A book report on the book"The Scarlet Letter". It is an examination on the differences between the marketplace and the forest.

Essay by errorHigh School, 11th gradeA, January 2004

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Scarlet Letter

The forest and the market place have such different atmospheres. People seem to change when they enter one place or the other. The forest is calm and people accept who they are and the life that they lead. In the market place people are arduously trying to lead a good puritan existence.

The forest is a way for Hester and Pearl to live their lives. The forest represents Hester's life. She is isolated in life in many ways. Her husband left her and she had no family. Dimsdale left her with her daughter to raise alone, and the town caused her to abandon it. Her life is isolated from humanity yet it is intricate. The author writes, "Hester is lost in life as the untamed forest." The forest is the only place in their life where they can go and be themselves. The forest is Hester's comfort zone, a place where she can go and live a normal life with her daughter.

The market is a place where people ridicule and judge others mistakes. I believe that the market represents Chillingworth. He is trying to make Hester and Dimsdale suffer throughout his stay. The market makes Hester and Dimsdale suffer a severe amount of pain is their lives. Dimsdale feels as if he is a hypocrite. He feels the people of the town see him as mighty and he knows he is not and this eats him up inside. Hester goes to the market and people can barely glance at her and the scarlet letter. Chillingworth realizes that Hester and Dimsdale had an affair, he continues to keep it hidden and this slowly tortures them both. The market and Chillingworth push Hester and Dimsdale to depression and unhappiness.

The forest is serene and quite, you...