Scarlet letter blog 9

The Scarlet letter is a book that is filled with enriching historical reference. The book portrays the life of an adulterer in the 1800’s. The consequences that Hester had to live with on a daily basis are very different than the consequences that an adulterer has in today’s society. Some differences that occur between Hester’s time period in the 19th Century and today’s society in the 21st Century are the expectations within the town and family about marriage commitment, the frequency of broken marriages and adultery, and the affliction and punishment of adultery. The Scarlet Letter is important for kids to read today because it takes Hester adultery, a real life issue that people face today, and shows us how we as a country used to respond to the issue in a different time period. The book is also good because it includes in the book some of Hester’s thoughts and gives the readers a pretty good idea of what Hester might felt. All of these qualities of the book help argue that The Scarlet Letter is in fact a classic. A classic book must maintain its popularity over time, it must contain applicable situations, and timeless truths. The Scarlet Letter is considered a classic because it was written so long ago and is still relevant today.

In the 19th Century the family atmosphere was valued much higher. The sense of community was a big part of what differentiates today from our past. A big influence in 19th Century towns was the commitment to the church, nearly everyone attended church. The church set and enforced the rules, so the citizens were expected to live according to what the bible says. The bible says “do not commit adultery” so it was a very rare to see adultery in the 19th Century. Although family has taken a toll in today’s society and is not as important as it used to be, family is still something that people grasp today.

Another thing that separates our time period from that of Hester’s time is the consequences of sins. In Hester’s time period people were shunned from the church if they did something really bad. Because the church was such a large part of the community if you were shunned from the church, it was a big deal and everyone in town knew. Today the act of committing adultery is much more common. In some places people don’t even give it a second thought. It is really sad to think that our nation has gotten so accustom to sin that we don’t even think twice about it. By reading The Scarlet Letter it can put the sin of adultery back into perspective and give its readers a glimpse into our past as a country.

The book The Scarlet Letter is the story of Hester Prynne, who was sent to the new world to wait for her husband, Mr. Chillingworth, to come along later. After years of waiting, Hester assumed that her husband had died at sea. Hester fell in love with the town minister, Mr. Dimmesdale, and had a sex with him. The Scarlet Letter talks about the trial, consequences, and feelings that Hester had after she became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter Pearl out of wedlock. During Hester’s trail her husband came to town but disguised himself as a doctor. He found is in search of the man that Hester, his wife, had sex with because he wants to get revenge. The story talks about the feelings that each character has throughout the story as well as the consequences of each character’s decisions. The affliction that Hester goes through is so much harsher than anything that people in today’s society go through today. The Scarlet Letter is a sometimes hard to read, because it is so descriptive, but it is a really good read because it gives its readers a perspective of where our country has come over the last two thousand years.