Theme Of Sacrifice In The Scarlet Letter

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In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter there are a handful of circumstances where a character sacrifices something that is meaningful and shows what they regard highly of. Nothing will stop them from keeping these important possessions that they have. Ironically, most of these circumstances involve the characters’ identity or reputation. All of the three main characters do something to protect their reputations or identities, but only one does it for another character and not themselves. For instance, Roger Chillingworth eschews his old identity so that he can secretly search for the man Hester committed adultery with in order to get vengeance. This shows that Chillingworth prized his privacy in the new society he lived in, and it also shows that he does not want to be known as the old man that Hester cheated on. He would …show more content…

This is when Mrs. Prynne, from the very beginning of her humiliation in front of the society, protects the identity of her lover Mr. Dimmesdale. Even though it would have taken some of the hate and pressure off of her and she may have even been able to get off free by accusing him of sexual assault, she decides not to. She does this not just for the sake of Dimmesdale’s reputation, but because it will keep him happy. Hester is not just thinking about herself in this situation like Dimmesdale and Chillingworth do. In reality she may not have lashed out and told everyone about the Reverend just because she knew that the he could convince the society not to execute her. Even if that is true, she is still putting a big stain on her reputation and taking a big hit by wearing the scarlet “A” on her chest. To add to this Hester and Pearl are ostracized by being forced to live in a cottage on the outskirts of town. They have hardly any contact with the people in town besides those who need Hester’s sewing and needle

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