Crime And Punishment In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

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Often when a person should think of punishment, they would probably imagine a severe penalty brought on by a higher authority for one’s wrong doings. Most people would never imagine themselves bringing on their own personal castigation. However, those assumptions are not true. In the Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne demonstrates that self-enforced punishment can be just as harsh if not more drastic than the punishment administered by a governmental influence. Hawthorne states through his characters, that even though governmental discipline can be extremely oppressive, as long as ones mindset is positive as Hester’s was, one can make the best of their situation, whereas if one is inflicting their own self torture for their crime, as Dimmesdale was, there is no way for them surmount their inner…show more content…
She realizes her talent in needlework and begins to support herself by sewing. Even though her artsy embroidering defies the Puritan dress code, it was requested for christening gowns, burial shrouds, and officials’ robes. As years elapse the town’s respect for Hester flourished. Hester became less alienated from the society and began to use her kindness to feed the poor and care for the sick. The townspeople’s view of the scarlet “A” upon Hester’s breast had changed as well, “Many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength,” (Hawthorne 145). The town marveled at Hester’s stamina and generosity. It was as if everyone had forgotten her sin. Hester was able live comfortably with her daughter for the rest of her life. When she did pass on the community buried Hester in the King’s Chapel Graveyard, a burial ground for Puritan patriarchs. Hester had more than made the best of her situation, she had become a legend of her

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