Lasting Effect Of Hester's Sin example essay topic

In a Puritan society sin is not accepted. Their religion believes that once a sin is carried out by somebody that they can not receive forgiveness from their God. This caused the sinners of Puritan settlements many hardships; they had to deal with the shadow of their sin following them around for the rest of their life. Nathaniel Hawthorne utilized two of the main characters, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, to show that the lasting effect of sin is guilt. Hester Prynne's ignominy is the result of her committing adultery, which has profound effects on her life. Hester is publicly embarrassed with the scarlet letter when she first emerges from the cold, dark prison door.

The letter itself "had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity and enclosing her in a sphere by herself " (49). The scarlet letter, "so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom" (49) is what isolates her from everyone else because it symbolizes the unforgivable sins in her life. The letter also stands out so much from the dull appearances of the rest of the Puritan society that it can not be hidden. Hester is in her very own sphere, a world of her own where her sin effects her livelihood and has completely engulfed her and kept her from the world. Hester's entrance into the sphere marks the beginning of her guilt, it occurs when she is in the prison after her first exposure to the crowd where her "moral agony" is reflected in the convolutions that have seized her innocent child Pearl.

The first scaffold scene marks the beginning of a new life for Hester, a life full of shame and isolation. Her "moral agony" is her guilt that is slowly surfacing while she faces the crowd realizing that she has been stripped of her pride and everything that is important to her. Hester's guilt has become very influential in her life making her unable to express herself freely. By the time Hester's guilt has fully surfaced when she wants to simply express herself she is prevented from doing so due to her guilty conscience. She wants to take revenge on everyone that has passed judgment on her by giving him or her a "disdainful smile" (53), but she is fearful that she might start feeling guilty for doing such a thing. After all "The crowd was somber and grave" (52), and Hester could not lash out against the crowd and express her anger because she will feel even more guilt.

Hester is forced to act with good intentions towards others making it seem like she is not influenced by their opinions. She does this to avoid confrontations so she can live her life peacefully. It seems Hester can live without any consequences of sin if she is able to suppress her anger, but in reality she is only slowly isolating herself from the world. Living peacefully for Hester is slowly isolating her because she acts kind to others to avoid confrontations, which shows that she is afraid of the world and is actually trying to hide from it.

The lasting effect of Hester's sin is the guilt that she now embodies due to her transgressions. The guilt that is associated with Hester's sin remains with her as an everlasting reminder of her sinful actions. Hester's ultimate consequence of sin is her daughter Pearl. With Pearl, Hester has to assume full responsibility because she is raising a child on her own. Hester loves Pearl because she is her daughter, but she is also a symbol of Hester's sin. This is very difficult for Hester because she sees a child that she loves and then she sees the punishment for her sin in Pearl.

Hester sole focus on raising Pearl helps her to not think so much about her own past. Even though Hester loves Pearl she can't escape the fact that Pearl is the ultimate price for her sin, which will always be there to remind Hester of what she did with Dimmesdale. In an effort to devote herself to raise Pearl in a acceptable Puritan way Hester says that, "I can teach my little Pearl what I have learned from this!" (103). This shows that Hester is determined to raise Pearl and use herself as an example to teach Pearl so she would not make the same mistakes that her mother has.

Hester's sin is masked by the love she has for Pearl and even though Pearl reminds her of sin; Hester is still willing to assume full responsibility for Pearl. Hester's determination in raising Pearl with solid Puritan values is truly inspiring because she struggles and deals with the lasting effects of sin and is able to have an undying love for her daughter. Reverend Dimmesdale guilt causes him to develop a series of internal conflicts. Dimmesdale experiences a very unique ordeal, which sets him apart from the rest of the characters in this novel. The lasting effect of guilt that Dimmesdale experiences is not due to external factors, but it originates and grows within Dimmesdale himself. Dimmesdale has committed adultery with Hester Prynne and the consequence for his sin, as with Hester, is the guilt that becomes a part of him.

Reverend Dimmesdale's struggle to cope with his guilt causes him to traumatically abuse himself. Often "Mr. Dimmesdale himself struck his forehead with his hand" (217). Dimmesdale had become so enraged with his guilt that at times he would become very violent. This is brought upon Dimmesdale because he is living under the severe pain of his inward shame of having sinned in the face of God. His guilt has a substantial effect on him and prevents him from confessing his sin on the scaffold. The guilt that Dimmesdale experiences is unlike any other.

The shadow of his sin causes an internal conflict within him and makes him afraid of confessing his sin because he is embarrassed by his own actions. The confession of sin is an important aspect of Reverend Dimmesdale's life. If Reverend Dimmesdale confesses to his sin then he will be partly free of his pain, but would still have to cope with his guilt. Dimmesdale is a man of God and highly respected as a minister in his community, he could not stand to let down everybody by letting them know that he is a sinner himself.

"Dimmesdale had achieved a brilliant popularity in his sacred office" (135) and he was not willing to sacrifice this sought after position to comfort himself. Dimmesdale values his reputation over his well being through this time of suffering in his life. If he were to confess to his sin of adultery to the people he would loose his treasured reputation. Dimmesdale's objective is to deal with his guilt without confessing so he can avoid losing his reputation among the people who have come to respect him. Dimmesdale finally decides on confessing his sins on the scaffold in an effort to keep the guilt in him from driving him insane. To avoid his reputation from being destroyed Dimmesdale approaches the scaffold at night, "no eye could see him, save that ever-wakeful one which had seen him in his closet wielding the bloody scourge.

Why, then, had he come-hither? Was it but the mockery of penitence?" (141). Though Dimmesdale confessed on the scaffold at night no one was around to witness his confession. Confessing at night does nothing for Dimmesdale because he didn't reveal his sin to the people. "It's done!" muttered the minister, covering his face with his hands" (142). Dimmesdale is glad that he has confessed and he believes all his pain has come to an end.

After Dimmesdale " [looked] upward to the zenith, beheld there the appearance of and immense letter-the letter A" (149). This sign shows that Dimmesdale's suffering is not yet over and he will have to live with the consequences till he confesses on the scaffold in front of the public. The lasting effect that sin has on Dimmesdale causes him to suffer through the guilt that causes him to keep everything to himself instead of confessing in front of the public. He values his reputation more than anything else and pays the ultimate price for it... his death on the scaffold. Hester and Dimmesdale had a sinful shadow that lurked around with them for the rest of their lives.

This shadow is the guilt, which is all they are left with in the end. They will have to suffer with their guilty conscience as a consequence for their sins. Hester and Dimmesdale both sacrifice their peaceful lives and live with guilt that comes with it forever..