Hazel Adelman

Commentary in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hathorne, was published in 1850, about ten years

before the start of the Civil War in 1861. It follows the story of a woman named Hester Prynn

who has been punished for the sin of adultery after giving birth to Pearl, an illegitimate daughter.

The moral dilemma, however, is that of Rev. Dimmesdale, the town's reverend and father of

Pearl. He is plagued with a crippling sense of guilt for not joining Hester in her public shame, as

he was equally guilty in the sin. There are countless interpretations of this story line, many

people settling on the theme of guilt and personal moral distress. Some people believe that this

story reflects the political turmoil of Hawthornes time, particularly the tension between the

Democratic party and the Whig party. The different themes of the story, particularly the political

and moral themes, are both conflicting and coupled in the disputes that they cover. This essay

will discuss the conflict of Dimmesdale’s morals and cowardice in comparison, and in

connection, to the Democrats view of the Whig party's shortcomings and hypocrisy.

Leading up to the publishing of The Scarlet Letter, American politics were dominated by

the conflict between the Democratic and Whig parties. The Whig party leaned heavily on the

Puritan theology of authorizing public surveillance of private morality, while the Democrats

believed that using legislation to control personal morality was too intrusive. A large point of

conflict between the two parties was the idea of sexual morals, and whether it should be under

government dictation. The Whig party believed that loosening laws on offenses such as adultery
was a strike against their social system. The Democrats, however, were critical of the alocation

of moral punishment, and the discrimination from moral institutions against women. They

believed that the Whig party preached morals while they dealt out immoral punishment, and

supported explicit links between them and the Puritan belief system.

The idea of merging church and state was highly disputed; the Democrats believed that

the two should not overlap, while the Whig party pushed Puritan values. The Whig party, and in

turn the Puritans, believed themselves to be “the party of decency and respectability, the

guardians of piety, sober living, proper manners, thrift, steady habits, and book learning” (Kelley,

cultural pattern 166). They saw no problem implementing their personal morals into

government, pushing for public surveillance to ensure others were living to these standards. They

handed out punishments to those who were caught committing what they would consider sinful

actions, an act that the Democrats deemed intrusive and unjust. The Democratic party was

especially critical of how gender played into the allocation of moral punishment. In 1846, only

four years before The Scarlet Letter was published, there was an essay released in the

Democratic Review titled “The Legal Wrongs of Women”. The author argues, “The injustice…

permits a man, whether single or married, to lead a licentious life without losing caste, while a

poor girl… inevitably becomes a castaway through public scorn.” (482) They emphasize the ease

with which a man can earn a girl’s affection, and just as easily betray her with little to no

consequence.

These political occurrences and disputes appear to be represented in Hawthorne's novel

through the characters of Hester and Dimmesdale. While the two are equally guilty of sin, some

going as far as to say Dimmesdale holds extra responsibility given his position of power, Hester

is the only one to face punishment. Hester chooses never to reveal Dimmesdale's identity to
those in charge, but it must be taken into account the time in which this was going on. Perhaps

Hester believed that Dimmesdale going unpunished offered a level of security for her and Pearl

that she would not have otherwise. As reverend, his opinion was taken seriously, and he often

had a say in decisions made by the town's government, a privilege which Hester would never

have. Though Dimmesdale is not the one to punish Hester, he is a member of the Puritan church,

a main reason these sexual morals were observed publicly, and yet he is the one who remains

unpunished. He spends his day preaching morals, yet remains unaffected by his own sins while

Hester, someone who has no say in town decisions, and who made no promises to the church, is

punished and shamed. Seeing as Hawthorne was openly Democratic, it is not unreasonable to

assume that this story line offers commentary on the way in which members of the Whig party

punished others for “lack of morals”, despite coming away unscathed from their own sins.

