Chapters 23-24 Response

The final chapters of the novel depicted powerful scenes of Dimmesdale's reveal or confession to the Puritan society.  When I finished reading, I began to think about the last thought that Hawthorne leaves his readers with.  He leaves us with the image of Hester's and Dimmesdale's tombstone with the words, "On a field, sable, the letter A, gules" carved into it.  Even after their death, the letter A still  remains the most prominent figure in their lives, carved into their gravestone for generations to see.  There are two ways that I looked at this.  It could be seen as an everlasting image of their sin, and serve as a punishment after death.  However, because of the proximity between the two graves, this scene could also illustrate the acceptance that Hester and Dimmesdale received after their passing.  Even after Dimmesdale's death, these chapters show the beginning of the acceptance of Hester into their community.  Women begin to reach out to her and ask her for advice about dealing with their own personal sin.  Hawthorne explains, "As Hester Prynne had no selfish ends, nor lived in any measure for her own profit and enjoyment, people brought all their sorrows and perplexities, and besought her counsel, as one who had herself gone through a mighty trouble" (234).  This shows the figure that Hester became, and that women in her community began to look up to for advice.  She was no longer receiving scorn and bitterness, but instead was "looked upon with awe, yet with reverence, too".  Along with the image of their gravestones, Dimmesdale's triumphant death remained a prominent scene in the chapters.  When he reveals to his community who he really is, he feels like a huge burden is lifted off of his shoulders.  The sin that he committed was breaking him down and eating him alive.  On the scaffold, Dimmesdale is a weak and dilapidated man that needs help to ascend the few steps to stand with his family.  The moment of this scene that I felt was the most powerful was when Pearl accepts his presence in her life, and kisses him.  She finally accepts him as her father, once he admits his identity to the society and joins Hester on the scaffold.

Questions:
5) What moral does the narrator say is central to the story?
The narrator states that the moral is, "Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world, if not your worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred" (231).  This is a very important message pertaining to the novel.  It is saying to not hold anything back, do not hide anything from anyone, even your worst qualities.  The most important thing is to be true to yourself and others.

10) Are the two lovers ever united?
I talked in more detail about this question in my initial response.  The two lovers are in a sense finally united after their deaths.  Their graves are right next to each other, and both share the same tombstone.  Their unity after death can be symbolic of their acceptance into the society as people to look up to and learn from.

Connection:


Elementary is a crime drama television series.  I chose this as my connection in relation to my answer to question 5.  The main character Sherlock Homes was a drug addict who had difficulties opening up to anyone about his troubles, and in return was unable to heal.  However, once he opened up to his "sober companion" named Joan Watson, she was able to help him recover from his addiction.  Also, because this is a crime drama, there are crimes that need to be solved, often with criminals trying to hide from the police or hide specific evidence to protect themselves.  However, they are always caught, and the evidence is always found.  In these cases, if the criminal was to admit to the crime right away, their punishment could have very well been mitigated.  Both these examples in the show highlight the moral the narrator portrays. Be true, be  true, be true.  Hiding anything will never help.