Nathaniel Hawthorne’s background influenced him to write the bold novel TheScarlet Letter. One important influence on the story is money. Hawthorne hadnever made much money as an author and the birth of his first daughter added tothe financial burden (“Biographical Note” VII). He received a job atthe Salem Custom House only to lose it three years later and be forced to writeagain to support his family (IX). Consequently, The Scarlet Letter was publisheda year later (IX). It was only intended to be a long short story, but the extramoney a novel would bring in was needed (“Introduction” XVI).
Hawthorne then wrote an introduction section titled “The Custom House”to extend the length of the book and The Scarlet Letter became a full novel(XVI). In addition to financial worries, another influence on the story isHawthorne’s rejection of his ancestors. His forefathers were strict Puritans,and John Hathorne, his great-great-grandfather, was a judge presiding during theS! alem witch trials (“Biographical Note” VII). Hawthorne did notcondone their acts and actually spent a great deal of his life renouncing thePuritans in general (VII). Similarly, The Scarlet Letter was a literal”soapbox” for Hawthorne to convey to the world that the majority ofPuritans were strict and unfeeling. For example, before Hester emerges from theprison she is being scorned by a group of women who feel that she deserves alarger punishment than she actually receives. Instead of only being made tostand on the scaffold and wear the scarlet letter on her chest, they suggestthat she have it branded on her forehead or even be put to death (Hawthorne 51).
Perhaps the most important influence on the story is the author’s interest inthe “dark side” (“Introduction” VIII). Unlike thetranscendentalists of the era, Hawthorne “confronted reality, rather thanevading it” (VII). Likewise, The Scarlet Letter deals with adultery, asubject that caused much scandal when it w! as first published (XV). The bookrevolves around sin and punishment, a far outcry from writers of the time, suchas Emerson and Thoreau, who dwelt on optimistic themes (VII). This background,together with a believable plot, convincing characterization, and importantliterary devices enables Nathaniel Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter to thedevelop the theme of the heart as a prison. The scaffold scenes are the mostsubstantial situations in the story because they unify The Scarlet Letter in twoinfluential ways. First of all, every scaffold scene reunites the maincharacters of the novel. In the first scene, everyone in the town is gathered inthe market place because Hester is being questioned about the identity of thefather of her child ( Hawthorne 52). In her arms is the product of her sin,Pearl, a three month old baby who is experiencing life outside the prison forthe first time (53). Dimmesdale is standing beside the scaffold because he isHester’s pastor and it is his job to convince her to repent and reveal thefather’s name (65). A short time later, Chillingworth unexpectedly shows upwithin the crowd of people who are watching Hester after he is released from histwo year captivity by the Indians (61). In the second scene, Dimmesdale isstanding on top of the scaffold alone in the middle of the night (152). He seesHester and Pearl walk through the market place on their way back from GovernorWinthrop’s bedside (157). When Dimmesdale recognizes them and tells them to joinhim, they walk up the steps to stand by his side (158). Chillingworth appearslater standing beside the scaffold, staring at Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl. Inthe final scaffold scene, Dimmesdale walks to the steps of the scaffold in frontof the whole town after his Election day sermon (263). He tells Hester and Pearlto join him yet again on the scaffold (264). Chillingworth then runs through thecrowd and tries to stop Dimmesdale from reaching the top of the scaffold, theone place where he can’t reach him (265). Another way in which the scenes areunited is how each illustrates the immediate, delayed, and prolonged effectsthat the sin of adultery has on the main characters. The first scene showsHester being publicly punished on the scaffold (52). She is being forced tostand on it for three hours straight and listen to peop! le talk about her as adisgrace and a shame to the community (55). Dimmesdale’s instantaneous responseto the sin is to lie. He stands before Hester and the rest of the town andproceeds to give a moving speech about how it would be in her and the father’sbest interest for her to reveal the father’s name (67). Though he never actuallysays that he is not the other parent, he implies it by talking of the father inthird person (67). Such as, “If thou feelest it to be for thy soul’s peace,and that thy earthly punishment will thereby be made more effectual tosalvation, I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner andfellow-sufferer” (67). Chillingworth’s first reaction is one of shock, buthe quickly suppresses it (61). Since his first sight of his wife in two years isof her being punished for being unfaithful to him, he is naturally surprised. Itdoes not last for long though, because it is his nature to control his emotions(61). Pearl’s very existence in this scene is the largest immediate effect ofher parents’ crime (52). She obviously would never had been there had herparents resisted their love for each other. The second scene occurs severalyears later and shows the effects after time has had a chance to play its part.
It begins with Dimmesdale climbing the stairs of the scaffold in the middle ofthe night because it is the closest that he can come to confessing his sin(152). This scene is especially important because it shows how pitiful he hasbecome. Dimmesdale shows just how irrational he is when he screams aloud becausehe fears that the universe is staring at a scarlet token on his breast (153). Italso shows how much guilt he is carrying by the way he perceives the light froma meteor as the letter A. He believes it stands for adulteress while otherpeople think it stands for angel since the governor just passed away (161). Thisscene also shows how Hester is managing her new situation. When Dimmesdale tellsher to come up the scaffold and asks her where she has b! een, she replies thatshe has been measuring the robe that the governor is to be buried in (158). Thisstatement implies that Hester’s reputation as a talented seamstress has spread.
