While the forest, a private place, gave Dimmesdale temporary relief, he is never fully at peace until he confesses on a scaffold, the most public place. One idea is that publicizing one’s sin can help one reach inner peace. The contrast of the forest to the scaffold helps develop many ideas throughout The Scarlet Letter. Overall, the forest and the scaffold are opposites in many ways, which helps create complex characters and ideas. ![]() In comparison, the scaffold is the most public place, and the whole person is the publicness of the sins. Very few people walk through the forest and Hester, Dimmesdale, and Pearl feel safe to connect and discuss their relationships. It is a form of punishment that is harsh and leads to community wide shunning. Unlike the forest, the scaffold otracizes sinners and shames them mercilessly. He is able to acknowledge his connection to Hester, his love for Pearl, and his part in the sins. The forest is a relieving place for sinners it is a place where Dimmesdale isn’t followed by Chillingworth. The forest is a place for outsiders it is a safe place for people who have been shunned by the puritan society, while the scaffold often holds the most important people of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In contrast, the scaffold is a part of the religious community and maybe religious people go there. ![]() It is rumored that “the black man” lingers in the forest waiting to pounce on weak sinners. The forest is introduced by Mistress Hibbins, who is known for practicing witchcraft, as a place for friends of the Devil. The forest and the scaffold have many differences, which each contribute to a developing idea. The scaffold is a path towards salvation and peace if the sinner lets it guide them. In the end, he is only able to find peace when he declares his part in the adultery and his relationship to pearl. The burden on his conscience halts his ability to have peace and reach salvation. On the other hand, Dimmesdale keeps his sin private and it makes him sick. Hesters’ experience with the scaffold strengthens her and brings her peace with herself. The scaffold shows us that publicizing sins is necessary for inner peace and salvation. As time passed, her “A” changed to stand for “able”, which references pennacne and selflessness. The scaffold was a punishment Hawthorne described it as “the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and inclosing her in a sphere by herself” but it also redeemed her (36). After she focused on Pearl and helping those less fortunate than her. For Hester, it was horrifying to stand facing her mistake, but she remained dignified. It was a humiliating and traumatizing experience. The scaffold was a puritan punishment it forced sinners to publicize their mistakes and endure the shame. The forest is continuously a symbol of the opposing forces of the puritans and the wildness that comes with nature. The only place they feel free to discuss their relationship is in the forest. Another example of the authenticity the forest encourages is Hester and Dimmesdale conversation about their connection. This is the first time she is described as a human, and the diction is important here because it is a change from the imp, elf, descriptions. After Pearl is understood better Hawthorne says, “The mother-forest and these wild things which it nourished, all recognized a kindred wildness in the human child” (138). The babbling brook symbolizes the divide from pearl’s wild, nature-like, perspective to Hester and Dimmsdales’ bitter, realistic, situations. Pearl is initially described as erratic and “imp” like, but while she is playing in the babbling brook her mother begins to understand her. The forest also inspires authenticity in Pearl, Dimmsdale, and Hester. ![]() The forest is safe, but in the town she must keep the letter consequently, "of her own free will… resumed the symbol” (Hawthorne 178). Hester feels this sense of relief when she walks through the forest, and she, momentarily, discards the embroidered letter. Sinners could shed some of their lifelong shame in the forest. The forest was a place where sinners could receive relief from the constant scrutiny of neighbors or themselves. In the 1600s, Boston was a puritan society therefore, they followed a strict moral code. ![]() Hawthorne uses the forest and the scaffold, two contrasting places, to help develop common ideas in The Scarlet Letter. Her sin is displayed on the community scaffold and she is outcast from society, while his sin is secret and he is praised by the people. Hawthorne told the story of a woman and man that committed an act of passion and had a child out of wedlock. The Scarlet Letter is a tale of sin and punishment in a Puritan society during the 1640s.
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