The heroine in the Scarlet Letter is Hester Prynne. Even though Hester sins against God, she is a woman who survives the horrendous trials of a “Puritan” society—the society that wants to be a Utopia among imperfect people. From her horrendous trials, Hester gains strength, courage, and her lost love. The story begins when Hester appears from the darkness of a rusted jail cell into the stale, damp summer morning. In her arms, she …showed first 75 words of 1432 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1432 total…of moral value to the sister of mercy; and she proves that the Utopia of the Puritans can not have jails among “perfect people”. Nina Baym from the Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism states: Hester has in fact brought about a modest social change. Society expands to accept her with the letter—the private life carves out a small place for itself in the community’s awareness. This is a small, but real, triumph for the heroine. (313)