adrianmontenegro

I read this book in high school, and thought I'd give it a go as an adult. I remembered the main premise of the book and that it ended tragically, and that was it. I was interested to see if my opinion of the book had changed over the years. I think I enjoyed it much more as an adult. #1 Because I now have several of those "impish" children that never cease to amaze. I find myself sometimes wondering where they came from, as Hester and the townspeople often wondered of little Pearl. #2 Because I have also felt the bond to a child in which they are my world, and if they were to be taken from me I would be nothing. #3 I felt compassion for Hester in every aspect of her life that I couldn't feel as a youth, most likely because of life experience. And #4 I didn't feel it was quite as tragic an ending as I had before. Hester and the priest no longer knew each other. The years had changed them and the ways that they were able to express their repentance helped mold them into different people. I do think, however, if they would've made their decision to leave together shortly after the presentation of Hester and her scarlet letter, that this story could've had a different, perhaps "happier" ending.

2020-08-27 19:48