Kevin McAdam
AP English 11/ Mr. George
2/24/10
Scarlet Letter Essay

Public vs. Private

Redemption and the methods utilized to attain such redemption were the driving themes of both The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter. Characters from both novels were forced to make decisions on whether to acknowledge their sins of adultery publicly or privately. Furthermore, the choices they made great affected their outcome in the novels. After witnessing the results of the choices made by characters in both novels, the decision to bear one’s sins publicly was a superior alternative to confessing either privately or to disregard one’s sins altogether.

Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter is an obvious demonstration of a character who displayed her sins in front of a public audience. Hester was bound by her circumstance to present her sins publicly. Through her pregnancy, Hester was given an immediate burden that she was forced display throughout the town. On top of bearing a child as punishment for her sin, she was given the scarlet A, which afflicted her with feelings of immense shame that she could not ignore. Hester’s punishment gradually diminished her dignity as a human being because it tainted people’s opinions of her based on hasty generalizations: “From first to last, in short, Hester Prynne had always this dreadful agony in feeling a human eye upon the token; the spot never grew callous; it seemed, on the contrary, to grow more sensitive with daily torture” (Hawthorne 79). Publicly confessing her sins alienated her from society and left her by herself. This allowed her to reflect on her actions and realize the severity of what she had done, eventually making her a better person. Hester’s perseverance through adversity granted her the mental fortitude to understand and accept the consequences of her wrongdoings. Hester’s resolve and commitment to self- improvement allowed her to mold the scarlet A into a motivational asset. Hester’s ignominy appeared overwhelming and gave the impression of public demonstration of her sins as a bad decision.

In the debate of whether it is better to display one’s sins publicly or privately, close examination of each character’s final outcome is necessary to make an accurate conclusion. In Hester’s case, it was the public admission of her sins that allowed her to eventually regain acceptance into society and feel the sense redemption that she had been longing for. Hester went through extreme criticism and emotional agony on her journey for redemption, but it was worth the pain for her to become a better person in the end. Hester turned her sin into a tool for development and eventually the meaning of the A turned from “adulterer” to “able.” The detachment of the scarlet A from Hester’s chest was freedom. Freedom so strongly desired it was like removing the ball and chain off of a prisoner’s ankle. It was freedom that she had earned through physical charity in the community with her beautiful craftsmanship and through internal reflection. Although she had no choice in the matter, Hester’s public admittance of her sins eventually cleansed her of all that had transpired, not only in the eyes of the townspeople, but through Hester’s eyes as well. Hester went through the purest and most open form of repentance, allowing her to feel full redemption when the time came. Such a feeling could not be had through privacy because it deals with deceiving society and takes away from being fully merciful for one’s actions.

Obviously, there were several characters in both novels who were involved with the sin of adultery. One thing that can be said of these sinners is that they all acknowledged there sin in some way, with the one exception being Abigail Williams. In contrast to a character such as Hester, who put her sins on display in front of the entire town, Abigail Williams from The Crucible chose to ignore her adulterous mistakes completely. As a result, her outcome was far different from Hester’s. There are so many other things wrong with Abigail’s moral process that the fact that she ignores her sin is somewhat understated, but that is probably the way she would like it. As the novel shows, Abigail becomes consumed by her own power and is only motivated by the threat of death. In reflecting on this fact, Abigail did not have any desire to punish herself and feel shameful the way other characters did. Abigail was unique in that she was not motivated to reflect on any feelings of guilt or be interested in public redemption. It is not surprising that Abigail does not feel she has done wrong because of the way she manipulated others and sent others to their deaths to save herself. Her complete lack of morals liberated her from feeling any remorse for her actions. In addition to ignoring her sins and disregard the welfare of John Proctor, she retreated from her problems out of cowardice. In the end, because Abigail made no attempts to achieve reconciliation for her sins, the outcome the reader witnesses about seems fitting.

