No one person is perfect.
No one person is perfect. Mistakes, just like water, are an essential part of life. It's not for our faults that we should be judged; rather it's the way we learn to accept our human nature and change for the better. In Nathaniel Hawthorne's Puritanical novel, The Scarlet Letter, the main character, Hester Prynne, commits an offense of infidelity against her husband, Roger Chillingworth. From then on her secret affair with the Puritan minister will always be on her mind considering the degradation she was subjected to and the infamous letter that will be forever embedded on her bosom and her child Pearl -- the fruit of her sin.
Hester was a woman that was well ahead of her time; she displayed the traits of being courageous while being passionate and independent. An attribute that takes someone to be courageous, passionate and independent is strength, which is required for one to endure. These were traits that were uncommon for a woman to possess during the time when Hawthorne wrote this novel, but even more unusual to find in a woman who was convicted of committing adultery.
Hester Prynne displays her trait of courage and passion when she stands up to Governor Bellingham. Bellingham and his assistants confront her custody of her daughter Pearl because they think it would be better for Pearl to be raised in a more Christian-like household. But Hester, being bold and strong, stands up and responds, "I can teach my little Pearl what I have learned from this," (107) referring to the scarlet letter. Bellingham then follows by indicating that the letter is precisely the reason for wanting Pearl to be removed from her care. This is a remarkable scene, where it is rare to see an aberrant adulterous woman speak up for herself to a person of much higher authority. But, eventually Arthur Dimmesdale, Pearl's unidentified father, preaches on Hester's behalf and persuades Bellingham to permit Hester continue her care.
Early in the novel, Hawthorne explains that Hester was
Hester was a woman that was well ahead of her time; she displayed the traits of being courageous while being passionate and independent. An attribute that takes someone to be courageous, passionate and independent is strength, which is required for one to endure. These were traits that were uncommon for a woman to possess during the time when Hawthorne wrote this novel, but even more unusual to find in a woman who was convicted of committing adultery.
Hester Prynne displays her trait of courage and passion when she stands up to Governor Bellingham. Bellingham and his assistants confront her custody of her daughter Pearl because they think it would be better for Pearl to be raised in a more Christian-like household. But Hester, being bold and strong, stands up and responds, "I can teach my little Pearl what I have learned from this," (107) referring to the scarlet letter. Bellingham then follows by indicating that the letter is precisely the reason for wanting Pearl to be removed from her care. This is a remarkable scene, where it is rare to see an aberrant adulterous woman speak up for herself to a person of much higher authority. But, eventually Arthur Dimmesdale, Pearl's unidentified father, preaches on Hester's behalf and persuades Bellingham to permit Hester continue her care.
Early in the novel, Hawthorne explains that Hester was