"When the young woman - the mother of this child - stood fully revealed before the crowd, it seemed to be her first impulse to clasp the infant closely to her bosom: not so much by an impulse of motherly affection, as that she might conceal a certain token, which was wrought or fastened to her ches...

The Crime and Punishment of Hester Prynne In the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the main theme is crime and punishment and the ways Hester Prynne overcomes adversity. She commits adultery, a very bad crime back then, and has a scarlet letter "A" embroidered on her dress. This ...