Human Attributes in Hawthorne"s The Scarlet Letter

Human Attributes in Hawthorne"s The Scarlet Letter

&nbsp;&nbsp;Hawthorne&quot;s The Scarlet Letter explores some human attributes in the three characters&quot; personalities through the incidence of adultery. The scarlet letter “A”, i.e., adultery or adulteress, affects the lives of the participants. Hester Prynne&quot;s adulterous relationship with the clergyman, Arthur Dimmesdale, provokes the anger of her husband, Roger Chillingworth.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;The free will of Hester in doing what she wants is unable to recognize her situation and brings about marital triangles. Law provides for the right thing for all men, and she has to wear the scarlet letter “A” on her gown in proof of her penalty, even if love is the only justifiable reason for adultery. Dimmesdale&quot;s passion violates his relationship with God. The priest, who took vows of chastity and who must represent the Puritan community, seeks a meaningful relationship with Hester and neglects his duties toward God. The engraved letter “A” on his chest--which has an impact on the mental health of the guilty minister--causes the evil of Chillingworth, who notices it. Though the pain of his wife&quot;s adultery entails suffering, he does not want to terminate the defective marriage. Instead, with evil intentions, he wishes the lovers ill.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;All of these attributes need to be taken into consideration in seeing the novel from a fully human perspective. For by understanding how such attributes as free will, passion and evil transform human beings, one may learn about the imperfection of humanity--a concern throughout history.