Beloved Blog !

Chapter 19
"124 was loud..."
How is Baby Sugg's advice to "lay it all down, sword and shield" manifested in the image of the three women skating?

Baby Suggs once told Sethe to "lay it all down, sword and shield," which means to let your guard down and enjoy life. There's no reason to be hostile or defensive, just be yourself and let life happen. Sethe let life happen, she told Paul D the horrid tale of how and why she tried to murder all four of her children, and he left her. After that experience Sethe needs to have a good time, so she takes Beloved and Denver ice skating. They make the most of a pair and a half of skates and although they didn't skate very well, "nobody saw them falling." Sethe starts to cry because after having such a good time with her children and experiencing true happiness, she realizes how much she has lost in her life and allows herself to feel the pain of it. It's okay for her to break down and unleash the emotions she has tucked away, because nobody saw her fall.

The Scarlet Letter One-Sheet

The black posterboard symbolizes the darkness of the sins committed by Hester and Dimmesdale, the simple, white lettering refers to the purity of the people who surround them, and the red A's are because of the 'A' Hester is forced to wear on her clothing to symbolize her adultery. The pictures of Dimmesdale (Rachel) and Chillingworth (Christina) are on either side of Hester (Lucy) to show how she is stuck in the middle of the situation. As you can see, the part of the baby (Pearl) is played by a stuffed lion, showing that sins have their consequences.

The Scarlet Letter Blog 2

"Crime is for the iron nerved, who have their choice either to endure it, or, if it press too hard, to exert their fierce and savage strength for a good purpose, and fling it off at once!" (144)

Those that commit crimes have to have a certain quality about them that lets them not have a conscience, a certain characteristic that leaves them unable to care about their actions and if they might effect someone else's life other than their own. No matter how small the crime may be, one's conscience is a powerful force and has the power to destroy your mental foundation with guilt.

The minister is feeling guilty because of his dishonest actions. He has been accused of sleeping with Hester Prynne and cannot handle the consequences of his actions. Adultery is a two-way street; Hester obviously knew she had a husband, but so did the minister, therefore, he was disloyal and dishonest to the male species. Society's looks of disproval and shushed murmurings have caught up to him, creating a frenzy of denial and innocence in his mind. Now that people are starting to actually consider that he could be the father of Hester's child, he's panicking, talking himself into believing they're wrong about him.

The Scarlet Letter Post 1

Passage: "This rose bush...we could hardly do otherwise than pick one of its flowers...it may serve to symbolize some sweet moral blossom...or relieve the darkening close of a tale of human frailty and sorrow" (p.56)

Through The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne shows us that dishonesty exhists in even the purest societies. Puritans are thought to be one of the purest people; they have strict religious beliefs and high morals to achieve. If one performs an impure action they are publicly humiliated and socially shunned. A prime example is the story of Hester Prynne, whose life turns upside-down because of one widespread rumor. Before Hawthorne introduces us to Hester, he draws us into her story by comparing a rose to human nature. When you glance at a rose, you see its obvious beauty, just as you might look at a person and envy a certain part of their lifestyle. It isn't until you touch the rose that you notice it has thorns and draw back to judge it more carefully, just as it isn't until you get to know a person until you can form a better judgment about their character. The thorns to a person's lifestyle are how futile and unhappy they can be.
When Hester is first released from the prison, all anyone sees is beauty. She didn't take the appearance of someone guilty, someone who had just spent months locked away in a dim-lit room. She wore the scarlet-colored A and held her child with pride and confidence. Which is ironic seeing as how committing adultery is a shameful offense and one should feel ashamed when forced to march through the town's most public places for everyone to stare at contemptually. The harsh truth of the matter is that the adultery was committed with the town's minister; the man thought to be the purest of the Puritans, one of the most holy and highly-ranked men in the town. But of course the public does not know this, for Hester is forced into silence, and the longer she waits to tell anyone the less chance there is that anyone will believe her.