Hernandez 1

Paola Hernandez

Mr. Price

AP English, Period 6

2 March 2017

Letter: Themes
The Scarlet

The first words could be the beginning of what is to come in the future. In the novel The

Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne unfolds a story of a womans sin and how the people of

Boston let it escalate during the seventeen hundreds. In the town Hester Prynne was sentenced

to wear a scarlet A on her Bosom for her crime of adultery. The story not only shows Hester's

misfortunes but also those of Reverend Dimmesdale and his grief of his act of adultery with

Hester. The novel is still popular today through the message that Hawthorne tries to demonstrate

through the first pages of the book. All the themes are shown through the beginning and held till

the very end. Through the story there are ideas and themes of rebirth of people and things,

cherishing of an object, and the positive outcome to something negative.

Throughout the story there were many things being bought out to the open and to then

becoming something else and coming a new. For example, Hawthorne states ... their earliest

practical necessities to allot a portion of the virgin soil as a cemetery, and the another portion as

the site of a prison (Hawthorne 41). Giving these locations of virgin soil a new meaning by

creating a cemetery and a prison shows a rebirth and meaning to the area. This explains some of

what is behind the rebirth of an object or place, placing something in its place giving it a new

start. On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth,surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and

fantastic of gold thread, appears the letter A (46). The letter showed her in a different light to
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the people of the town. She was not only Hester Prynne she was now the hester Prynne with the

scarlet letter on her bosom, not by choice but was give a new start. Another example of rebirth is

Wilt thou not frown? Wilt thou forgive? I do forgive you, Hester, replied the minister at

length, with deep utterance, out of an abyss of sadness, but no anger( 176). The forgiveness of

the minister has taken some of the shame away of Hester and allowing her to restart. This gives

the idea of rebirth evidence of how through the whole book if not one but most of the characters

have their opportunity to restart. Rebirth was a theme and idea explained in the beginning but

also the idea of the preciousness of an object.

The preciousness of an object or person was another theme and idea through the story.

But on one side of the portal, and rooted almost at the threshold, was a wild rose-bush, covered,

in this month of June, with its delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer their fragrance

and fragile beauty to the prisoner as he went in, and to the condemned criminal as he came forth

to his doom (42). This shows the value of what on beautiful thing can do, bring hope and

pleasure, before something horrific happens. Through the story they speak of the bush many

times, and its due to them cherishing the bush and never letting it die. Mr. Wilsons question,

the child finally announced that she had not been made at all, but had been plucked by her

mother off the bush of wild roses that grew by the prison-door (99). This brings the roses back

from the beginning of the story and how that was beautiful and turned into something that is now

cherished by Hester. The child much like the rose is fragile but also has a negative meaning

behind them. God gave her into my keeping! repeated Hester Prynne, raising her voice

almost to a shrike. I will not give her up! (100). Hester will not give Pearl up because she is

her little Pearl and that is what she cherishes more than anything. The preciousness of Pearl
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keeps the idea of how things are precious through the story. For thee and Pearl, be it as God

shall order, said the minister and GOd is merciful!Let me now do the will which he hath made

plain before my sight. For Hester, I am a dying man. So let me make haste to take my shame

upon me! (228). The minister is trying to save Hester from dying and bring along little Pearl,

saving them and keeping the two things the are precious to him alive while he take all the sin

with him and dies. This shows that the theme of cherishing something was brought through the

whole book, and shows that it can relieve a person from their sins. Through the story the idea of

cherishing something was then turned to an the idea of a positive outcome to something

negative.

A positive outcome to something negative is the idea and theme throughout the entire

story. In accordance with this rule it may safely be assumed that the forefathers somewhere in

the Vicinity of Cornhill, almost as seasonably as the marked the first burial-ground, on Isaac

Johnsons lot, and round about his grave, which subsequently became the nucleus of all the

congregated sepulchres in the old churchyard of Kings Chapel (41). They turned the area of

one persons death and burial ground into a cemetery for all those to be buried. This is positive

because now the single person will not be there alone if not have people coming to visit those

whom they loved. But she named the infant Pearl, as being of great price- purchased with all

she had- her mothers only treasure (79). Hester may have been sentence to wear the scarlet A

on her bosom, but she also received a child, which she loves dearly. The child was a positive

outcome from her act of adultery, which now brings her happiness because god had put little

Pearl in her care. My little Pearl, said he, dear little Pearl, wilt thou kiss me now? Thou

wouldst not, yonder, in the forest! But now thou wilt? (230). The sin that Hester and
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Dimmesdale committed of adultery was now known by the town and even though Dimmesdale

dies he did receive what he was waiting for even though his end was now. Little Pearl kissed

her father and now the knowledge was known by the townspeople, giving Pearl what she wished

to see in the end as well. She wanted for her family to be together and Dimmesdale wanted for

Pearl to accept him. The idea of a positive outcome from a negative thing was held for the

entirety of the story.

Rebirth of a person and object, cherishing an object, and a positive outcome to something

negative where three ideas and themes that one could convey in the first page of this novel.

Through the book we see how Hester cherishes her little Pearl and Dimmesdale cherishes them.

Then how everything changes when something is changed and people start to respond differently

because of the change. And how even though something starts off horrible the outcome may be

what you wanted all along. The novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a story that

from the first words there are many possible themes and ideas that one could convey and see

throughout the story.