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Scarlet Letter

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In the Scarlet Letter Hester Prynne is the protagonist. She expresses a multitude of qualities in her character that an audience could find admirable or disdainful, depending on how looked at. Within the colonial Puritan period and culture she lived in, it was normal and easy to harshly react to Hester’s situation. She may not have been a heroine in the eyes of her people, but she still embodies a beautiful, strong, and confident woman. Hester Prynne has the capability of being a heroine in The Scarlet Letter by dealing with her circumstances in a mature nature, being remorseful, and still loving the world as a whole. Hester Prynne is a woman that obviously made a mistake that resulted in a public awareness. It is easy for an individual to hide mistakes or sins committed, but it takes a very strong individual to embrace it and learn from it. Hester responsibly confronts her situation in a mature nature. Any other woman could have simply fled from such an unforgiving place. “She is my happiness!, She is my torture, none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life Pearl punishes me too!” (Hawthorne 101) Hester committed the sin of adultery and in that a living product resulted. It is very admirable to see that while Pearl, Hester’s daughter, reminds her every day of what she did, Hester realizes that she must love her child and take responsibility for her actions. Another remarkable trait that Hester embodies is that she shows an utterly remorseful side to her circumstances. She is confident in that the way the public treats her, hurts her mentally every day, but Hester is sorry. Hester showing this great repentance for her sin has the ability to teach and comfort others. “Hester heaved a long, deep sigh, in which the burden of shame and anguish departed from her spirit… She had not known the weight until she felt the freedom” (Hawthorne 186). An individual must

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