Sin and Redemption: The Effect's on One's Heart.
In the Scarlet Letter, sin and redemption are major reoccurring themes that are the basis of the plot. The effects of sins committed by Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, and Reverend Dimmesdale are shown in many lights. The paths on route to redemption vary from character to character. Hawthorne ultimately believes that man's redemption consists not in external plans, programs, and projections, but in an internal conversion of the heart.
Wearing the letter "A" on her bosom after committing adultery, Hester Prynne seeks redemption within herself and from the austere and unrelenting people of her community. Hester is left with no friends and her only comfort is her daughter, Pearl. She receives no help or "salvation" from the community and therefore begins to pour her heart into her stitching and needlework. This task serves as an outlet for all her fears and sorrows caused by her sins. It takes Hester many years of "soul searching" to become somewhat happy again. She never will enjoy the carefree days of her past but she has found deep within herself the ability to make right her crime. Hester puts forth her best effort in ensuring a good future for her daughter and in making certain little Pearl will not make the same mistakes as her mother. Hester finally seems to be free of her guilt and able to show passion after she and Reverend Dimmesdale meet in the forest seven years later.
So speaking, she undid the clasp that fastened the scarlet letter and, taking it from her bosom, threw it to a distance among the withered leaves. The stigma gone, Hester heaved a long, deep sigh, in which the burden of shame and anguish departed from her spirit. Oh exquisite relief! She had not known the weight until she felt the freedom. (Pg. 223).
To show her freedom, Hester takes the scarlet letter off her bosom. After sharing time with Dimmesdale, Hester has finally redeemed herself.
Is the breeze the effect of something near you moving with such force that it displaces air in a given direction perhaps a car driving past? ... So then what is sin? ... Have they sinned? ... Imputed sin is the belief that in some way the entire human race sinned when Adam sinned4. ... Being a loving and merciful God he also provided an opportunity for redemption. ...
The scarlet letter had the effect of the cross on a nun's bosom." (148) Due to Hester's caring and considerate virtues, the scarlet letter no longer stood for adultery and alienation. ... Wearing the scarlet letter had the long-term effect of helping Hester surmount her guilt, gather her strength and bravery, and move on with life. ... She accepted her sin and accepted herself. ... In The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne portrays the idea that penance brings redemption to one's soul and that time spent in sorrow will compensate for all offender's sins. ... His redemption was rece...
By associating Septimus with Jesus Christ, Virginia Woolf is not only able to comment on religion's relationship to humanity and reject the Christian belief that suicide is the "sin beyond redemption," but also save Clarissa from a life that would have ultimately ended in self-slaughter. ... Having established Septimus as the Christ figure of the book, Woolf utilizes Septimus to pour forth an amalgam of opinions concerning religion's effect on both the Christian society and Clarissa Dalloway, the religious skeptic. ... Septimus" associations with Christian images not only provide W...
Having committed a moral sin with Hester, Dimmesdale holds the truth inside. ... When he preaches he preaches of sin but by doing so he is a hypocrite. Dimmesdale speaks to Hester, " What can a ruined soul, like mine, effect towards the redemption of other souls?... When the truth of Hester's sin is revealed it helps her to become stronger. ... Hester is free of her own guilt by being publicly ostracized and not hiding her sin, on the other hand, Dimmesdale lets go of no part of his sin until his soul becomes weak with guilt . ...
One of the themes in this story is redemption. ... The effect of Amir's actions caused their relationship to change forever. ... This quote also shows just how much of an effect the incident had on both of them. ... The effect that this has on both the friends is devastating. ... He has to do it, but his intentions are to atone for his sins so he can sleep at night and not be haunted by what he did. ...
She may have been severely isolated throughout her seven years of punishment, but this has no effect on how she chooses to live her life presently. ... In this final section of the novel, she makes a choice to go back to the place where such significant events occurred in her life because of the overall effect it had on shaping her identity. ... Hester choosing to wear the letter was her showcasing her own sin. ... The sin that he has committed with Hester is further shown to have an effect on his new identity. ... In focusing primarily on Hester's side of the story, the process by whic...
Hester Prynne has sinned against God by committing adultery. ... Though they hold Hester in a low place, they cannot help but be interested in her, for if Hester can find redemption, then any of them can as well. ... - the sin here so awfully revealed! ... It is ironic that something can be symbol for two completely different things, but have the same effect over others. ... Dimmesdale physically punished himself time after time in an attempt to find redemption, yet it only caused more shame upon his heart that brought him further guilt. ...
I subscribe to the dogma that Love is the recompense to the sullen life given to us from original sin, and believe that even if sin is committed we must make the best of the situation. ... From Isaiah, Hawthorne borrows the image of a scarlet letter to symbolize sin and also the concept that sin may be followed by redemption provided that the sinner amends his ways and acts in good conscience. The promise of redemption is offered by the wild rose-bush growing outside the prison in "a grass-plot, much overgrown with ... unsightly vegetation, ... ... The child of sin becomes "her mother's...
She realizes this from Dimmesdale freedom even though he sinned. ... She does not do this for the society but does it for her own redemption. ... Hester has almost achieved full redemption at the end of the story as she moves back to Great Britain to help unfortunate women. ... She is the product of sin, and that is the way she is described. ... "Hester looked, by way of humoring the child; and she saw that, owing to the peculiar effect of this convex mirror, the scarlet letter was represented in exaggerated and gigantic proportions, so as to be greatly the most prominent feature of her ap...