Heroism Within Scarlet Letter

Heroes are the main characters of every aspect of peoples lives. They can be seen in media, in fictional stories, and in everyday lives. A prime example of another hero readers see is within The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, which is a novel in which heroism is found in the shamed. Shunned and heroic people are almost never one of the same. Usually, it is one against the other. Even so, Hester, through her shame and rejection, is named a hero. Hester is originally portrayed as a scapegoat and later becomes a hero, which is shown through how the bearer of the scarlet letter is treated throughout the book, the stereotypical plotline of a hero's journey, and the connection between other heroes and Hester.

Over the course of the book, Hester has immense guilt and shame placed upon her, much of which she does not deserve. When Hester makes her first appearance, she is seen walking out of a prison. The information that the reader is given concludes Hester has committed a crime and must be publicly shamed for committing it. This is characterized through Hester gripping her child tightly to her chest, not so much by an impulse of motherly affection, as that she might thereby conceal a certain token (Hawthorne 55). The fact that a mother would grip her child so tightly, just to conceal the guilt placed upon her, shows how her being blamed has an effect on her relationships with other people. Walking out of a prison immediately relates Hester to being an outcast, as prison is societys most obvious way of shunning. The witnesses of Hester Prynnes disgrace had not yet passed beyond simplicity (Hawthorne 59), each ignoring her and actively treating her with complete biased disrespect. This is the beginning of her shunning, leading up to the beginning of her heroic story. Hester being an outcast is proved in many different ways, but the physical description of the townspeople, which is mentioned above, is the strongest evidence. Her being an outcast pushes her to the edge of town, and towards the edge of her newest story.

Hester is also characterized as a hero through the stereotypical arc and backstory. A hero can be defined as many things and in many ways. A quote from Joseph Campbell from A Hero With a Thousand Faces states, A hero is any male or female who leaves the world of his or her everyday life to undergo a journey to a special world where challenges and fears are overcome in order to secure a quest, which is then shared with other members of the hero's community(Campbell). Following this definition, a hero needs to leave their original home, go on a journey, face challenges and fears with others in the community and secure a sort of reward. Hester comes to Boston, Massachusetts from her original daily life; commits adultery, causing her to go on a quest of redemption; face the challenges of social exile, being a single mother and guilt; she then overcomes all this and is reward by having all her crimes forgiven by the community. All this can be shown through multiple examples, but the main point for a hero is the challenge: While its comparative remoteness put it out of the sphere of that social activity. In this little, lonesome dwelling, with some slender means that she possessed, and by the license of the magistrates, who still kept an inquisitorial watch over her, Hester established herself, with her infant child (Hawthorne 84.) This quote well portrays some main challenges that she must face, from social exile to taking care of the child and supporting her. This furthermore proves Hester is indeed a hero following a hero's journey.

Heroes are not a new concept; they have been around forever. For every hero, there is a symbol: for Superman, his symbol is an S; for Wonder Woman, two Ws stacked upon one another; and for Robin, an R. All of these vary but are a symbol of their story and who they are. Hester has a symbol as well. It starts off symbolizing adulterer and was only considered a mark of sin. As the years pass, it comes to have a different meaning: Such helpfulness was found in her so much power to do, and power to sympathize that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a womans strength (Hawthorne 168). Adultery and able have two very different meanings, but through this, Hester is becoming portrayed more as a hero, helping the sickly and the poor. Hesters acts are so kind-hearted the townsfolk start praising her in front of outsiders, instead of spreading horrible rumors and whispering words of disgust about her. This resembles the mistake of how Supermans S means hope, but everyone thinks it means super. The new meaning of her letter adds to her being a hero throughout the story, giving her a mark to be known by. Pearl only knows her mother with the mark on her chest, never knowing what it meant, but that it was how she identified her. This is proven when Hester cast off her letter, and her daughter doesnt recognize her. She [takes] up the scarlet letter, and fastened it again into her bosom . Dost thou know thy mother now, child?. Yes; now I will! answered the child, bounding across the brook, and clasping Hester in her arms. Now thou art my mother indeed! And I am thy little Pearl! (Hawthorne 220-221). The letter became her reputation, her secret identity, and without her wearing the letter, no one knew who she was. Therefore, Hesters scarlet letter was her heroic symbol, furthermore making her a hero.

It can be seen throughout the entirety of the text that Hester was simply a scapegoat for all the blame to be placed on, but through overcoming challenges, and having a new meaning for her symbol, she became a hero. She is easily compared to an arc of the stereotypical hero and can be used as an example for future reference as a hero herself. She overcomes the entire storyline of the novel after her transgressions. If Hester can overcome shame, guilt, social exile, and still become a hero, whos to say what is possible?

Works Cited

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Pantheon Books, 1949.

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