"Could it be true? She clutched the child so fiercely to her breast, that it sent forth a cry; she turned her eyes downward at the scarlet letter, and even touched it with her finger, to assure herself that the infant and the shame were real. Yes!- these were her realities,- all else had vanished!" (Hawthorne 41)
At this point in the story of The Scarlet Letter Hester Prynne is on the scaffold in the marketplace where she is given public humiliation and embarrassment for her crime of adultery. She is still in shock about her sin and the punishment she is given as a cause. Her life is changing incredibly fast and it is quite hard for her to grasp the reality of it all. She looks down to her chest to assure herself with physical proof that the scarlet letter and the child, as a product of her crime, were real, although she does not want to accept the truth. She realizes how nothing will ever be the same. However, as a women with pride she keeps her head up high and holds her baby close to her heart. This quote is important because these two factors are the reason her life changes forever and constantly remind her of the past. The baby and scarlet letter are what define her life in this story and the struggles she has to face as she becomes isolated from the community, is looked down upon by everyone, and begins raising her child as a single mother. She has to live with the guilt of her sin everyday, but her actions, whether good or bad, are what make her become the person she is throughout the story.
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