The countrywomen gathered and discussed Hester Prynne’s wearing a scarlet letter A. Their gossip gives us a deep impression. At the very least, they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne’s forehead. Madam Hester would have winced at that, I warrant me. But she-the haughty baggage-little will she care what they put upon the bodice of her gown! Why, look you, she may cover it with a brooch, or such like heathenish adornment, and so walk the street as brave as ever (28; ch. 2). Here we can see the countrywomen look down upon Hester Prynne just because she committed adultery.
When Hester Prynne walks through the streets, she will be despised as if she is the evil demon from hell who has committed a serious crime. This letter means to be a shame for her. She is so ashamed of her sin and adultery, and naturally she considers not to show it. Here, she said to herself, had been the scene of her guilt, and here should be the scene of her earthly punishment (Hawthorne 74). Though she is ashamed of what she had done, she cherishes deeply her lovely daughter, Pearl, and sees the little baby as a gift. Hester is such a brave and strong woman that she can even burden so much gossip and face the difficult and embarrassed situation bravely. In other words, she treats her committing adultery bravely.
Compared with the scarlet letter A worn on the bosom of Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale hides the letter A which means “Adultery” at the bottom of his heart. The idea of the mystic A which the young minister finds imprinted upon his breast and eating into his flesh, in sympathy with the embroidered badge that Hester is condemned to wear, appears to me to be a case in point (James 77-78). The minister is compelled to pity his sufferings. Hester never calls on him for any comfort or support in her misery. Though the shame is harming his soul, lives during the seven years of the story, a witness of her misery and solitude, while he himself is surrounded by the very glory of sanctity. Among them, he is the one that suffers from the adultery mentally.
Because of his social status and his profession, he always tries his best to escape from the moral and psychological consequences of the sin of adultery. Though he is not sent to the prison and stands fully revealed before the crowd, he suffers from conscience mentally. So we can see Arthur Dimmesdale is not as strong-hearted and brave as Hester Prynne. 英文论文《红字》的象征意义(4):http://www.youerw.com/yingyu/lunwen_18617.html