous act with Dimmesdale, hence conceiving Pearl. This mother and child are then ostracized by society, and Hester is sentenced to jail, forced to wear a scarlet “A” on her chest as a symbol of her sin. The novel continues to narrate the four characters’ story for the following few years, until Hester passes away and is buried near Chillingworth (whom had died earlier on), both sharing a letter “A” on their gravestones.