In chapter XIII,
entitled "Another View of ," we learn that many people in Boston have begun to think
of Hester's scarlet "A" as a symbol for the world "Able" instead of
"Adultery," its original signification. For the past several years, Hester has made
herself especially useful in the town, tending to people when they are sick. She proves herself
to be a compassionate person who is willing to help others in their times of great need, and her
"breast, with its badge of shame, was but the soften pillow for the head that needed
one," according to the narrator.
Hester becomes so helpful, sympathetic,
and even powerful in how much she is able to do for herself and for others that Bostonians
cannot help but see and comment on how the meaning of the letter seems to have changed. It is,
he says, as though she is like a self-ordained Sister or nun: this is how self-sacrificing and
compassionate she is toward other people that it seems almost the result of a higher calling.
Further, Hester only stays until the sick person is well again, and then she disappears. She
does not remain to collect anyone's gratitude, and if someone tries to offer it in the streets,
she simply points at the letter and moves along. It has the appearance of exceptional
humility.
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