The psychological interpretation of The Scarlet Letter is the theme of social stigma and

guilt. Hawthorne’s character Dimmesdale wrestles with the strong sense of guilt he feels for not

turning himself in, becoming physically ill from the distress. As a reverend of the Puritan church,

he may feel pressure to uphold his image in the village, and he is afraid to give that up in

admitting to his sin. Hester Prynn has no way out, and so as a result of Dimmesdale's cowardice,

she is forced to face the humiliation and ostracization by herself, with only little Pearl as a

companion. However, when Hester is pushed by the town's government, she refuses to give up

the name of the man who committed such sin with her. In this way she continues to enable

Dimmesdale in his lie, for he is too weak to come forward on his own. Despite Hester protecting

Dimmesdale from his humiliation, we see her grow as a person while he slowly shrivels away

into nothing. The guilt he feels weighs so heavily on him that he is unable to protect himself

from other evils as he fades away.

 Both psychologically and politically, this story gives the reader a lot to think about. As I

write about these two themes, however, it is impossible to ignore the glaring similarities between

them. Dimmesdale could easily represent the Whig party from a Democrats perspective, he

preaches to people about the importance of morals, and the consequences of not complying with

them, yet he is the guilty one. On the flip side, Hester openly accepts her punishment, and spends

her life willingly devoting herself to redemption and servitude. She is strong in the face of

controversy, wearing her letter not with pride, but with remorse. This seems to be a clear

reflection of how the Puritans and Whig party viewed themselves, and the hypocrisy that

Democrats believed it to be. Hester is the ideal that puritans believe themselves to be, but

Dimmesdale is the shameful reality.

As Hester overcomes the social scorn surrounding her, we see Dimmesdale become

weaker even with the unwavering support of his disciples. Hester learns to thrive despite being

outcast, and eventually, through good deeds, earns back the respect she lost, her scarlet letter

becoming a symbol of strength instead of shame. In contrast to that, Dimmesdale, who exhibits

nothing but cowardice throughout the story, continues to be seen as strong and deeply insightful.

The way he is written presents his character as pathetic, eliciting a feeling of sympathy in the

reader. Throughout the book I worried only for the wellness of Dimmesdale and not for Hester,

because from the beginning it is apparent that she needs no sympathy. She is strong, taking on

her hardships with grace and determination, unlike Dimmesdale who withers in the shadow of

his own guilt. Despite Hester receiving the punishment for both of their crimes, she walks away

with her head up, while Dimmesdale dies a devastatingly shameful death in the same spot where

Hester stood before.

 Reading the book, I originally saw only the theme of guilt, but I now see the way political

and religious conflict is incorporated into the book. The way that this story is written leaves the

reader wondering what side Hawthorne is truly on, whether he looks at Dimmesdale with

sympathy or with disgust. Looking at the history of the Whig versus Democrat controversy it can

be assumed that the latter is correct, that perhaps Hawthorne, as a Democrat, sees Dimmesdale as

a representation of the moral hypocrisy and cowardice in the Whig party. While Hester, a

woman, is being publicly shamed and cast out, Dimmesdale is continuing to receive praise and

reverence. This could be a nod towards the idea that moral institutions discriminated against

women, when giving out punishment and retribution for sin. While the Puritan’s pushed strongly

for public surveillance, their actions seemed to have been seeped in hypocrisy. Not only is Hester

the only one punished, but the other townspeople seem content not knowing her male

counterpart. There is no further push to find the second culprit, and so Hester is left to live out

her sentence on her own. At the end of the book, however, we see Hester come out stronger,

leaving Dimmesdale to die in his own self pity.

 Citations:

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlett Letter. Penguin Books, 1994.

“A Nation Divided: The Political Climate of 1850s America.” Omeka RSS,

http://cwnc.omeka.chass.ncsu.edu/exhibits/show/benjamin-hedrick/polticalclimate/.

Published by: Institute for Massachusetts Studies and Westfield State ...
https://www.westfield.ma.edu/historical-journal/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Klayman-win
ter-2007-combined.pdf.