Abigail Williams’ end in the story is not surprising to the reader based on the decisions she made along the way. Abigail’s life in Boston is very similar to the way Abigail spent her time in Salem: “The legend has it that Abigail turned up later as a prostitute in Boston” (Miller 146). It is not a glamorous or desirable way to live, but she does whatever she needs to survive, just like she did during the witch trials. Perhaps if Abigail had admitted her sins before the witch trials had begun, she would have gone through a period of self- reflection and not acted so inappropriately. The way Abigail dealt with her sins, along with how she ended in the story, clearly display strong opposition to any defense of ignoring one’s sins instead of confronting them straight forward.

One of the most complex characters in both novels was John Proctor because of the distinctive way he concealed the truth about his sins, yet ultimately gained redemption. The reader observes Proctor as a somewhat reclusive character who does not stand out much at the beginning of The Crucible until we find out about his past with Abigail. We see he does not attempt to bring his sins into the open and deals with them through private methods. Proctor is constantly lured back by Abigail and Proctor struggles to resist the temptation as Ms. Williams once stated, “Do you tell me you’ve never looked up at my window?” (23). Throughout the novel, Proctor suppressed his sins because he feels he cannot be forgiven. He avoids attending church because of constant reminder of what he did. Proctor’s inability to act on his internal feelings causes him great distress as he is often conflicted with decisions he makes. Once again, it is a character’s lack of admission to their mistakes that keeps them from redemption.

In the case of Proctor however, his true colors become apparent before his death. He admits his mistake and gains his redemption that he struggled to obtain. There were many factors that went into his confession besides feelings of guilt however. For instance, the life Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth, was at stake and Proctor had the opportunity to display Abigail’s flaws also. The reader definitely views a drastic change in Proctor as the novel unfolds and his longing for redemption is revealed. However, Proctor’s methods for gaining redemption change along with his character. At the end of the novel, Proctor’s public display of his sins leaves him cleansed of all that he had done. After all the internal pain he had gone through, Proctor’s liberation upon death came from publicly admitting his sins, further proving that openness is the only way to be truly clean.

The final character examined is Reverend Dimmesdale from The Scarlet Letter, and his complex decisions regarding publicity and privacy bring up many elements for debate. Before Dimmesdale even committed the sin of adultery, he was looked upon by the town as its most noble subject as he, “was considered by his more fervent admirers as little less than a heaven-ordained apostle, destined… to do great deeds for the now feeble New England Church” (109). Any fault by him would mean disaster for the faith of all the citizens. Being in such a stressful position, Dimmesdale felt immense shame for his actions and knew what would happen if he revealed what he had done. Instead, he decided to punish himself privately in contrast to his paramour’s public consequence. By administering his own punishment without the people knowing, Dimmesdale attempted to find redemption, but his guilt was so great that he could hardly bear it. He not only felt guilty for his actions, but for leaving Hester to fend for herself. To compensate for his guilt, Dimmesdale physically punished himself by what was supposedly a branded A on his chest and changes in his appearance because of stress and anxiety. The emotional toll that keeping his secret hidden took on Dimmesdale was far greater than that of Hester, and his end was far worse also.

For Dimmesdale, after everything he put himself through, the one thing he desired most of all was redemption, and he could only get it by publicly confessing his sins. The mental, emotional, and physical torment that consumed seven years of Dimmesdale’s life was ended with one speech atop a scaffold. Like Proctor, he tried to keep his sins quiet and find his own personal redemption, but after personal reflection, the two men realized that a public confession was necessary for their desired feelings of salvation. However, Dimmesdale quest for redemption is more virtuous and true because he was compelled to by his conscience. On the other hand, Proctor had outside forces that influenced him to confess. In the end, the ultimate goal of redemption was reached by both men, only after they admitted their sins publicly.

A common theme found among the characters who publicly admitted their sins was that they all found some sort of peace, whether they lived or died. We all search for peace within ourselves for our whole lives, and if the characters involved with public admission found peace, then the decision to open themselves up is definitely superior to any alternative.





















Works Cited

· Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Bantam, 1850.

· Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York: Penguin, 1976.