Scarlet Letter #1

1) "'The Reverend Dimmesdale, her godly pastor, takes it very grievously to heart that such a scandal should have come upon his congregation'" (Hawthorne 49).

After this reading, I bet Reverend Dimmesdale is the father. It may be still too early to say, but all of the facts thus far point to the Reverend. A goodwife of Boston points out that the Reverend took her sin very seriously. Yes, adultery is a severe sin, as it breaks one of the commandments, but the goodwife did not just say that it concerned him. She says that he took "'it very grievously to heart'"(49). This seems like a clever ploy on Hawthorne's part of sharing the Reverend's feelings on the matter. When someone takes something to heart, it usually connotes them experiencing it as if it were their own. Why else would it matter so much to the Reverend if he were not the father? Yes, one can say that he is just carrying out his pastoral duties, but that was not the feeling I got. The way the goodwife worded her statement made it sound like we are to imply that the Reverend is the father. Not to mention, going a bit outside the book to its back cover, the only three characters mentioned are Hester, Chillingworth, and the Reverend, whom is described as fiery and tortured. Why else would a reverend be fiery and tortured if he did not sire a child in adultery?

2) "But the point which drew all eyes, and, as it were, transfigured the wearer,...was that SCARLET LETTER, so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom. It had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself" (51).

Hester is very ostentatious in the publicity of her sin. The way it was described in the book made it seem like she made the A herself. She was the one who stitched it and sowed it into her garments. I may have interpreted it wrong, but that is what is sounded like. In that case, Hester is readily willing to flaunt her sin so that the whole town may know of it. Even if she did not make it herself, then the effect still stands. She is separated from society because of the A. It catches people's attention and causes them to look at her. Then they know exactly what she did. It is a rather effective form of capital punishment, as it must be punishment enough to think of what others may be thinking about you, let alone what you think about yourself. Somehow, though, the story of Mary Magdalene(I believe it is) comes to mind, the story in which Jesus says, "Let he who is without sin cast the first time." Are these people so without sin that they can readily ostracize another, simply because her sin was made public. Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future, so why should they do this without making sure they are not pure themselves? That idea is probably pointless, as it can easily be countered with the fact that these were Puritanical people, and they were all uptight prunes. In the case of John Proctor compared with Hester, Proctor kept his sin quiet whereas Hester flaunted it.