Darkness Within - Human Nature in Nathaniel Hawthorne's the Scarlet Letter

Darkness Within:

Human Nature in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Since the dim beginnings of civilization, an omnipresent struggle between "good" and "evil" has emerged among human society. Rarely manifesting complete physical form, this struggle often takes place internally, wracking the human mind with doubt and confusion. The encompassing nature of this struggle has prompted many philosophers to pose the question: is this conflict man's inherent goodness battling the influence of outer evils, or are good deeds done in spite of man's natural predisposition to sin?

In his novel, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne discusses this intriguing question through his characters. Hester Prynne, an adulteress, refuses to reveal the identity of the father of her child, Pearl. She saves him from a likely death sentence by doing so, instead bearing the humiliation alone and wearing a bright red "A" on her dress, always visible to the public's scathing eyes. The Reverend Mr. Arthur Dimmesdale is her fellow lecher, and throughout the novel he is torn by his desire to do the right thing by confessing his crime and his overwhelming fear of the consequences thereof. Pearl meanwhile grows into a wild, impetuous, and irreverent child, lacking tutelage in Christian ethics and values which are standard in a young Puritan. Roger Chillingworth, the alias of Hester's disguised husband, is consumed by his hatred of her lover, and undertakes an obsessive quest to discover the identity of the adulterer and work his revenge. Chillingworth is foiled in this venture when Dimmesdale reveals that he was the culprit, just before the minister was to escape by boat with Hester, and dies. With his life's goal snatched away, Chillingworth wastes away and dies, leaving much of his wealth and property to Pearl, who is thought to have then moved to England, married, and lived out her days happily, although the writer never specifies the details of her fate. Hester, after a brief sabbatical to unknown parts, returns to the town and continues to spread charity in the community until her death. Throughout the novel, Hawthorne discloses his opinion that mankind is basically evil and sinful by comparing the way his characters interact with this nature, following them as they are inevitably affected, covered by, or even overwhelmed by their disposition.

Hester Prynne is the central character in The Scarlet Letter. The entire work is based on her vividly present sin of adultery. Since the first signs of pregnancy began to show themselves, she has paid the price for her crime. Because carrying out the standard capital punishment would also kill an innocent child, she is allowed to "live" in a state of perpetual alienation, suffering every day as she bears her letter, which often "[seems]