The Scarlet Letter Blog 3

“Throughout them all, giving up her individuality, she would become the general symbol at which the preacher and the moralist might point, and in which they might vivify and embody their images of woman’s frailty and sinful passion.” In order to fully understand “throughout them all” some background information is needed. In the sentence leading in to this one, Hawthorn talks about the toil, burden, misery, and shame that Hester is dealing with as a result of her consequences. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester, the main character, is put on trial for having a baby with someone that she is not married to. Although this action is frowned upon in today’s culture, having sex with someone who is not your husband was treated very harshly in the 1850’s. Hester’s actions became a disgrace to the whole community. The members of the church and community shunned Hester for her poor decisions. As a result Hester had a scarlet letter placed on her chest announcing that she had participated in sex outside of her marriage. The sentence, “throughout them all...,” comes from Hester’s perspective which talks about the disgrace, separation, and shame that Hester feels. The consequences and effects of Hester’s punishment, to have a scarlet letter on her chest, has scared Hester for life.
One of the things that struck me about this sentence was the fact that Hester became the symbol of “woman’s frailty and sinful passion.” This is really hard on Hester. I can’t imagine having all of that weight put on me. The guilt that Hester had placed on her was constantly brought to her attention. I am glad that things have changed throughout the years. Today we are given another chance. If I were punished for every little thing that I did wrong, with the intensity of the 1850’s, I would struggle greatly.