Life Defined by a Single Moment in Scarlet Letter, Red Badge of Courage

A Life Defined by a Single Moment in Hawthornes The ruby Letter, Stephen Cranes Red Badge of Courage, andDostoevskys Crime and Punishment Life sens be changed by a decision made during a single moment. Despite the immanent gifts of courage or intelligence of a person, a single slip can isolate him from the rest of society. In one case this can be cause by public conception. The public believes that this person is morally inferior and singles out that person for ridicule. However, it can also be self-imposed isolation. all way, that person cannot rejoin his society until he has redeemed himself. In Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter, both kinds of moral isolation are examined. Hester Prynne is placed in the publics scorn for her extramarital act. The scarlet A that she is forced to wear as a penance ensures that no one, especially Hester herself, will forget what she did. Through the publics condemnation of her act, Hester eventually finds her buyback and purges herself of guilt. S he becomes a stronger person because of this new understanding and gains the communitys respect for her charity. Dimmesdale, on the other hand, does not face his sin publicly until ... ...no matter how intelligent or extraordinary, can go their entire lives without making a bad decision. In order for them to return morally to the other members of their society, their redemption must contain certain factors. First, it is not necessary for a confession to be public unless the transgressor believes that it is a requirement for forgiveness. Then the person must believe that the redeeming act is equal to the mistake and that he is cleared of guilt. After he forgives himself, he is no longer morally isolated and returns to society whether or not the society has forgiven him.