Classics Corner: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne; Still Relevant Classic of Scandal, Hypocrisy, Secret Sin, and Redemption

Classics Corner: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne; Still Relevant Classic of Scandal, Hypocrisy, Secret Sin, and Redemption




By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews




Spoilers: Nathaniel Hawthorne was familiar with the concept of secret sin. He was a descendant of one of the judges of the Salem Witch Trials and even added the “w” to the last name Hathorne to disassociate himself from his ancestors. His mother's ancestors had an accusation of incest and were temporarily forced to wear an “I” on their clothing.


Even Hawthorne's writings are all about guilt and secret sins that are inside people. His short story “Young Goodman Brown,” features a young man who sees a witch's sabbat conducted by members of the community including his wife. While the story never tells us if the sabbat was real or a dream, it changes Brown's perception of the people around him and he suspects everyone in town of being in league with the Devil.

Another story “The Minister's Black Veil” also captures those themes. In that one, a minister covers his face in a black veil. The villagers are unnerved by the veil and can't convince him to remove it. The minister never reveals the reason that he wears the veil except on his deathbed, he says that he sees a veil on everyone's face. The story suggests that the veil is a symbol for the darkness and secrets that are inside everyone. The minister just chooses to bring his out in the open.


Hawthorne's best work, The Scarlet Letter covers those concepts of hidden darkness and secret sin and how they can either redeem a person or trap them into their own personal Hell.

In 17th century Boston, Hester Prynne is forced to wear a red “A” on her bosom and stand in the pillory for an hour every day. The reason for this is that even though she is married and she arrived in New England ahead of her husband, she had a child with another man. (The A more than likely stands for Adultery.)

Hester and her daughter, Pearl have to face a cold judgmental Puritan community and two men in particular. The first is Roger Chillingsworth who is every bit as warm hearted as his name. He is a physician recently arrived in town and is, surprise, Hester's husband.

The other man is the Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale, a young minister who wants Hester to open up to her sin and admit who is the father of her child. Though he shouldn't have to ask because, double surprise, he's Pearl's father.

Hawthorne's interest in guilt and secret sin manifests itself into his characters in interesting ways. While Hester is vilified by the community, she is able to reinvent herself. First, her A isn't just stitched onto her dress. It is embroidered and embellished, showing great care in her work. To support herself and her daughter, Hester takes up sewing and embroidery. While Puritans are legendarily plain dressed people, they were only human and didn't mind a little character once in awhile. Hester makes gloves for governors, dressing gowns for babies, and other accessories.

While no one in Boston would dare cross her path, invite her for tea, or even eject a particularly warm friendly hello to the woman, eventually they don't mind bragging to their friends that they own a Hester Prynne Original accessory.

Hester’s career shows her as an artist and an outsider. She can't openly rebel against her circumstances, so she puts all of her pain and care into her work. Note, she doesn't just wear the A. She embellishes it. She dramatizes it. As though she is revealing her creativity and originality under the conservative law abiding shell.

The other thing that Hester does during her long sentence is good work. While most people, myself included, would probably say “the hell with those people” and ignore them, Hester does not do this. Instead she gives medicine to the sick and counsels people who are lost and distressed. As an outsider, she has compassion for others and understanding for their plight. Ironically, she is stronger because of the isolation that she had to endure therefore has more empathy for those who are poor, sick, and alone.

In contrast to Hester, Dimmesdale’s turmoil is all internal. He has to act like a convincing minister and community leader on the outside, while he is tormented on the inside with his guilt of having been with Hester. Dimmesdale flagellates himself and feels shame burning inside his heart. He tells no one except Hester leaving his guilt to churn inside him.

As Heater grows stronger in her suffering, Dimmesdale grows weaker because of the hypocrisy he forces on himself. Ironically, it is only right before he reveals himself enough to stand in the pillory with Hester and Pearl that he gives the best sermon of his career as if in admitting his own guilt and double standard, he frees himself. Like Heater with her art, he has finally put himself forward with his art of public speaking to show his true self.

Dimmesdale's secret sin makes him prey for Chillingsworth who plays on his guilt and suffering thereby physically and mentally weakening him. Dimmesdale may long to seek repentance, but Chillingsworth does not because in his eyes, he did nothing wrong except marry a woman younger than him.

He is the Salem judge, the self-proclaimed man of God, the hypocritical politician, the Holier than Thou town's leader who judges the people under him while preying on their weaknesses. He is the man who cries loudest for punishment without admitting his own misdeeds and involvements which are often similar or worse than the ones that are public. Unfortunately, as is so often true he receives little to no retribution for his cruelty towards Hester and Dimmesdale.

The fourth character is the most unique of all: Pearl, the daughter of Hester and Dimmesdale. She is often described as a fairy or elf child as though she were a being outside of this world. Because her mother raised her as an outsider, she is free to express herself in ways the other characters do not. Her mother dresses her in the beautiful clothes that she makes instead of somber Puritanical clothing. She is bold and upfront where most Puritan children her age would be obedient and quiet. She asks questions such as “Why does (Dimmesdale) put his hand over his heart like he's in pain?” Because she lives outside of societal laws, Pearl is not beholden to them. She is able to argue and fight expressing the anger that her mother suppresses and articulating the sadness that her father hides.


Among the most intriguing developments about The Scarlet Letter is is how relevant this story still is. True, we are not likely to hang people for witchcraft or make people wear letters decrying their latest sin. But sex scandals are still the order of the day and now as then women are often held to a different standards than men. You only need to look as far as the headlines to see this.

In the recent sexual harassment accusations in the wake of Me Too/Time's Up look at how many men are accused of harassment. Okay look how many men who are tried, convicted, and found guilty. So far one: Bill Cosby. How many have either been given a light sentence or kept their jobs from entertainment to politics? How many women who have come forward are the ones who are shamed, vilified, put in hiding, and/or branded as liars or sluts “who were asking for it”?

There are still Hester Prynnes that are fallen women or are considered sluts or liars. There are still Arthur Dimmesdales who refuse to come forward when they need to but for whatever reason won't. There are Roger Chillingsworths who feign shock at the proceedings but hide their own misdeeds under cloaks of respectability. There are Pearl Prynnes who speak out and often are forced to bear the brunt of previous generations.

We really haven't moved as far as we thought from Hester's day.