Although Hester is not a woman I would want any female to look up to, she has dealt with her situation fairly well. According to Aristotle, in a tragedy a hero/protagonist usually brings upon his own doom due to the wrong motives, and must revitalize his life by "righting" the wrong. In a way, this is Hester's situation.
There are notable differences from this narrative and a tragedy, but the plot is somewhat similar. Hester kind of brought her own doom, due to instinctual motives, but she overcomes the problem to try to fix her life and tries to make her "wrongs" right. Even though she doesn't kill herself by gouging her eyes out, like the guy in the first tragedy ever, she kind of suffers emotionally for the sake of others.
Hester kept the townsfolk from knowing about Dimmesdale being the father of Pearl to protect him, she tried to make an honest living for the sake of Pearl to make ends meet, and she also bore the scarlet A for Pearl to recognize her. Not only does Hester play the role of the protagonist, and arguably the role of a hero in a tragedy, but she also suffers emotionally to protect those she loves.
Also, even though Hester did do wrong things, she dealt with the situation in a non-rambunctious way. She didn't try to bring down Dimmesdale with her, she actually cared about him, nor did she intend to bring Pearl down with her either. She honestly tried and made an effort to raise her daughter. She even left Boston on her own to give Pearl a better life.
Even though Hester did her “dirty deeds” she did what she had to do, and she protected who she wanted to. And although I can’t respect her for the actions that she did, I can respect her for the actions after. She isn’t the symbol for being a lady. She isn’t the symbol for the perfect woman. She isn’t the symbol for being the most heroic person in Puritan New England. But she is the symbol of what to do when you mess up. You do what feels right to you, and you do what you need to do. Don’t abandon your kids, own up to your mistakes, and be classy about it.
I, myself, would have done something, anything, different. However, I’m not Hester Prynne. I don’t know if she felt like she was the “temptress” to Dimmesdale. Or if she felt like the townsfolk might have thought that she bewitched Dimmesdale into loving her.
In conclusion, Hester Prynne is not the perfect Heroine when it comes to being a lady or being society’s version of “clean.” But she is a good heroine when it comes to being a woman when you are faced with a wrong that you’ve done. Even though I feel like she could’ve done more and she should’ve told on Dimmesdale, she probably had internal conflicts that she dealt with and she had affections towards him.
Everyone gives suggestions and advice when it comes to other people’s mistakes or situations, but when it’s their own time to mess up, they’re stunned and they don’t know what to do.
There are notable differences from this narrative and a tragedy, but the plot is somewhat similar. Hester kind of brought her own doom, due to instinctual motives, but she overcomes the problem to try to fix her life and tries to make her "wrongs" right. Even though she doesn't kill herself by gouging her eyes out, like the guy in the first tragedy ever, she kind of suffers emotionally for the sake of others.
Hester kept the townsfolk from knowing about Dimmesdale being the father of Pearl to protect him, she tried to make an honest living for the sake of Pearl to make ends meet, and she also bore the scarlet A for Pearl to recognize her. Not only does Hester play the role of the protagonist, and arguably the role of a hero in a tragedy, but she also suffers emotionally to protect those she loves.
Also, even though Hester did do wrong things, she dealt with the situation in a non-rambunctious way. She didn't try to bring down Dimmesdale with her, she actually cared about him, nor did she intend to bring Pearl down with her either. She honestly tried and made an effort to raise her daughter. She even left Boston on her own to give Pearl a better life.
Even though Hester did her “dirty deeds” she did what she had to do, and she protected who she wanted to. And although I can’t respect her for the actions that she did, I can respect her for the actions after. She isn’t the symbol for being a lady. She isn’t the symbol for the perfect woman. She isn’t the symbol for being the most heroic person in Puritan New England. But she is the symbol of what to do when you mess up. You do what feels right to you, and you do what you need to do. Don’t abandon your kids, own up to your mistakes, and be classy about it.
I, myself, would have done something, anything, different. However, I’m not Hester Prynne. I don’t know if she felt like she was the “temptress” to Dimmesdale. Or if she felt like the townsfolk might have thought that she bewitched Dimmesdale into loving her.
In conclusion, Hester Prynne is not the perfect Heroine when it comes to being a lady or being society’s version of “clean.” But she is a good heroine when it comes to being a woman when you are faced with a wrong that you’ve done. Even though I feel like she could’ve done more and she should’ve told on Dimmesdale, she probably had internal conflicts that she dealt with and she had affections towards him.
Everyone gives suggestions and advice when it comes to other people’s mistakes or situations, but when it’s their own time to mess up, they’re stunned and they don’t know what to do.