The Dramatic Significance of the Scaffold Scenes in “The Scarlet Letter”. 

Answer

Find out the dramatic significance of the Scaffold scenes in “The Scarlet Letter.” 

“The Scarlet Letter” is an iconic creation of Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) based on sin, punishment, and atonement throughout The Scarlet Letter. The novel has three scaffold scenes. The scenes symbolize universal shame, punishment, hypocrisy and moral depravity in Puritan society. These scaffold scenes are dramatic because they emphasize inner conflicts in the Secret relationship of Damesdale and Prynne and help the plot development of the novel.

The first Scaffold scene: The first scaffold scene occurs in chapter 3, at the beginning of the novel.   Hester stands with an infant (Pearl) in her arms on the scaffold in midday. She has committed the unforgivable sin of adultery. A large crowd of people gathered outside of the gate of the prison. In the opinion of many in the crowd, she has been let off with a punishment for breaking a sacred law.  

People mock her for standing below the platform. The leaders of the community – civil officers, magistrates, priests – stand above on a balcony. The leaders of the community – Governor Bellingham, the Reverend Mr John Wilson, and the young priest Arthur Dimmesdale encourage   Hester to disclose the name of her partner in sin. Actually, Dimmesdale himself is the fellow sinner of   Hester   Prynne.  They say, 

What can thy silence do for him, except it tempt him- yea compel him

They assure her they will remove the scarlet letter from her chest if she reveals his name. Women in the crowd make nasty comments about her, but   Hester   Prynne is silent. Nobody in the community shows sympathy for Prynne. People gaze at the embroidered scarlet letter ‘A.’ 

That SCARLET LETTER so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom. 

She stands alone in the world with the symbol of