Ironically, her first well known piece of work was the scarlet letter that shewore on her chest. As a result, she owes her own success to her infamy. Besidesgrowing older, Pearl’s most significant change is in her perceptibility (158).
In this scene, she constantly asks Dimmesdale if he will be joining Hester andherself on the scaffold tomorrow at noon and accuses him of not being true(162). Neither Hester nor Dimmesdale ever told Pearl who her father was, but shefigures it out by the way he always holds his hand over his heart (159).
Chillingworth’s derangement is evident in this scene also. His contempt forDimmesdale is so acute that he risks his cover when he gives him a look so vividas to remain painted on the darkness after the bright meteor that just passed,vanishes (161). The third scene is very critical because it is the last glimpseinto every characters’ mind and the last time that everyone is alive. At thispoint in time, Dimmesdale’s fixation on his sin has utterly corroded him to thepoint of death. After he gives his election day sermon, he goes to the scaffoldand asks Hester and Pearl to join him because he is so weak that he can hardlysupport himself (265). He finally exposes the truth and tells his followers ofhow he deceived them (267). The only good that comes out of conceding his guiltis that he passed away without any secrets, for he was already too far gone tobe able to be saved (269). This scene is important to the characterization ofHester because it is the first time that she is not in complete control of heremotions (264). Her dream of escaping to England with Dimmesdale is lost when hedecides to confess (264). The unanticipated arrival of Chillingworth andDimmesdale’s feeble appearance distresses her, and for the first time, she cannot control the outcome (264). The greatest transformation in Pearl’s lifeoccurs in this scene. While she used to be perceived as elfish, she now showsthe first signs of normal human emotion. After Dimmesdale confesses his sin, shekisses his lips voluntarily (268). “The great scene of griefhaddeveloped all her sympathies; and as her tears fell upon her father’s cheek,they were the pledge that she would grow up amid human joy and sorrow, norforever do battle with the world, but be a woman in it” (268). Ultimately,Chillingworth takes a severe turn for the worse when Dimmesdale reveals his sin.
Since Chillingworth based the rest of his life on playing games on Dimmesdale’smind, he was left without any goals, and his life became meaningless (268). Onthat account, it is clear that Hawthorne uses the scaffold scenes, not only as aunifying device, but as a means to keep the reader interested in the novel byproviding plenty of action. The main characters sharply contrast each other inthe way they react to Hester and Dimmesdale’s sin. To begin, Hester becomesstronger, more enduring, and even more sympathetic. She becomes stronger becauseof all the weight she has to carry. She is a single mother who suffers all ofthe burdens of parenthood by herself. They live on the edge of town, and Pearlhas no one to give her food, shelter and emotional support besides Hester. Pearlis especially difficult to raise because she is anything but normal. Hawthornegives a pretty accurate description of Pearl when he writes: The child could notbe made amenable to rules. In giving her existence, a great law had been broken;and the result was a being whose elements were perhaps beautiful and bril- liant,but all in disorder; or with an order peculiar to themselves, amidst which thepoint of variety and arrangement was difficult or impossible to be discovered(91). Hester’s endurance is proven when the people of the colony completelychange their opinion of her. While a lesser person would run from the hostilecolonists, Hester withstands their insolence and pursues a normal life. Afteryears of proving her worth with her uncommon sewing skills and providingcommunity service, the colonists come to think of the scarlet letter as”the cross on a nun’s bosom,” which is no small accomplishment (169).
Hester also becomes more sensitive to the feelings and needs of other people.
She feels that her own sin gives her “sympathetic knowledge of the hiddensin in other hearts” (87). So even though the people she tried to help”often reviled the hand that was stretched forth to succor them,” shecontinues her services because she actually cares (85). While Hester tries tomake the best out of her situation, Dimmesdale becomes weaker by letting guiltand grief eat away at his conscience. Dimmesdale punishes himself by believingthat he can never be redeemed. He feels that he will never be seen the same inthe eyes of God, and that no amount of penitence can ever return him to God’sgood graces. He is so touchy on this subject that when Hester says his gooddeeds will count for something in God’s view, he exclaims, “There is nosubstance in it! It is cold and dead and can do nothing for me!” (202).
