Sin, the enemy of all mankind, enters everyone's life at some point. ... Hester, although only a poor embroiderer, is humble and happy because she has put her past behind her. These two characters develop throughout the novel until their character types intensify: Dimmesdale becomes frantic and almost crazy because the past is always before his eyes, while Hester becomes very peaceful and wise. ... The many sub-themes in The Scarlet Letter also add to the main discussion by clarifying the crippling effects of sin. ... The themes in the story also point directly to the consequences of leav...

• Word Count: 890
• Approx Pages: 4

Another valuable lesson taught in the story is the effects of sins. The plot is not only based around the sins committed by Hester Pryne and Arthur Dimmesdale but also the results their sins have caused. ... However, throughout the novel, Chillingworth learns to show forgiveness for their sins. ... Hawthorne's writing of The Scarlet Letter is his way of making the lives, culture, and customs of the past relevant to our modern lives. ... If this novel becomes banned from schools, students will lose a true understanding of the past life of the Puritans. ...

• Word Count: 707
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Pearl's life and behavior directly reflects the unacceptable and abnormal nature of Hester's adulterous sin. ... Pearl should be constant reminder of personal sin to everyone that meets her; however, as it would be, she only reminds others of Hester's sin. ... The scarlet letter matures into a symbol of Hester's perseverance, while Pearl continues to enhance herself as a subject of Hester's past indiscretions. It is clear that Pearl is as much a blessing to Hester as she is a wicked reminder of the past. ... Pearl's evolution throughout this novel directly rel...

• Word Count: 765
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

So why does Hester choose to stay in a place were she will constantly be reminded my by her past action and "sin?... One of Hawthorne's underlying message is in the Scarlet letter is that, as human beings we are capable of sins and from these sins we learn and gain valuable experience leading to knowledge. ... Her past sin is a part of who she is, to pretend that it never happened would mean denying a part of herself. ... Here had been her sin; here, her sorrow; and here was yet to be her penitence. ... She is not, however, the example of sin that she was once intended to be. ...

• Word Count: 1049
• Approx Pages: 4

She is a constant reminder to Hester's sin. ... Pearl is unaware of who her father is, and it is Hester who refuses to answer her questions about her past. ... Pearl deems answers for her past and becomes infuriated in Hester's refusal to expose the truth. ... Does Pearl now know that Reverend Dimmesdale clutches a sin as deep as her mothers? ... Pearl is an important character, as she is a constant reminder to Hester's living sin. ...

• Word Count: 845
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

The author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, addresses sin in the book quiet frequently, this essay addresses how Hawthorne really thought about sin and it's aspects like punishment. The Scarlet Letter is a novel that deals with the theme of sin. ... In The Scarlet Letter, the idea of sin and punishment is the main theme of the novel and how Hester Prynne, the main character, has been punished for her sin of adultery. ... This sin remains with Hester for seven years until her death, and the Puritan community never seems to forgive her for her sins. ... However, people should be able to leave...

• Word Count: 802
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Everyone has committed a sin either knowingly or by accident. ... While others commit the sin of hate just like Chillingworth. ... Hate is such a strong word, but it is also a strong sin. ... I see sin better punished when it is not known. The sinner goes through more guilt and has to live with it forever unlike in the past where they belief abasement was punishment. ...

• Word Count: 675
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

First we see two symbols in the town that show how sin isolates people. ... Dimmesdale, however, hides his sin from people. ... When Hester meets Dimmesdale in the forest, all the sorrow of the past few years since their sin is brought up. ... However, she is not truly repentant for her sins. ... Progressing until they are "past all moral sense," they eventually give "themselves over to loose conduct" (Paul, Ephesians 4:19). ...

• Word Count: 1118
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

He's negatively impacted by the letter, not only for it being a reminder of the sin and of the punishment he ran away from, but also for him envying Hester, for being able to be true to herself, and explicit about her sins. ... That is because Pearl symbolizes the same as the letter, the sin. ... As if her daughter hadn't been worth the sin just like the letter wasn't. ... In all the past years, Hester had been alone if not for the memories of her sin: Pearl, and the letter. ... Symbolizing the main reason for the story to happen: the sin. ...

• Word Count: 958
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

This pride illustrates that she is not sorry, and not regretful for her sin. ... Chillingworth vows to make the father pay for his sins. ... Roger is so corrupt by his revenge that he cannot see past the sin and will never forgive. ... That old man's revenge has been blacker than my sin. ... However, suffering ruins Chillingworth, disabling him to repent for his sins. ...

• Word Count: 695
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Her sin is a one of passion. Hester Prynne's sin is adultery. ... He commits a sin against her. ... Red is passion and sin. ... People should be able to leave the past behind them and start over, yet that never seems to happen, and Hester is forced to drag this guilt around with her until her last breath of air....

• Word Count: 1044
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Sin was an unspeakable trait in a person's personality. ... Jacobsen affirms "Sin in the artist makes him more aware of sin and guilt in others, and hence opens and expands his view of life" (Jacobsen pg. 39). ... As Gorman puts it, "The Scarlet Letter was a shadow of his own spiritual past" (Gorman pg. 144). Meaning, that Hawthorne could have committed such a sin as adultery or know of one who has. ... If this were slightly true, then why would Nathaniel Hawthorne begin to provide a public source for his past experiences? ...

• Word Count: 1014
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Dimmesdale also believes that his sin has taken the meaning out of his life. His life's work had been dedicated to God, and now his sin has tainted it. ... In fact, his mental anguish of sin is what had caused his illness. ... This act of declaring his sin is one step closer to salvation. ... On the scaffold, Dimmesdale openly brought his sin to light and finally felt restored. ...

