The success and popularity of literary fiction can be traced back to its ability to comfort generations of readers conditioned to believe that uncertainty equals weakness. Stories that offer a sense of order, a substantial plot with an ending that allows for closure, are commonly valued for their stability. However, we see that books that maintain relevance and constant observation decades after their creation typically offer audiences a completely unique experience compared to this supposed literary standard. While this should normally be sufficient to consider a piece of writing “classic,” some argue that if the purpose of a novel can be contested, then perhaps the distinct title should be used with more caution. Norman Bryson, author of "Hawthorne's Illegible Letter", criticizes Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter by attacking the ambiguity of the story and the destruction of meaning which he believes vagueness creates. Bryson's title itself subtly criticizes the veil on the legitimacy of Hawthorne's piece by altering part of the original name. For a man with such clever wordplay, is it possible that he too fears the unknown at times? While he does not entirely portray apprehension in his writing, he seems to have found comfort in countering previous judgments with much disdain for the possibility that the constant changes in the novel allow the reader infinite room for interpretation. a positive reason. Bryson's claim that the overwhelming uncertainty of the fictional tale hides the supposed purpose of the novel is invalid as it is likely that Hawthorne wrote The Scarlet Letter to successfully represent his appreciation of the ambiguity surrounding both the community puritan who... middle of paper ...comprehensible and comprehensible image of a person known to embody a certain trait, Hawthorne's vague description of his characters' outward actions allows the reader to hold their own string together between the different internal dimensions and external ones in reality they form an identity; alas, making indulging in The Scarlet Letter a more active experience than it already is. Bryson's argument that Hawthorne's ambiguity was destructive of meaning is countered by the possibility that requiring the reader's presence to interpret a variety of themes in the novel was Hawthorne's purpose. Since ambiguity is a substantial part of humanity, whether modern day or Puritan Boston, an author can only try to address a perpetual, yet constantly developing concept. The Scarlet Letter successfully dares to incorporate psychology into fiction, a barrier that had been little overcome before its time..