Dimmesdale also believes that his sin has taken the meaning out of his life. Hislife’s work has been dedicated to God, and now his sin has tainted it (202). Hefeels that he is a fraud and is not fit to lead the people of the town tosalvation. The feeling is so oppressive that the chance of escaping his work andleaving with Hester and Pearl makes him emotionally (and probably mentally)unstable. He walks through the town with twice as much energy as normal, and hebarely stops himself from swearing to a fellow deacon (229). When an old ladyapproaches him he can not remember any scriptures whatsoever to tell her, andthe urge to use his power of persuasion over a young maiden is so strong that hecovers his face with his cloak and runs off (230). The largest cause ofDimmesdale’s breakdown is the fact that he keeps his sin a secret. As God’sservant, it is his nature to tell the truth, so the years of pretending areespecially hard on him. His secret guilt is such a burden that instead of goingwith Hester to England and perhaps having a chance to live longer, he chose tostand, confess and perish on the scaffold (268). Ultimately, Chillingworthresponds to his wife’s betrayal by sacrificing everything in order to seekrevenge. After he discovers that his wife bore another man’s child,Chillingworth gives up his independence. He used to be a scholar who dedicatedhis best years “to feed the hungry dream of knowledge,” but his newallegiance becomes finding and slowly punishing the man who seduced his wife(74). He soon becomes obsessed with his new mission in life, and when hetargeted Reverend Dimmesdale as the possible parent, he dedic! ates all of histime to becoming his confidant in order to get his retribution (127). Vengeancewas also one of the reasons that Chillingworth gives up his identity. The onlyway he can truly corrupt Dimmesdale is to live with him and be by his side allday, every day. The only possible way to do that is to give up his true identityas Roger Prynne, Hester’s husband, and become Roger Chillingworth. Since theonly person who knew his true identity is sworn to silence, he succeeds for along time in tricking Dimmesdale until Hester sees that he was going mad andfinally revealed Chillingworth’s true identity (204). His largest sacrifice isby far, his own life. After spending so much time dwelling on his revenge,Chillingworth forgets that he still has a chance to lead a life of his own. Soaccordingly, after Dimmesdale reveals his secret to the world, Chillingworthdies less than a year later because he has nothing left to live for (272). Inconclusion, Hawthorne’s use of characterization gives the book a classic feelingby showing Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth’s feelings indirectly throughacts. The novel revolves around two major symbols: light and darkness and thescarlet letter. The book is filled with light and darkness symbols because itrepresents the most common battle of all time, good versus evil. When Hester andher daughter are walking in the forest, Pearl exclaims: Mother, the sunshinedoes not love you. It runs away and hides itself, because it is afraid ofsomething on your bosom. Now see! There it is, playing, a good way off. Standyou here, and let me run and catch it. I am but a child. It will not flee fromme, for I wear nothing on my bosom yet (192). Hester tries to stretch her handinto the circle of light, but the sunshine vanishes (192). She then suggeststhat they go into the forest and rest (193). This short scene actuallyrepresents Hester’s daily struggle in life. The light represents what Hesterwants to be, which is pure. The movement of the light represents Hester’sconstant denial of acceptance. Hester’s lack of surprise and quick suggestion togo into the forest, where it is dark, shows that she never expected to beadmitted and is resigned to her station in life. Another way light and darknessis used in symbolism is by the way Hester and Dimmesdale’s plan to escape isdoomed. Hester and Dimmesdale meet in the shadows of the forest with a gloomysky and a threatening storm overhead when they discuss their plans for thefuture (200). The gloomy weather and shadows exemplify the fact that they can’tget away from the repressive force of their sins. It is later proven whenDimmesdale dies on the scaffold! instead of leaving with Hester and going toEngland (269). A final example occurs by the way Hester and Dimmesdale can notacknowledge their love in front of others. When they meet in the woods, theyfeel that, “No golden light had ever been so precious as the gloom of thisdark forest (206). This emotion foretells that they will never last togetheropenly because their sin has separated them too much from normal life. Thescarlet letter also takes many different forms in the novel. The first andclearest form that the letter A takes is “Adulteress.” It is apparentthat Hester is guilty of cheating on her husband when she surfaces from theprison with a three-month-old-child in her arms, and her husband has been awayfor two years (53). Hence, the people look at the letter elaborately embroideredwith gold thread and see a “hussy” who is proud of her sin (54). Thesecond form that it takes is “Angel.” When Governor Winthrop passesaway, a giant A appears in the sky. ! People from the church feel that,”For as our good Governor Winthrop was made an angel this past night, itwas doubtless held fit that there should be some notice thereof!” (16). Thefinal form that the scarlet letter take is “Able.” Hester helped thepeople of the town so unselfishly that Hawthorne wrote: Such helpfulness wasfound in her,–so much power to do, and power to sympathize,–that many peoplerefused to interpret the scarlet A by it s original significance. They said thatit meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength (167). Inclosing, one of the most important reasons that The Scarlet Letter is so wellknown is the way Hawthorne leaves the novel open to be interpreted severaldifferent ways by his abundant use of symbolism. This background, together witha believable plot, convincing characterization, and important literary devicesenables Nathaniel Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter to the develop the theme ofthe heart as a prison. Hawthorne describes the purpose of the novel when hesays, “Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world, if not yourworse, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred!” (272). The themeis beneficial because it can be put into terms in today’s world. The ScarletLetter is one of the few books that will be timeless, because it deals withalienation, sin, punishment, and guilt, emotions that will continue to be feltby every generation to come.
English Essays
