Hawthorne: The Unpardonable Sin Nathaniel Term Paper

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There are several women in the crowd who turn out to see her public humiliation that feel Hester should have been punished with death, instead of the letter on her chest. As time goes on, some of the townspeople start to realize that Hester really is a good person, and while she may have sinned, she is not the only one to ever have done so. In one instance, when Hester first begins to see that some people may have sympathy toward her, Hawthorne says "But sometimes, once in many days, or perchance in many months, she felt an eye -- a human eye -- upon the ignominious brand, that seemed to give a momentary relief, as if half of her agony were shared" (Hawthorne, p. 1293).

In this passage, Hawthorne is not only showing that people had sympathy for Hester, but that she had sympathy for them. If the agony is shared, than the feeling of sympathy must come from both of the participants who share in the experience, not just one. Another thing shown in this passage is that while some of the people had sympathy for her, it was sometimes because they knew they had committed the same sin, and yet had not been caught. This passage, taken with the surrounding text, shows many people living in fear of their secret sins, and seeing in Hester what could have happened to them (McCullen & Guilds, 1960). This causes them to have sympathy for her, since they are fully aware of the consequences of the sins they have committed. Another passage that shows sympathy, but of a different sort, is when Hester's daughter, Pearl, finally develops an understanding of sympathy, love and compassion. This happens when Arthur Dimmesdale, the local minister, finally admits to the whole town that Pearl is his child.

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He is dying, and after his admission he collapses. Before he dies, he asks Pearl to give him a kiss. Of this tragic scene, Hawthorne writes:

Pearl kissed his lips. A spell was broken. The great scene of grief, in which the wild infant bore a part, had developed all her sympathies; and as her tears fell upon her father's cheek, they were the pledge that she would grow up amid human joy and sorrow, nor for ever do battle with the world, but be a woman in it (Hawthorne, p. 1382).

This was the first time little Pearl had shown any sympathy for anyone, and because she loved her father, even though she didn't know him long, she realized what great suffering he and her mother went through to keep the secret of their affair. Ultimately, the affair and the guilt of it is what destroyed the minister and sent him to an early grave. Pearl grew up to be rich as well as caring, kind and generous. These were not traits she displayed as a child, and most certainly would not have been acquired were it not for some life changing experience such as the death of her father after his confession of guilt (McCullen & Guilds, 1960). The sympathy developed by Pearl is probably the most significant of the sympathies mentioned in the book. The townspeople came to realize that Pearl was the product of great love, but also of great sorrow. Pearl realized this as well, which is what made her into the wonderful, considerate and sympathetic person she became, allowing Hawthorne to bring his main theme full-circle......

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