• Word Count: 723
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

To the eyes of the Puritans, Hester's act of adultery, although not punishable by death, is a sin that should be branded upon her forever. Thus, the opening scene of the novel begins with Hester standing on the scaffold holding her baby "the fruit of her sin "in her arms. ... Hester, however, grows stronger and more morally righteous until she is actually favored by Hawthorne, despite her sins. ... This shows a disdain that she has towards the letter, because no matter how it is perceived, it is still a reminder of her sinful past. ... Because she cannot undo the past, Hes...

• Word Count: 1177
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

The many of the symbols in this book deal with sin, punishment and redemption. ... While the scarlet letter seems to be an important symbol, it seems insignificant compared to Pearl who functions as a live symbol and a reminder of Hester's past. ... She is the consequence of a sin committed between two people and a constant reminder of this same sin. Consequently, Pearl can be viewed as both punishment for the sin and as a blessing from nature. ... The rosebush symbolizes nature and its ability to forgive people for their sins. ...

• Word Count: 843
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Hester had accepted her fate as the consequence for her sin. ... Dimmesdale could go forth and step onto the scaffold and profess his sins, but he does not. ... Over the past seven years it is more and more pressed how much he is loved by the community. ... Lucifer had fallen from heaven to hell in the Bible due to his own sinning. ... His efforts to atone his sins are unsuccessful. ...

• Word Count: 1021
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Through the past seven years Dimmesdale has become frail and weak, at the hand of Chillingworth. ... Is it possible to attain forgiveness in a Puritan society after committing such a heinous sin? ... A punishment suitable for such a sin is already been instituted since the day it happened. ... These thoughts now give Dimmesdale a stronger reason to come out with his sin, because he obviously does not want to associate with anymore evil since his sin. "Then flinging the already written pages of the Election Sermon into the fire- (pg 154) The final realization that he must admit to his sin to...

• Word Count: 1115
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Thus, In the novel The Scarlet Letter, Pearl exists solely as a symbol of Hester's sins, positive traits, and past self, not as a character in her own right. ... The way that Pearl acts as the only source of pureness and goodness only towards Hester and Dimmesdale shows that her character is not developed enough, and is merely a symbol of both their happiness and sin. ... Besides having to wear the scarlet letter on her chest, the only physical thing that remains from Hesters sin is Pearl. ... She physically represents Hesters sins, positive traits, and past self. Pearls purpose is ...

• Word Count: 1245
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Roger Chillingworth started to figure out that a sin or something Mr. ... (Hawthorne 136) Dimmesdale knows that no one knows what sin he is hiding, and he believes that the heart holds this secret until God judges us all. ... "Let us not look back, the past is gone!" (Hawthorne 211) Hester knows that the sin that was committed was terrible and will always have a place in their hearts but they can not dwell on it now. ... She believed that the sin would be forgiven and they would be able to love each other when the meet again. ...

• Word Count: 1114
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

In a parade, Dimmesdale confesses to sins and right after the confession, he died peacefully. ... The theme within the story is unconfessed sins leads to the destroying of the soul. ... It is an explanation on the significance of the scarlet letter as a symbol and the bridge of the connection between sin and humanness. ... Here had been her sin; here, her sorrow; and here was yet to be her penitence. ... She resumes wearing the scarlet letter because her past is an important part of her identity; it is not something that should be erased or denied because someone else has decided it is sham...

• Word Count: 720
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Hester was a social outcast because of her past and the mistakes she made, and because of this, she would cause such an upheaval that it would cause a pastor to reveal a life-altering secret. ... Hester and Dimmesdale are the Adam and Eve of the town who commit the ultimate sin by eating the fruit of adultery. Their experience allows the townspeople to see how it is to really be human and that committing sins is a forgivable part of human life. ... Sin, rather than power, is the basis of The Scarlet Letter and donates to the message that perfection is not achievable by a set of rules that is e...

• Word Count: 710
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The author uses words such as "broad shouldered, well-developed busts, and ruddy cheeks" to emphasize the manliness of women in past generations. ... Older women believe that Hester should be punished severely because the sin she commits is irreparable. ... The sin that she committed is considered to be irredeemable to the Puritan society. ... She believes that it is her fate to become a prophet to the city of Boston, but she realizes that someone of such angelic qualities does not commit herself to sin. ... Although Hester commits an irreparable sin, her womanly inner strength and fortitu...

• Word Count: 904
• Approx Pages: 4

Religion punishes her with the Scarlet Letter, society ostracizes her as punishment, and individually she was able to move on in life but still returned to her haunting past where she died. ... It constantly forced the tought of the sin she had commited and would haunt her for good. ... Society ostracized her because no one in the town had ever delt with any kind of sin as adultry so they looked at her as a witch. ... Religion punishes her with the scarlet letter, society ostracizes her as punishment, and individually she was able to move on in life but still returned to her haunting past w...

• Word Count: 727
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Hester Prynne's scarlet letter undoubtedly represents the sin of adultery and she must wear this 'A' as a symbol of punishment. ... The 'A' itself is what was holding her back from moving on, that was the past that she was doomed to hold in her heart until she passed on. ... Pearl just wants Hester to come to the realization of her sin and is telling her that she can never be free of this. ... The scaffolding is where all confessions of sin happen. In the beginning Hester stood there to confess adultery. in the middle of the novel Dimsdale stands there when nobody is o...

• Word Count: 1185
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, addresses an issue which has not only existed in the past, but permeated through time. ... He initially divulges that Prynne has committed an unspeakable sin, and not until the end of the novel does he fully disclose Prynne's sin. ...

• Word Count: 748
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate