Meet Hester Prynne, a Puritanical woman who is judged for the "brand of sin and infamy" (250) that lies on her breast. When walking down the street, peoples" eyes become "concentrated on her bosom" (55). Their "unrelenting eyes" (55) cause them to make quick suppositions about her. The society judges her based on ideas that the "A" becomes associated with over time. The "A" carries a multitude of insignias such as: adulteress, ashamed, artistic, alienated, armor, or able. The society automatically deems her an adulteress. Immediately after seeing her "badge of shame" (107), they deem her a "hussy" (49) and "naughty baggage" (49). They disregard the fact that Hester's husband, Chillingworth, had been studying abroad and she had no clue whether or not he was alive! They ignored the possibility that there was a method to her madness- a reason why she had an affair! The letter also causes people to assume Hester is ashamed, because the "A" was meant to be a constant reminder of her sin, causing remorse. Hester continuously felt the "burning shame" (84) that the scarlet letter caused her. The letter is also a representation of her artistic ability. All people have to do in order to know Hester is artistic is to look at the "elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread" (51) on the scarlet letter. The "A" also labels Hester as alienated. Hester is no longer accepted in society like she used to be. Consequently, she had no decision other than to close herself off from the "sphere of human charities" (78) and move into a "lonesome dwelling" (78) on the edge of the forest. "Without a friend on earth" (78), she is alone, isolated, and looked down upon with exile. The society also associates the "A" with armor, since that is what it acts as. The "A" is Hester's armor from the world. All Hester can see is the scarlet letter, and she herself is hidden behind it. An example of this is when Hester peered into the convex mirror at Governor Bellingham's mansion.
