【正文】 nts to be, which is pure. The movement of the light represents Hester’s constant denial of acceptance. Hester’s lack of surprise that she never expected to be admitted and is resigned to her station in life. Another way light and darkness is used is in the way Hester and Dimmesdale’s plan to escape is doomed. Hester and Dimmesdale meet in the shadows of the forest with a gloomy sky and a threatening storm overhead when they discuss their plans for the further. The gloomy weather and shadows exemplify the fact they can’t get away from the repressive force of their sins.III. Ambiguity in Morality Hawthorne’s ambiguity about man’s moral nature in The Scarlet Letter is the greatest challenge and pleasure for his readers. Is Hester guilty of anything beyond the transgression of the parochial beliefs of her immediate environment? Is her “sin” Christian and human love? Is she the noble heroine of a love story ordained in Heaven? Such ideas were confusing to many 19th century readers and are confusing to readers of today as well. Hawthorne leaves them as questions and readers must take the challenge to decide by themselves.In this novel Hawthorne examines the phenomena of guilt and shame in Puritan New England. It generates a mixture of confusion of pleasure and disquietude in the readers. The confusion is the result of a moral ambiguity in the story’s situations and characters. In this novel, this confusion brings the reader’s own beliefs into question, proving that its themes are still relevant in today’s culture.The moral ambiguity in The Scarlet Letter starts with the situation of the novel. The heroine, Hester, is an adulteress, a sinner found guilty and tired by the Puritan religious court. It seems that Hawthorne keeps on insinuating throughout the novel whether Hester deserves her punishment. Hester’s crime is reduced to a crime of passion, an expression of her individualistic rebellion against the harshness of her society, Hawthorne writes, “She has wandered without rule or guidance, in a moral wilderness。 but she lingers on earth, forever wearing the stigma of the scarlet letter. In addition, Hawthorne does not say that Hester ascends to heavenly bliss, nor does he say that she is condemned to the fiery hell of Puritan damnation. “He was too aware of his own human frailty to arrange final judgment. He left it to his readers to recognize their own sinful humanity and their redeeming brotherhood…and sisterhood…with their fellow humans.”[10]The character of Pearl, Hester’s daughter, suggests otherwise. Like Hester, there was a trait of passion, a certain depth of hue in Pearl’s character. Pearl is the distillation of Hester and Dimmesdale’s deep, hidden wells of freedom and individuality. Roger Chillingworth ments on Pearl’s unpredictability, wondering, “Hath she any discoverable principle of being?” “None,” answers Dimmesdale, “save the freedom of a broken law.”[11] Freedom generally regarded as a positive characteristic, yet this freedom of Pearl is described as the result of a lawless rebellion. If we associate with the Romantic belief that children are innocents, unsoiled by the sins of humanity, this ambiguity is reinforced. Like Hester, Pearl’s fate gives further insight. Pearl, who has been the symbol of individuality and freedom taken to an extreme, finally bees a rich heiress, and lives a happy life. As a matter of fact, she is the only character in the novel to do so. It is also interesting to note that Pearl has inherited two things。 as it can be seem clearly that Hester’s untruthfulness has affected him deeply. Initially, Chillingworth is a wronged man, but he determines to take revenge against Dimmesdale. Is it his desire for revenge that makes him evil。 No evil of the past be redeemed by better service.” [13] Are Dimmesdale’s hopes in vain? Dimmesdale confesses his sin after an inspired Election Day sermon, dying as he reveals the truths. Is this an indication that no works, no matter how miraculous, are enough to keep a sinner from his fate? Or, since his life was such a torture, are his death not justice, but mercy? Has he earned death and a respite from the pain of guilty? This is but another example of the moral ambiguity in Hawthorne’s novel. We cannot make any inferences bases solely upon the next. Therefore, The Scarlet Letter has created a “healthy confusion” in its readers.The moral ambiguities in The Scarlet Letter force readers to reevaluate their own beliefs as if plays with the reader’s sympathies. It is the introspection demanded by Hawthorne’s work that makes it a lasting piece of literature. The questions asked by The Scarlet Letter are so timeless that they remain relevant in today’s society.IV Ambiguity in Scarlet Letter “A”Another important use of ambiguity concerns the scarlet letter “A” itself. The important thing is that it means different things to different people.To Hester, the letter “A” is a symbol of her adultery against Roger Chillingworth. This is the puritan way of treating her as a criminal, for the crime of adultery. The puritan treatment continues, because as Hester walks through the streets, she will be looked down upon as if she is some of demon from hell that mits a terrible crime. This letter is meant to be worn in shame, and to make Hester feel unwanted. “Here, she said to herself, had been the scene of her guilt, and here should be the scene of her earthly punishment…”[14] Hester is ashamed of her sin, but she chooses not to show it. She mits his sin in the heat of passion, and fully admits it because, though she is ashamed, she also receives her greatest treasure, Pearl, out of it. She is a very strong woman to be able to hold up so well against what she must face. Later, the scarlet letter “A” changes its meaning into being able, angel and admirable. The town people who condemned h