Foreshadowing In Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter

Foreshadowing in the Scarlet Letter

In the novel, “The Scarlet Letter”, there are several instances where a future event is suggested, or otherwise known as foreshadowing.

“Sooner or later, he will be mine” (4.119).

Chillingworth is now fully aware of the sin his wife, Hester, committed and makes her a promise that he will discover who her secret lover is.

This meeting between Chillingworth and Hester foreshadows the day when Dimmesdale’s guilt becomes too much and his secret is revealed in front of his entire congregation.

“At the great judgement day…Then and there, before the throne of judgement, your mother, you, and I must stand together” (12.241).

Although Dimmesdale cannot stand with them on the scaffold the following day; he does

And meanwhile Hester Prynne was standing beside the scaffold of the pillory with the scarlet letter still burning on her breast!” (23.395).

In this description of the aftermath of the Election Sermon, Hawthorne is blatantly pointing out the dramatic irony of this situation.

Although these two are guilty of the same sin, Dimmesdale continues to be praised because he has not yet confessed; however, Hester, who has confessed her sin, is still looked down upon to some degree by the community.

In conclusions, various forms or irony can be found in the novel, “The Scarlet

“On the front of her dress, in fine red cloth embellished with gold thread, was the letter A” (2.83).

In this quote, the reader is given one of the first in depth physical descriptions of the letter A itself.

In the beginning of the novel, this letter study for adulterer, as a sign for the sin Hester committed. However, through many years of serving the community, she gave the letter a new meaning, “able.” To Hester and the community, this meant that Hester had the ability to help anyone in need.

“Hester had allowed her imagination to run free, dressing her daughter in an oddly cut red velvet tunic, richly embroidered with gold thread” (7.159).

In this quote, the narrator is pointing out the resemblance shared between the scarlet letter A that Hester wears on her bosom and Pearl, a living form of the symbol.

In conclusion, various symbols are used by Hawthorne in order for the reader to grasp a deeper meaning of a certain character.

True identities shown through