The Scarlet Letter: Evil of Isolation In the New Testament it states that ‘the wages of sin is death.’ Thought he penalty of sin in The Scarlet Letter is not a termination of life, the evil of isolation can be a physically, morally, and socially tortuous event in Puritan society. Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, are both victims of the cruel isolation from Puritan society on the basis of their sins. Hester wears her sin upon her breast where it stands as a constant reminder of her malfeasance. Shame and isolation strip her of all passion and femininity, leaving her a shell of her former self. Though Arthur’s mark of shame is not visible, it is all the more tortuous for its absence. Shame and guilt feed upon Arthur’s soul with slow malevolence.
Only a combination of death and confession finally release Arthur from his torture. Though Hester’s ostracism from society and the tortuous nature of her shame, Hester is stripped of all passion and humanity. Since society acknowledges Hester’s sin, she becomes an exile in her own town. ‘All the world Ha[s] frowned on her,’ and Hester must bear the brunt of her shameful isolation.
When Hester walks through her town ‘a sort of magic circle [forms] itself around her.’ Devoid of any social contact, save that of her daughter, Hester must endure of lonely existence. ‘In all her intercourse with society, save that of her daughter, there was nothing that made [Hester] feel as if she belonged to it.’ ; therefore, she turns to herself for reflection of her shame. When Hester must walk through the town, she suffers ‘an agony from every footstep.’ Frequent suffering does not inure Hester to her inner torment; instead, the same grows ” more sensitive with daily torture.’ Hester’s ostracism from a stoic society and the burdensome nature of her shame, deprive her off life. Treated as a dangerous delinquent by society, Hester begins to question her humanity. Due to her intense suffering, ‘some attribute [departs] from [Hester], which had been essential to keep her a woman.’ Stripped of her passion and femininity, Hester is left as an iron character with a solemn manner. Hester’s shame remains to haunt her until her dying day.
The Essay on Hester S Advice Dimmesdale Sin Act
An Explanation of the Basis for the Detrimental Effect of Hester s Advice on Dimmesdale After committing the sin of adultery, Dimmesdale s physical and mental condition begins to deteriorate. When Hester asks him to run away from the situation they are in, he begins the final descent to his demise. Initially, the idea lifts his spirits. Eventually he feels compelled to confess when he realizes ...
Reverend Dimmesdale’s bought with the evils of isolation is distinct from Hester’s due to the fact that his sin remains a secret from the public. Tormented by his grievous sin and the duplicity of a fraudulent lifestyle, Dimmesdale’s physical stature is destroyed. Arthur Dimmesdale is ‘a man burdened with a secret’ that haunts his daily existence. The only truth that continues to give Arthur Dimmesdale a real existence ‘was the anguish in his inmost soul.’ Arthur wears ‘his hand over his heart’ an indication of his shame eating away a this soul. In addition to the torture Dimmesdale endures from his shame, he constantly suffers from the fraudulent duplicity of his lifestyle. To his congregation, Arthur wears a mask of purity, however, Arthur realizes the blackness of his sin in private.
Dimmesdale endures a constant ‘bitterness and agony of heart’ from the ‘contrast between what [he] seem[s] and what [he is]’Due to his multiple lifestyles, Dimmesdale is often ‘bewildered as to which maybe true.’ The sum of Dimmesdale’s torment is manifested in the form of a ‘bodily disease,’ which serves to deteriorate the reverend. Dimmesdale is only able to find peace in death and confession. Revealing his sin to society, he frees himself to advance toward God’s judgment. The evil of isolation of Puritan society robs Hester and Dimmesdale of their humanity, leaving them as stone monuments of shame. The isolation of Puritan society is a result of their belief that ‘the wages of sin is death.’ Only in death do Hester and Dimmesdale escape the anguish that arises from isolation. However, the infancy remains as their ‘only monument’ after death.
The Term Paper on Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Willy Loman is often recognised as the tragic hero of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman but arguments can be made against Biff being the contemporary hero and thus the true hero of the play. The purpose of a tragedy is to create pity and fear in the audience. A traditional tragedy consists of the central character, the tragic hero, creating chaos in the community he lives in. The hero becomes ...
The destructive nature of shame is a powerful weapon.
