the scarlet letter
The scarlet letter is the central symbol of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, a physical token of shame and sin that evolves into a complex emblem of identity, social ostracism, and personal transformation. Initially imposed as a punishment for adultery, the letter A—embroidered in fine red cloth with gold thread—becomes the defining mark of Hester Prynne's public identity, a source of constant torment, and ultimately a sign of her strength, compassion, and unique place within her community. Its meaning shifts throughout the narrative, reflecting the changing perceptions of the wearer and the society that condemns her.
Origin and Physical Description
The scarlet letter first appears in the novel as a material object discovered by the narrator in the Custom-House. It is described as "a certain affair of fine red cloth, much worn and faded," with traces of gold embroidery that are "greatly frayed and defaced." The narrator notes that it was "wrought, as was easy to perceive, with wonderful skill of needlework," employing a stitch that represents "a now forgotten art." Upon careful examination, the rag of scarlet cloth assumes the shape of the capital letter A, each limb measuring precisely three inches and a quarter in length. When the narrator places it on his breast, he experiences a sensation "not altogether physical, yet almost so, as of burning heat, and as if the letter were not of red cloth, but red-hot iron." This visceral reaction foreshadows the intense psychological and emotional weight the letter will carry for its wearer.
Hester's Public Shame and the Scaffold
When Hester Prynne first emerges from the prison, the scarlet letter is the focal point of her public shaming. It is described as being "so artistically done, and with so much fertility and gorgeous luxuriance of fancy, that it had all the effect of a last and fitting decoration to the apparel which she wore." The letter, "fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom," has the effect of a spell, "taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself." The crowd's reaction is immediate and harsh; one woman remarks that Hester has "contrived such a way of showing it" as to "make a pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for a punishment." The letter becomes the object of universal gaze, and Hester feels "the heavy weight of a thousand unrelenting eyes, all fastened upon her, and concentrated at her bosom." The Reverend John Wilson, in his discourse on sin, dwells on the symbol so forcibly that it "assumed new terrors in their imagination, and seemed to derive its scarlet hue from the flames of the infernal pit."
Daily Torture and Social Isolation
After her release from prison, the scarlet letter becomes a daily burden. Hester feels that the sunshine, "falling on all alike, seemed, to her sick and morbid heart, as if meant for no other purpose than to reveal the scarlet letter on her breast." The letter is a constant source of anguish; she feels "the innumerable throbs of anguish that had been so cunningly contrived for her by the undying, the ever-active sentence of the Puritan tribunal." The gaze of strangers "branded it afresh in Hester's soul," and even the familiar stare of an accustomed eye inflicts its own torture. The letter never grows callous; instead, it becomes "more sensitive with daily torture." Hester's needlework, the very skill that produced the letter, becomes her means of survival, but the letter remains a barrier between her and society. The townspeople begin to interpret the scarlet A not only as a mark of sin but also as a symbol of her many good deeds, saying it means "Abel," so strong is Hester Prynne with a woman's strength. Yet even as public perception softens, the letter continues to sear her breast, and she feels that "the scarlet letter had not done its office."
Transformation and the Forest
The scarlet letter's power is most dramatically challenged in the forest scene. When Hester removes the letter and throws it "to a distance among the withered leaves," she experiences an "exquisite relief," feeling the burden of shame and anguish depart from her spirit. With the stigma gone, her beauty and youth return, and the sunshine bursts forth. However, this freedom is temporary. When Pearl refuses to cross the brook until her mother resumes the letter, Hester must take it up again, and as she fastens it to her bosom, "there was a sense of inevitable doom upon her." The letter's return brings back the gray shadow of her former self, and her beauty departs "like fading sunshine." This episode underscores the inescapable nature of the symbol and its deep integration with Hester's identity.
The Revelation and Dimmesdale's Stigma
The scarlet letter's ultimate revelation occurs on the scaffold, where Arthur Dimmesdale tears away his ministerial band to reveal a mark on his own breast. The narrator states that "most of the spectators testified to having seen, on the breast of the unhappy minister, a SCARLET LETTER—the very semblance of that worn by Hester Prynne—imprinted in the flesh." The origin of this mark is left ambiguous, with some attributing it to self-inflicted penance, others to Roger Chillingworth's necromancy, and still others to "the ever-active tooth of remorse, gnawing from the inmost heart outwardly." This revelation confirms the shared guilt and secret bond between Hester and Dimmesdale, and it transforms the public understanding of the scarlet letter from a singular mark of shame to a universal symbol of hidden sin. Dimmesdale himself declares that Hester's scarlet letter "is but the shadow of what he bears on his own breast."
Hester's Return and Final Significance
After Dimmesdale's death and a period of absence, Hester Prynne returns to New England and resumes the scarlet letter of her own free will. The narrator notes that "never afterwards did it quit her bosom." In the later years of her life, the letter ceases to be a stigma and becomes "a type of something to be sorrowed over, and looked upon with awe, yet with reverence too." People bring their sorrows and perplexities to Hester, seeking her counsel, and she becomes a source of comfort and wisdom. The letter, once a symbol of sin and shame, is transformed into a mark of her experience and compassion. The novel concludes with the image of a tombstone bearing a device: "ON A FIELD, SABLE, THE LETTER A, GULES." This final heraldic representation of the scarlet letter, on a black field with a red letter, encapsulates the enduring and ambiguous legacy of the symbol—a mark of both suffering and identity, shame and honor, punishment and redemption.
