The Scarlet Letter #2

"His face darkened with some powerful emotion, which, nevertheless, he so instantaneously controlled by an effort of his will, that, [...] his expression may have passed for calmness" (57).

This stranger sounds like Hester's husband in disguise. In the previous reading, the scholar Hester saw in her flashback has a "slightly deformed [...] left shoulder [that is] a trifle higher than the right" (55). The stranger also has "one of [his] shoulders [...] higher than the other" (57). This deformity is not common among many people, but it is interesting to note that the stranger "endeavored to conceal [...] the peculiarity" (56). Another similarity between the two men is the unusual skill of "read[ing] the human soul" (55) that her husband has and the stranger's ability to control his expression. If one knows how to read a person, then they would know how to hide their own countenance. This stranger is also eager in knowing "the partner of [Hester's] iniquity" (59). As a husband of an adulteress, it would be assumed that he would be curious to know who Hester cheated on him with. It is plausible that her husband returned to see the consequences that Hester is facing. He would find some satisfaction in knowing his wife was punished for her betrayal. The stranger also "calmly raised his finger [...] and laid it on his lips" (57), making it clear he knew who Hester was.


"Peradventure the guilty one stands looking on at this sad spectacle, unknown of man, and forgetting that God sees him" (58).

Everybody is looking at Hester in disgrace, but what about the man she committed adultery with? He could have also been married. Although the man is unknown, the town cannot take their anger out solely on Hester. The unknown man should fess up to his sin. He should also be grateful that Hester refused to reveal his identity. Hester is trying to take the punishment with whatever dignity she has left, while the father of the baby is too afraid to turn himself in. It is only just "that the partner of [Hester's] iniquity [...] stand on the scaffold by her side" (59). The quote presented above recalls a line Proctor said in The Crucible: "A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything" (Miller 110). Even if the unknown man is not punished for his sin and nobody knows about it, God will know. He has the ultimate power to decide one's fate and the unknown man should be aware of this. He is digging a deeper hole for himself, carrying on a burden that can easily be lifted.