It is important to note the chapter title: “Another View of Hester.” This chapter is a discussion of Hester's personality, character, and intellect as well as a summary and an update of her past four years (Pearl is now seven). This “other view” refers to both the changing perception of the Puritan community toward Hester and the narrator’s telling description of her.
Hester’s position in the eyes of the Puritan community has changed considerably due to her grace and her charity. She has borne her shame and sorrow with great dignity. The town describes her now as one “who is so kind to the poor, helpful to the sick, so comfortable to the afflicted!” Now the scarlet letter has magical qualities, and myths are growing around its power. But this new definition of Hester Prynne is not without a price. Her luxuriant beauty, and the warmth, charm, and passion that she once showed have been replaced by coldness, severity, and drabness. There is no affection, love, or passion in her life. Her humanity has been stripped from her by the severity of her punishment, and her charity and benevolence seem mechanical. No one crosses the threshold of her cottage in friendship. To add to this burden, her daughter seems to have been “born amiss.”
