In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s seminal novel “The Scarlet Letter,” Hester Prynne commits adultery with a Puritan minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. Prynne’s husband, Roger Chillingworth, is presumed to be lost at sea while crossing the Atlantic Ocean. When she gives birth to a baby of unknown paternity, Prynne is sentenced by the Puritan community to stand on the scaffold for three hours in public humiliation and to wear a scarlet letter “A” for the rest of her life.

“A” stands for “Adulteress,” but Hawthorne writes that to Hester Prynne, “A” rather means “Artist,” “Able” or “Angel” because she remains a warm-hearted, angelic woman who is excellent at embroidery even after the cruel sentence. Scholars of American literature say that “A” may symbolize “America,” too.

In “The Scarlet Letter,” Hawthorne depicts the “unpardonable sin” not as “committing adultery,” but as “torturing and destroying another person’s soul by malicious revenge,” as exemplified by Roger Chillingworth, who spitefully excruciates Dimmesdale’s soul as revenge. Hawthorne also portrays Puritan leaders as those who commit the unpardonable sin because they torment Hester Prynne’s soul by branding her with the scarlet letter “A.”

According to Hawthorne, “adultery” is an accidental, momentary sin of passion that can be pardonable if the person repents. However, “the violation of another person’s soul” is undoubtedly the “unpardonable sin.” Therefore, it is Roger Chillingworth and Puritan leaders, not Hester Prynne, who commit the unpardonable sin.

“The Scarlet Letter” is set in the Puritan Massachusetts Bay colony in the seventeenth century. Strangely, however, the scarlet letter and unpardonable sins still exist in 21st-century Korean society. In Korea, people say that there are three unpardonable sins: 1) Possessing expensive real estate property by resorting to an expedient. 2) Making his son or daughter gain admission to an elite university by using his connections or submitting fake documents. 3) Practicing "gapjil" or misuse of power by using abusive language and walking all over the “little people.” The above 1 and 2 could be a crime too, depending on the situation.

Therefore, when a Cabinet minister-designate is summoned to the National Assembly hearing in Korea, his past life is in the spotlight, so that people can see if he has committed any of the three unpardonable sins. Sometimes “plagiarism” is added to the unpardonable sins, especially when the person is the Minister of Education-designate. When the Cabinet minister-designate turns out to be an unpardonable sinner, he is forced to step down because people would not approve of his appointment.

There are compelling reasons for such a unique Korean phenomenon. In Korea, for example, “equality” is so important that no one is allowed to exercise their privileges to step on others. As a result, Koreans detest it when someone gets advantages or special treatment because of their social status.

Besides, Korea is a highly competitive society. As a result, not everyone can become a homeowner or a prime university student. One must defeat numerous competitors to buy a home or be admitted to a top-tier university. Therefore, many Korean people find it outrageous and intolerable when someone cuts in line unfairly. That is why Koreans harbor ill feelings towards the so-called appa chance, or “using father’s connections and influence,” to win a competition.

Therefore, it is only natural that Koreans abhor those who have committed any of the above-mentioned unpardonable sins. Of course, those people who have committed unpardonable sins are not supposed to try to become public figures in the first place. However, they think of their “misdemeanors” not as the “unpardonable sin” but as a prerogative. Moreover, their political ambition clouds their judgment and makes them obfuscate. The price is high because the scandal exposed at the National Assembly hearing will not only ruin his reputation but also inevitably disgrace his entire family.

According to Hawthorne, if we maliciously “torture and destroy” another person’s soul, we, too, are committing the “unpardonable sin.” That is why we should think twice before we criticize or condemn other people’s sins. Instead of being upset and trying to punish unpardonable sinners, therefore, we should be humble and generous, pondering, “I have never been in his shoes. So, I may not know the situation well enough to judge him.”

On the contrary, however, we often act as if we were the 17th-century Puritans who persecuted sinners in cold blood. Of course, those who have committed the three unpardonable sins are radically different from Hester Prynne. Thus, absolutely no apologies for their disgraceful sins. Still, however, we should be careful not to commit the “unpardonable sin” that Hawthorne has illuminated in his riveting novel, “The Scarlet Letter.”

In Korea, we tend to brand others with the scarlet letters “US,” which stands for “Unpardonable Sinner.” Nevertheless, we should keep in mind that the sign, “US,” can also literally mean “us” if we torture other people’s souls and destroy their lives.

Kim Seong-kon

Kim Seong-kon is a professor emeritus of English at Seoul National University and a visiting scholar at Dartmouth College. The views expressed here are the writer's own. -- Ed


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