The Presence and Relevance of Guilt and Human Affairs in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter Essay Sample

Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter​​ is a constant reminder of human guilt and its effects on the mind and body. In order to properly assess its role in human affairs, the definition of guilt must be properly understood. According to Psychology Today, “Guilt is aversive and—like shame, embarrassment, or pride—has been described as a self-conscious emotion, involving reflection on oneself. People may feel guilt for a variety of reasons, including acts they have committed (or think that they committed), a failure to do something they should have done, or thoughts that they think are morally wrong.” From this definition and upon reading The Scarlet Letter, it is extremely clear that one character in particular is portraying an abundance of guilt, Reverend Dimmesdale. While his character will be examined in further detail later on, there is an evident undertone that Hawthorne’s novel is a commentary on religious guilt and its effects on human affairs. In this essay, this theme will be further explored through the characters of Reverend Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne.

The ethos of the novel is a strict Puritan settlement in the Massachusetts Bay Colony around the mid 1600s. In accordance with Puritan laws, those who had broken their strict religious code were punished not only harshly, but publicly. This is shown in the second chapter of The Scarlet Letter when the text states “The very ideal of ignominy was embodied and made manifest in this contrivance of wood and iron. There can be no outrage, methinks, against our common nature—whatever be the delinquencies of the individual—no outrage more flagrant than to forbid the culprit to hide his face for shame; as it was the essence of this punishment to do.” As a result the protagonist, Hester Prynne, is put upon a scaffold and made to have the letter A sewn on her gown as her punishment when she is found guilty of adultery. The text describes the scaffold “...as effectual an agent, in the promotion of good citizenship, as ever was the guillotine among the terrorists of France.” This enforces the idea of the Puritans using punishment as a way to “scare” the citizens into good behavior. The idea of punishment is also shown to be effective on the one being punished as the text states [in regards to Hester Prynne] “She clutched the child so fiercely to her breast that it sent forth a cry; she turned her eyes downward at the scarlet letter, and even touched it with her finger, to assure herself that the infant and the shame were real.” 

Through this new understanding of the Puritans' use of punishment and fear as a means to keep society in order, it is therefore easier to see how it can enforce guilt upon those involved in a sin who have not been punished. Especially when another person involved in that sin has been punished for it. As stated earlier on, in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter this guilt is the most visible in Reverend Dimmesdale. His guilt manifests itself throughout not only his mental, but physical wellbeing. This is shown when the text states “A bodily disease, which we look upon as whole and entire within itself, may, after all, be but a symptom of some ailment in the spiritual part.” This spiritual illness is representative of Dimmesdale’s guilt of only Hester being punished for their joint crime of adultery. His guilt is only furthered by the fact he is a Minister and must preach against sins such as adultery. He professes his gnawing guilt to Hester, who is possibly the only one who can somewhat sympathize with him, when he states “Happy are you, Hester, that wear the scarlet letter openly upon your bosom! Mine burns in secret! Thou little knowest what a relief it is, after the torment of a seven years’ cheat, to look into an eye that recognizes me for what I am!” In this sentence he is clearly frustrated that he has to suffer with the immense guilt of his sin in private in order to protect himself and his reputation from being tarnished. The novel also states “The judgment of God is on me, answered the conscience-stricken priest. It is too mighty for me to struggle with!” From this statement a conclusion can be drawn that it isn't the actual sin that causes Dimmesdale's overwhelming amount of guilt, but rather the consequences of it in the eyes of God. 

On the other hand, there is Hester Prynne, the protagonist who received great punishment for her and Dimmesdale’s sin. Despite being the actual receiver of these disgraces, she holds a lesser amount of guilt than he and becomes a somewhat better person as a result of the experience. Unlike Dimmesdale, Hester is clearly exposed as a perpetrator of adultery. This is  as a result of her bearing a child while her husband has been away for a long time. Therefore, not only is she immediately punished for this and forced to go to the scaffold, but she is also forced to wear the letter A on her dress. However, unlike Dimmesdaleshe shows strength and tries to use this experience as a way for her to move forward and improve not only her own life, but also her daughter, Pearl’s life. There is a clear imagery of this  given when the text states on page 160 “hath taught me [...] lessons where of my child may be wiser and better". From this quote, in which she is defending her right to raise Pearl despite her sin, we are shown that Hester is using her guilt from this sin to teach Pearl not to do the same and as a result better the lives of her child. The text also states  “The tendency of her fate and fortunes had been to set her free. The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread.” This once again shows how instead of using her sin as a means to allow her life to run by her, Hester is using it to her advantage in order to make her and her daughters’ lives better. The most important and impactful example of Hester’s growth from the experience of her sin is undoubtedly shown in the last chapter when the text states “But . . . the scarlet letter ceased to be a stigma which attracted the world’s scorn and bitterness, and became a type of something to be sorrowed over, and looked upon with awe, and yet with reverence, too.” This shows that although at first used as an example of shame and what not to do, the Scarlet Letter had become an example of redemption and to a certain extent reconciliation through Hester making it a part of her journey of identity. As a result it can be seen that Hester used her guilt to make amends to her life.

Despite this book being set in the 1600s, the theme of guilt, especially religious guilt, is still felt today within many people. As a result, many people find great relatability, whether admitted or not, within these characters and their means of handling guilt. It can therefore be drawn then that Hawthorne created an excellent analysis of human guilt through The Scarlet Letter and in the opposite ways in which Dimmesdale and Hester react towards the guilt from their sin. These ways were that guilt can do one of two things to human affairs, ruin one's view of the world, like it did to Dimmesdale, or help build someone into a stronger, wiser person, like it did to Hester.