The Shunning Of Michael Phelps Michael Phelps, a decorated olympian, was shunned by society in a similar way to how Hester was treated in The Scarlet Letter. Hester was scorned for committing adultery and was required to wear the scarlet letter upon her bosom. Michael Phelps was ostracised by society after having been arrested for two DUIs as well as being photographed smoking marijuana. Hester and Phelps were shunned by society because of the choices they made, but both redeemed themselves by dealing with the consequences produced by their choices and taking steps to overcome their mistakes. This is not uncommon in today’s world as many of our “role models” have not made the best decisions in their lives and because of their actions, they were …show more content…
The judge of the trial said, “Phelps is powerless over alcohol”(Michoces). Phelps’ rapid embrace of treatment was taken into consideration when the judge decided his punishment. At first, Phelps was sentenced to up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine for his actions. His driver’s license was suspended for six months. The Judge’s final decision was to suspend Phelps’ sentence in lieu of 18 months of supervised probation. Phelps was prohibited from having any alcohol intake while under probation. Phelps’ attorney believed that he was eager to embrace counseling and would continue to train for the 2016 Olympics (Michoces) (Zaccardi) (Walker).
Due to Phelps’ choices, he faced some consequences. For example, one of his biggest sponsors, Kellogg Co. decide to drop him as one of their celebrity spokesmen (“Pleads”). Phelps was also suspended from swimming with USA Swim for six months. While Phelps was on probation, he was supervised by the State of Maryland’s Drinking Driving Monitor Program. Phelps continued to receive treatment and counseling. Phelps was quoted saying, "The last three months of my life have been some of the hardest times I've ever gone