The Scarlet Letter Blog 7: Psychological Toll

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As the loosely moraled novel “The Scarlet Letter” begins to draw to a close, we see the harsh reality of the sins committed by Hester and Dimmesdale and how hard it hit them. When Dimmesdale comes to the time of his death, Hester asks if they will meet again in heaven and he rejects the idea, saying they need to pay for what they have done. Something which, happens a lot more commonly nowadays. It says a lot about not only how time was then, but also how it is now. Hester was forced to stand on a stage in front of the town to be shunned for hours. The was seen at the women of sin, having a child with a man she is not married too. Things are different now, gratefully, society does not publically shun the personal life of other people. But what I wondered was the psychological effect that having a child with, according to society is “the wrong person” does to someone. Many changes have happened over time in terms of humanity, but I believe has to be some type of emotional scar that stays behind. The idea that people make you believe you made a mistake, and this is what brings people to believe the idea that they are going to hell.

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