In the novel The Scarlet letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne the society of a Puritan town exclude anyone who is in any way deviant and considers that person as being sinful. In order to fit in the people are willing to conceal and contain their passion and all their faults because of their fear of being excluded. In Hawthorne’s book he shows how hidden guilt can cause more suffering than open guilt. He demonstrates this …showed first 75 words of 830 total…

…showed last 75 words of 830 total…redeems her self. Instead of The letter “A” being a punishment it was more like a teacher and saver, to Hester Prynne she learned from her mistakes and also learned to live with her sin. Unlike Hester, Dimmesdale is a prisoner of his guilt instead of learning from his mistakes he keeps them a secret, which eventually cause his down fall. Both characters demonstrate how a hidden guilt cause more suffering than an open guilt.