"The Scarlet Letter", by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is characterized by
three major events that occur on the town scaffold. What takes place on
this platform will determine the path which the three main characters,
Hester Prynne, Mr. Dimmsdale, and their daughter Pearl will follow. The
three scenes mark the beginning, middle, and end of their ignominy.
The scaffold is a platform where criminals are punished before all
the townspeople. In this case, the criminal is Hester Prynne and the crowd
has gathered to witness her shame. The first scene at the ominous platform
is Hester's first public appearance with the child and the scarlet letter.
Hester's husband, Roger Prynne (Chillingworth) makes a sudden reappearance
and is among the onlookers. The Reverend Mr. Dimmsdale is also there but
he does not stand with Hester on the scaffold, instead he stands on the
balcony with those who pass judgment on her.
The Scarlet Letter (1860) by T. H. Matteson. Oil o...
English: Hester Prynne & Pearl before the stocks
This is the title page for the first edition of Th...During this time, Reverend Mr. Wilson demands that Hester give the
name of her lover. He gives her the chance to "take the scarlet letter off
[her] breast" if she were to "speak out his name"(64). Had she relented
and revealed his name she might never have had to endure the humiliation of
the scarlet letter. But she refused, and so her path was set.
The second time at the scaffold was a turning point for Hester.
She, Pearl, and Dimmsdale are together for the first time, "...the three
formed an electric chain" as if they were always meant to be together if
something, or someone, had not gotten in their way (140). But it is here
that Hester finally realizes the damage which hiding Chillingworth's
identity has caused Dimmsdale. Chillingworth was "a secret
enemy...continually at his side, under the semblance of a friend and
helper..." when...