The Scarlet Letter - Intoleran

Want to read the rest of this paper? Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay and over 50,000 other term papers

out of the town and is no longer a community member. She suffered these ordeals and punishments because she was a mystery to them, she was different from them all. These perfect puritans threw her out of their lives because she was not mainstream, and she dared to do something they were forced to deny themselves.

The Puritans' fear is what drives them to outcast Hester. A group of people with such over powering ethical beliefs has to focus their anger somewhere. They all live in fear they themselves will be outcast. So when the opportunity arises, they persecute someone else. The women all see Hester as a threat, because they are unsure of who the male partner was that participated in this act of sin. So the women who push for a more harsh punishment, act out not only due to the lack of morals behind her sin but they have an underlying selfish need as well. But everyone in the Puritan community can agree that Hester no longer deserves to be in their society, because she is not the ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays. Write better papers. Get better grades. Already a member? Login

in her letter "A" unusual, the reader can understand where her pride comes from. She may not be directly proud of her sin, but she realizes she is honest about what she chose to do. Hester becomes a better person with the lessons she learns from her punishment. She knows there is no reason for her to hide her shame as all of the others do, because she is honest about her values and choices. Her lesson is: while she may not have conformed to the mold of society, she knows she is a better person because of that. She can admit her rights and wrongs to herself and society, while everyone else lives in fear and keeps their own sins hiding in their hearts.

Throughout the novel it is ...

Succeed in your coursework without stepping into a library. Get access to a growing library of notes, book reports, and research papers in 2 minutes or less.

CITE THIS PAGE: