Individuality In The Scarlet Letter

The choice of whether to conform to society's demands or to comply with personal impulses is a difficult one. This is an idea that Nathaniel Hawthorne explores extensively in The Scarlet Letter. This theme of conformity and individuality is manifested mainly through the character of Hester Prynne; a woman who committed adultery in an idealistic Puritan town with "a people amongst whom religion and law [are] almost identical" (35). Hester Prynne struggles between the “iron framework” of Puritan ideas and her “freedom of speculation” constantly throughout the novel. As the story develops, however, it is evident to the reader that Hester is an individual—not a product of her town. Towards the end of the novel, Hester’s “freedom of speculation”

This idea manifests itself in Hester’s refusal to remove from her bosom the Scarlet Letter, a symbol which was “meant for a punishment” (38). One instance of this is when Roger Chillingworth informs Hester that the council has recently discussed allowing her to remove the scarlet letter from her chest. She responds by saying, “It lies not in the pleasure of the magistrates to take off this badge [...] were I worthy to be quit of it, it would fall away of its own nature, or be transformed into something that should speak a different purport” (117). By saying that the Scarlet Letter will come off when she is “worthy to be quit of it” shows that she believes she must wear it because of her unworthiness. This passage also reveals Hester’s belief that the Scarlet Letter—a symbol of her sin—defines her, and should remain on her bosom. This connects to the Puritan belief that people like Hester are only on Earth as a lesson for others: “[Hester] would become the general symbol at which the preacher and the moralist might point, and in which they might [...] embody their images of [...] sinful passion” (54). Hester’s denial of the removal of the Scarlet Letter reveals the deep-rooted Puritan ideals in her