In the first chapter of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, a solitary rosebush stands in front of a dark prison to symbolize "a sweet moral flower, which one may find along the trail, or soothe the dark end of a story of human frailty and sorrow” (Hawthorne 56). A symbol of beauty and solitude, this rosebush foreshadows the mournful tone that will govern the rest of the novel and illustrates the beauty of confession and growth in contrast to the repression and decadence apparent within the prison. Hester can be compared to the rose bush because of her growth and inner beauty following her confession of adultery and because she shows a passionate and brazen face in the face of severe rigidity. Rather, Dimmesdale is the prison, confining within himself his guilt of having committed adultery and thus allowing the decomposition of his soul. It is through immense symbolism, contrasting imagery, and biblical allusions that Hawthorne creates a tone that is both critical and dark while addressing the pervasive theme that unconfessed sin destroys the soul. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayHawthorne uses Hester's scarlet letter, her punishment for committing adultery, as a powerful symbol that juxtaposes the hidden letter with which Dimmesdale must face due to his hidden identity. guilt. In the first scaffolding scene, before the crowd has even witnessed Hester or the affliction that is affixed to her breast, some of the women of the town gossip about her punishment. A young woman tells her neighbors, "Let her cover the mark as she likes, the pang will always be in her heart" (60), illustrating that Hester feels shame that she has to or not to wear the brand. Dimmesdale, on the other hand, does not confess his sin and therefore has no letters to shame his figure. On the contrary, adding to the gloominess of the tone, Dimmesdale is tormented by his hidden scarlet letter, which gives him "a worried, surprised, half-frightened look" (76). He is compared to “a being who felt completely lost and lost in the path of human existence, and who could only be at ease in his own retirement” (76). Hawthorne also uses this symbol of sin and the guilt it generates to express his pervasive theme that unconfessed sin deteriorates the human soul. Hester, who is honest with God and her neighbors from the beginning, is forced to wear the scarlet letter, which forces her into seclusion within her Puritan community. However, the letter "gave him a sympathetic knowledge of the sin hidden in other hearts" and allowed him to realize that, "if the truth could be shown everywhere, a scarlet letter would shine on many hearts" besides his own ( 101). ). This awareness, this awakening of her sense of reality, allows Hester to grow as an individual and become more exquisite than anyone else within the ordinary constraints of an otherwise stagnant Puritan society. Personifying this stagnation, which results from unconfessed sin, Dimmesdale does not grow as a person and he does not acquire any new moral sense until his confession. However, at this point he is completely ruined by his guilt and dies in Hester's arms because it is Hester's growth and newfound strength that allows Dimmesdale's confession. Also in the novel, vivid imagery serves to illustrate the paradox within Puritan society while creating a critical and dark tone. The dark and dull society in which Hester lives is most accurately illustrated by Hawthorne's depiction of their prison. And,.