Hester
Prynne was labeled as an adulterer. She was branded with a scarlet A to let
everyone recognize her sins. The town and council marked her without knowing the complete truth; they did not even know the identity
of her partner in crime. Though Hester did sin, perhaps she did not deserve a
punishment this harsh, which would last for a lifetime.
Hester
worked hard to absolve herself of her guilt and pain. She could have ran away
to where no one would know or recognize her or her crimes;
however, she stayed and endured the shame, hoping to redeem herself. Hester was
kind and caring. She made clothes for the poor, fed, and took care of them
without any compensation but their scorn. Through her earnest efforts, she was
eventually able to change others’ perception of her and the A changed from
“adulterer” to “able.”
Many
people are labeled, often unfairly, taking into account only one specific trait
while ignoring many other equally, if not more, important characteristics. The
town identified Hester as an adulterer and perceived her as nothing more than
her sins, disregarding her many other redeeming qualities. But Hester was able to show
them her benevolence and slowly shed her former title, becoming “able” instead.
By proving one’s strength of character, one can dissolve the social markers designated unto oneself.
Youre right. It is so ironic that Hester is deemed one of the society's worst citizens, when from our viewpoint, it looks like she is the most active and does the most good in the community. But people chose to ignore that until about chapter 14.
ReplyDeleteThis is so true. Hester was labeled as a sinner, thrown out of society and condemned to wear a scarlet A forever without a chance to redeem herself. Yet, Mistress Hibbins, who is a known witch, resides in the Governor's house and is not treated any differently in society than the norm dictates. Hester is active, as Trevor says, and it is ironic that such a small grievance should label her as society's worst. This blog post is great. Nice job, Hannah.
ReplyDeleteThis is so accurate! I liked the way you proved your point by using support! Great post, Hannah!
ReplyDelete