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This is my first time reading Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, and it is a hauntingly beautiful story. Set in seventeenth-century Boston, it is a story of self-reliance, and of overcoming adversity.

The society in which Hester Prynne lives, judged her harshly for her choices. I will say choices and not mistakes, because whether they are negative or positive, is up to her. Abandoned by her vagrant husband for two years, she sought solace and comfort in the arms of another. However, unfortunately for her, this resulted in a child from her adulterous partner. Her crime was put forth before the Puritan tribunal, and instead of committing her to death, in an act of supposed mercy, she was instead jailed for three months and was forced to wear a scarlet "A" upon her breast until her dying day.

The "A" stands for Adulterer, a mark of shame for all to see, and jeer at. Some wear their heart on their sleeve, Hester was forced to wear her shame over her heart. Yet what did she do that was so wrong? For "continually, and in a thousand other ways, did she feel the innumerable throbs of anguish that had been so cunningly contrived for her by the undying, the ever-active sentence of the Puritan tribunal" (77). Who were they to judge her? Were they themselves without sin? And is what she did so wrong?I personally believe that she did not do anything wrong? She was lonely, and had had no word from her husband for years. I believe that in that sense she endured a different kind of emotional abuse, and was therefore not wrong in having an affair.

I know sexual freedom is a matter of hot debate, however I truly believe that a woman should be in charge of her own sexual choices, and should only be answerable to herself for them (assuming no violation of another's rights occurred). Even now, when a man sleeps with a woman of his choosing, he tends to gets "props" for it, a "high five" from society for his "wham bam thank you ma'am" win. However when a woman does the same, she gets "slut shamed" and if she brags about it, most of society is appalled by her brazen attitude.

In 2010 the movie Easy A came out, about a girl (played by Emma Stone) who does the opposite, she pretends she has lost her virginity to a "loser" classmate, so that he can get acceptance at their school. Soon however, thing take a turn for the worse for her, and she is branded a "slut" and "slut shamed" by everyone. To counteract this, she wears a scarlet "A" on her chest, and proudly flaunts her new identity, until it is proven that she is still a virgin. What though, made it necessary for her to have to be "pure" still at the end?

This year, another film came out called Trainwreck, starring the hilarious Amy Schumer. In one of the beginning scenes her character has just left from spending the night with her "boy toy" and is walking home. Amy Schumer tries to make no apologizes for having sex with whomever she wanted, yet her character definitely has a "walk of shame". This to me, seems somewhat contradictory until the end of the film. The ultimate message being, that the only acceptable "walk of shame" or "slut shaming", should be from yourself, if you are unhappy with yourself.

So why then, do we think it's okay to judge women for their sexual choices still? Why is Ghenas Khan the man, while Melanie Brown (of former Spice Girls fame), "slut shamed" for having a kid out of wedlock with (the now revealed father) Eddie Murphy? And why isn't Eddie Murphy being judged for having kids with multiple women? I don't think the answer is to judge both men and women, which I see more and more of on the internet. Rather to not judge anyone.

Thoughts?

I agree that a woman’s sexual choices are hers and hers only. Her body, her choice. She should be only answerable to herself (assuming, of course, that her partner has also consented). As Melissa pointed out, Fifty Shades of Grey has opened the world up to a female finding herself through sexual expression, but I think the depiction of women in E. L. James’s trilogy does more bad than it does good.

I want to respond to Melissa’s point here: “some individuals went as far as to say it was disrespectful to women everywhere, but I never truly understood what was so wrong with the author's interpretation of love and pleasure? Although the novel, and the subsequent film, portray a number of taboo encounters that impede on society's general understanding of sex, women who wish to be in control of their sexual appetites and who are able to openly voice their wants and desires when it comes to their sexual relationships, should not be judged or shamed for their courage/boldness.”

The problem with Fifty Shades of Grey is not Christian and Ana’s sexual preferences. Ana, I think, is the polar opposite of Hester from The Scarlet Letter. By the end of The Scarlet Letter, Hester has appropriated her ‘A’. What once stood as the mark of adultery, the mark of shame, is redefined to become her own. It can mean ‘artist’ or anything else she wants it to. She takes it and makes it hers. She makes it so her sexuality does not impact the rest of her life because she doesn’t let her previous actions shame her. Ana is not like this. She has consented to a BDSM relationship with Christian Grey, and while this is considered taboo, there is nothing wrong with it. As long as it is consensual, they can do whatever they want. What I have an issue with is how her status as a submissive to Christian’s Dominant affects every other sphere of her life. He doesn’t want her to drink, so she doesn’t. He wants to give her a car that she doesn’t want, but she takes it anyway to avoid punishment. She goes on vacation to get away from him but he follows her. He completely controls her outside of the bedroom. The entire “relationship” is on his terms, not only sexually. There is a difference between being sexually submissive and being a doormat. She finally claims her own autonomy at the end (spoiler alert) when she leaves him, but this is only after he goes too far with her sexually. But still, she didn’t safe word; she just let him continue to do what he wants to do. Then there is also the fact that Christian was sexually experienced and Ana was an innocent virgin for him to “ruin,” which just plays along with what I think is the societal fear of female sexuality. God forbid she have some experience so she could actually know what she wants from a partner.

Essentially, I see Hester and Ana as opposites. Hester does not let her sexuality define her, but Ana’s sexuality leaks into every aspect of her life.

I just want to comment and say I'm glad that nessrhia brought up the problematic aspect of the Fifty Shades of Grey relationship. The relationship is often romanticized, when it doesn't portray the healthy way to participate in a bdsm relationship. Though both women experience scrutiny from the external world towards their sexual choices, Hester has autonomy and agency towards her situation and even shapes how the public views her choices, whereas Ana has very little control over her situation.
On the surface, they may be similar, but I think it's how each woman reacts in their situation that really speaks of their generation. In the ending of The Scarlet Letter, Hester only sees a release from Puritan Boston in the hands of her co-conspirator Mr. Dimmesdale, and when he dies, she has nothing left to really look forward to. Contrarily, Ana finally finds the courage to break free from the grasp of a man. Hester's ending is representative of her time period- though she accepts her fate, she still ties her happiness to the prospect of fleeing with the man she cares for. In Ana's situation, she is plagued by the presence of a man, and finally frees herself in the end. Though her abusive relationship is not ideal, the fact that she releases herself is indicative of our current generation and how we have a greater understanding of abusive relationships.